Starship’s first orbital launch is getting closer

Twelve weeks have gone past since we wrote an article on emerging details for Starship’s first orbital launch. If we were talking about any other rocket company, this would be an extremely short period of time - but for SpaceX, who have a reputation for getting things done at a blistering speed, it seems like an eternity.

Building the Starship and Super Heavy booster was never going to cause any delay to Elon Musk’s highly ambitious target. The bigger challenge was the construction of an orbital launch pad, together with fuel tanks and all the other necessary ground support equipment. Now that everything is approaching completion, the 440ft/135m tall launch tower is the dominant feature - as you can see from the photograph below (reproduced with the kind permission of Starship Gazer). In addition to launching fully-stacked Starships, the future aim is also to catch the Super Heavy boosters after they return from orbit.

Starbase’s new orbital launch pad is taking shape (Credit: @StarshipGazer)

The launch pad table is lifted (Credit: SpaceX/Elon Musk)

The launch pad table, with all of its complex engineering, was lifted into position by two gigantic cranes on Saturday 31st July - heralded by Elon Musk tweeting that everything was progressing “at Warp 9”.

Then it really started to hot up last week. On Wednesday 4th August, Super Heavy Booster 4 was lifted onto the orbital launch pad. This was closely followed two days later, on Friday 6th August, by Starship 20 being lifted on top. This is the first time we’ve seen a fully stacked Starship - i.e Starship and Super Heavy booster both assembled together. Again, the photograph below is used with the kind permission of Starship Gazer.

Starship 20, with a mass of black heat shield tiles showing, is lifted up for stacking on Super Heavy Booster 4 (Credit: @StarshipGazer)

SpaceX had previously installed 29 Raptor engines at the base of Super Heavy Booster 4 - doing this in just 14 hours, which is astonishingly fast. Another of Starship Gazer’s excellent photographs (below) shows the Raptors tightly packed together as Super Heavy Booster 4 is lifted onto the orbital launch pad.

A close view of the 29 Raptor engines at the base of Super Heavy Booster 4 (Credit: @StarshipGazer)

Shortly afterwards, three more Raptors were fitted to Starship 20, as well as three vacuum-optimised Raptor engines. Most of the Raptors are for use at sea level and higher, but the vacuum Raptors - which are easily distinguishable by their much larger bell nozzle (as you can see in the photograph below) - are for use in space.

Six Raptor engines fitted to a Starship for the first time (Credit: SpaceX/Elon Musk)

Starship 20 and Super Heavy Booster 4 were successfully mated, with everything carefully checked for a good fit. Then Starship 20 was lifted off and transported back to the build site.

Everything is carefully checked. And look at the size of those grid fins on Super Heavy Booster 4! (Credit: SpaceX/Elon Musk)

Super Heavy Booster 4 will likely be transported back to the build site later today. All Raptors will probably be removed from Starship and Super Heavy, so that both can undergo ambient and cryogenic testing. The Raptor engines will then be refitted, ready for static fire tests. We’ll finally see a re-stacking, before being treated to the first orbital test flight.

These developments are a milestone event. As we have said before, we are living in exciting times.

Written by Cal Stewart, 9th August 2021.