BOCA CHICA BEACH, Texas – On Tuesday, SpaceX plans to conduct its ninth test flight of Starship from Texas. This will be the first test since a previous incident where the spacecraft disintegrated, with its explosion visible from Florida.
According to SpaceX, “after completing the investigation into the loss of Starship during its eighth test flight, numerous hardware modifications have been implemented to enhance reliability.” The Federal Aviation Administration announced last week that they have granted SpaceX permission to proceed with another test flight.
[See the explosion as seen from Florida of Starship’s last test flight]
Last March, during its most recent test from Boca Chica Beach, Texas, Starship managed to ascend to nearly 90 miles in altitude before experiencing issues and failing to deploy four mock satellites.
It was not immediately clear where it came down, but images of flaming debris were captured from Florida, including near Cape Canaveral, and posted online.
This test flight marks the first launch of a “a flight-proven Super Heavy booster, which previously launched and returned on Starship’s seventh flight test.” SpaceX said this booster is “designed to be fully and rapidly reusable, with future generations capable of multiple launches per day.”
Starships soar out of the southernmost tip of Texas near the Mexican border.
SpaceX is building another Starship complex at Cape Canaveral, home to the company’s smaller Falcon rockets that ferry astronauts and satellites to orbit.
The Starship launch window opens at 7:30 p.m. EDT.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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