SpaceX has made remarkable progress at Starbase, but will they attempt a launch anytime soon?
The corporate recently requested a maritime exclusion zone from the U.S. Coast Guard for “rocket launching activities” on August 31, 2023. Nevertheless, even with all of the work being done and testing in progress, it continues to be highly unlikely that SpaceX would give you the chance to launch Starship by then.
SpaceX has conducted quite a few tests on Ship 25 and Booster 9. Ship 25 has had its lifting points faraway from the nose cone, which implies the subsequent time it’s lifted, it’s going to be on top of Booster 9. That booster was recently moved back to the production site following its static fire test that was meant to last five seconds but lasted just 2.74 seconds with 4 Raptor engines shutting down early.
Progress with Ship 25 and Booster 9 aside, SpaceX continues to be completing retrofits and testing on the Orbital Launch Mount in an effort to prevent the damage that was sustained through the Integrated Flight Test in April. The water deluge system has been tested multiple times and appears to mitigate much of the energy produced by the Raptor engines, the tank farm has been repaired after having debris rained on top of it through the test flight, they usually are still performing tests on the fast disconnect system.
![](https://www.teslarati.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Starbase-021022-Richard-Angle-B4-S20-stack-2-arms-3-crop-c.jpg)
The total stack of Starship (Booster 4, Ship 20) (Credit Richard Angle)
There may be also the matter of the FAA. SpaceX has only in the near past submitted its mishap report with its findings following the failure of the primary test flight, first reported by Payload Space. The FAA still must review the report and determine what fixes have to be accomplished in an effort to move forward with one other test.
Considered one of those issues will likely be the rocket’s self-destruct system, which took longer than anticipated to destroy the rocket after the test flight went off target. SpaceX has conducted a minimum of one test of a brand new self-destruct system, however it is unknown if that was sufficient or if more changes are needed.
SpaceX and the FAA are also being sued by environmental groups to have the 5-year launch license revoked, but neither SpaceX nor the FAA have provided updates regarding the continued litigation.
While we wouldn’t expect a launch by August thirty first, SpaceX is closer to launching Starship again than not. The fast-paced progress definitely can’t be ignored, and a launch attempt by the top of 2023 is actually quite possible.