Last week we reported that SpaceX has moved the Flight 6 Super Heavy rocket booster to the Starbase orbital launch mount (OLM/launch pad) for testing.
This was the first major event after the successful Flight 5 launch and landing test earlier this month. In addition to sharing the Super Heavy booster update, Elon Musk gave updates on upcoming flights and future Starship plans through his social media platform X (Twitter).
Flight 6 Super Heavy Static Fire Test
SpaceX has been busy preparing for Flight 6 on the ground. Less than two weeks after the Flight 5 test, Elon Musk’s spaceflight company performed a static fire test on the Flight 6 Super Heavy (Booster 13) on Thursday, 24th October.
An interesting observation struck my mind as I was looking at the Flight 6 booster static fire preparations in the video above. The orbital launch mount (OLM / the launch pad) was ready to be mounted with another booster after the Flight 5 liftoff just 10 days ago.
This suggests that the OLM did not incur any significant damage even after the full-throttle 33-engine thrust at Flight 5 liftoff. SpaceX’s innovative water deluge system has proven to be a critical component of Starship’s reusability. As soon as the launch pad is ready after a flight, it will be able to catch or launch another Starship.
SpaceX performed a 33-engine static fire test on Flight 6 Super Heavy booster for a full duration of 10 seconds before the Raptor engines shut off.
Before performing the test, it was interesting to look at the Super Heavy booster getting frosted gradually upwards as it is filled with liquid oxygen (LOX) for the cryogenic pressure-proof testing (cryo test).
Starship Upper Stage Catch Next Year
Elon Musk and his entire SpaceX team celebrated the success of the Flight 5 Super Heavy catch-landing the entire following week of the event. The vibrant CEO of the spaceflight company shared some updates and the upcoming plans for the Starship program during this time.
Catching the Starship’s upper/2nd stage spaceship can also happen with the upcoming Flight 6 launch and landing test. Although SpaceX caught the booster this time, it’s not a complete landing test without catching the 2nd stage of the ship.
With the FAA delays experienced in the Flight 5 test, there is a chance that the Starship Flight 6 test will be postponed to the next year. If that happens, SpaceX might attempt catching the 2nd stage ship as early as Flight 6.
Musk predicted on X (Twitter) that SpaceX will attempt to catch the Starship upper-stage spaceship early next year (2025). The success of this test will be a significant milestone in achieving full-stack reusability of Starship.
In the previous Starship Flight 5 launch and landing test, the upper stage Ship 30 made a soft splashdown landing in the Indian Ocean as planned. According to Elon Musk, this is “paving the way for a return to the launch site and being caught by the tower arms, like the booster”.
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