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posted by martyb on Wednesday April 29 2020, @03:01AM   Printer-friendly
from the Break-Things-and-Iterate-Past-the-Failures dept.

Starship chilled. Starship pressurized. And for the first time, it didn't explode:

This marks an important moment in the Starship program. Since November 2019, the company has lost three full-scale Starship prototypes during cryogenic and pressure tests. The most recent failure came on April 3. This is the first time a vehicle has survived pressure testing to advance to further work. Such tests are designed to ensure the integrity of a rocket's fueling system prior to lighting an engine.

SN4 passed cryo proof! pic.twitter.com/EJakThZRGF

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 27, 2020

Now, Musk said, SpaceX engineers will attach a single Raptor engine to this vehicle and conduct a static fire test. The company hopes to move forward with this test later in the week.

Should the static fire test be successful, Musk has said the SN4 vehicle will make a 150-meter "hop" test, much as the "Starhopper" prototype performed in August 2019. The company has yet to receive regulatory approval for this test, so it may not happen for several weeks.

SpaceX already has fabricated most of the parts for its SN5 vehicle, which may be the first prototype to attempt a higher flight. Musk said, if all goes well with SN4, the plan is to attach three Raptors to SN5 for a higher flight test later this spring.


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  • (Score: 4, Funny) by Sulla on Wednesday April 29 2020, @03:13AM (2 children)

    by Sulla (5173) on Wednesday April 29 2020, @03:13AM (#988089) Journal

    Father: One day, lad, all this will be yours!

    PRINCE HERBERT: What, the curtains?

    FATHER: No. Not the curtains, lad. All that you can see, stretched out over the hills and valleys of this land! This'll be your kingdom, lad.

    HERBERT: But Mother--

    FATHER: Father, lad. Father.

    HERBERT: B-- b-- but Father, I don't want any of that.

    FATHER: Listen, lad. I built this kingdom up from nothing. When I started here, all there was was swamp. Other kings said I was daft to build a castle on a swamp, but I built it all the same, just to show 'em. It sank into the swamp. So, I built a second one. That sank into the swamp. So, I built a third one. That burned down, fell over, then sank into the swamp, but the fourth one... stayed up! And that's what you're gonna get, lad: the strongest castle in these islands.

    HERBERT: But I don't want any of that. I'd rather--

    FATHER: Rather what?!

    --
    Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
    Starting Score:    1  point
    Moderation   +3  
       Offtopic=1, Insightful=1, Funny=3, Total=5
    Extra 'Funny' Modifier   0  

    Total Score:   4  
  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 29 2020, @05:01AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 29 2020, @05:01AM (#988104)

    I mod up the mighty Sulla, for his knightly singing skills! If only, he could find a woman, with HUGe tracts of land.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 29 2020, @12:48PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday April 29 2020, @12:48PM (#988163)

    HERBERT: I'd rather SING...

    *Music Swells*

    FATHER: Stop that! Stop that!