Update: SpaceX is well underway with Starship SN15’s first cryogen-resistant test and is loading the upgraded steel rocket with hundreds of tons of super-cool liquid nitrogen (LN2).
As a result, the 50 m (165 ft) long spacecraft and prototype developed a frost layer at the upper stage, as the extremely cold load literally froze the damp South Texas air on its steel sheet. Keep up to date with the achievements of Starship SN15 during its first ‘cryo proof’ and what it means for engine installation and the next big test – a triple-Raptor static fire.
SpaceX has cleared all the staff of its sub-orbital South Texas launch site and paved the way for the Starship Series Number 15 (SN15) to launch the first in a series of major tests.
Equipped with ‘hundreds’ of upgrades compared to late pre-sizes SN8, SN9, SN10 and SN11, there is a chance that SN15 will hold the key to SpaceX’s first successful launch and landing at high altitude Starship.
Although Starship SN10 was able to land in one piece last month and both his and his siblings successfully reached the nominal 10-12.5 km (6-8 miles) apogee, they averaged more than six minutes of controlled flight, and at least one of the three Raptors restarts. engine without problems, exploded SN10 minutes after contact and the other ships had different faults 10-30 seconds before their landing. At least one vehicle loss (Starship SN9) can be blamed for one of two Raptor engines not starting properly.
Starship SN8 took a few seconds away from an intact touch during the first try before a problem with its advanced pressure system starved its Raptor engines of fuel. Starship SN10 landed hard – partly leading to its demise – because the quick-fix SpaceX implemented to deal with the pressure issues, SN8 popped up, causing Raptor engines to ingest helium, dramatically lowering their power and performance. CEO Elon Musk believes SN11’s earlier downfall was caused by a high-pressure methane leak on one Raptor engine that destroyed aviation and led to a hard start and violent explosion during the ignition of burns.
While many – if not most – of the myriad upgrades of Starship SN15 probably started before most of the SN8-SN11 bug modes were discovered, it is not unlikely that SpaceX was already aware of potential vulnerabilities and was working on them to correct. The company’s philosophy is consistent with the development that is popular in software industries, namely the development of a minimum viable product, followed by a cycle of iterative testing and refinement until a given product achieves all its fundamental goals.
It is now up to Starship SN15 (as well as SN16, SN17, SN18 and possibly SN19) to carry the torch forward and demonstrate clear progress towards a reliable, reusable spacecraft and top step. To do this, SN15 must first serve as a pathfinder for the upgrades, starting with on-site qualification tests.
The first of these – probably a cryogen-resistant test with liquid nitrogen – is already planned today, somewhere between 20:00 and 20:00 CDT (UTC-5). Stay tuned for updates as Starship SN15 (hopefully) gets icy for the first time.