This podcast is brought to you by Starship shirts.com. The ultimate destination for fans of SpaceX Tesla neurolink in all of elon's. Incredible Ventures from apparel and accessories to Collectibles and gadgets merchandise celebrates the spirit of innovation that drives the man himself. Join us on this thrilling Journey Through the cosmos. The open road in the frontiers of human consciousness with Starship shirts.com.
You're not just buying merch. You're becoming part of a global community that Embraces the future. ER with open arms, visit Starships, shirts.com and use the promo code musk ten for ten percent off. Your first order offer valid for a limited time only so get on it and start innovating yourself. Welcome back to the Elon Musk podcast where we delve into the latest advancements in technology, space exploration. And the Visionary Endeavors of spacex's founder and CEO, Elon Musk.
And in today's episode, we'll be discussing the groundbreaking test flight of spacex's Starship system, which includes a super-heavy booster booster 7 and the Starship upper stage ship 24. Now this ambitious test flight showcase the system's impressive capabilities of a Make the push, the boundaries of Rocket engineering setting a new record for thrust and testing the structural Integrity of both the ship ship 24. And booster.
Seven will explore the various stages of this historic test flight including the successful endurance of Max Q. The Innovative plan for booster recovery and also the ultimate goal of revolutionising space travel through the rapid turnaround times and sustainable space exploration of the Starships. System. A join us as we take a dive into the challenges. Faced during the test flight, the invaluable insights gained at the potential impact of this system on the future of space
travel. Now, the Starship system, booster 7-inch ship 24, it's a groundbreaking test flight. That happened today in this challenge is the limits of Rocket technology SpaceX and it's Relentless pursuit of revolutionising space travel recently conducted an ambitious. Test flight for its Starship system. Now, aiming to push the boundaries of Rocket engineering, the test flight. Showcased, The Staggering capabilities are the Starship system.
While overcoming numerous technical challenges to get it into the air, the test flight started with the pre-launch cooling of the 33 Raptor engines on booster 7 now at T minus 16 seconds or 16 minutes and 40 seconds. Small amount of propellant flow through the engines. Gradually, reducing their temper. Archer to prevent thermal shock and potential damage to the
intricate components within. And this cautious procedure mirrors the cooling approach taken with the tank farm, and propellant loading systems at Starbase Texas. And as the countdown progressed T minus, 47 seconds, Mark the beginning of the fluid interfaces vent down sequence. This crucial step involve venting any remaining. Propellant from the lines, connecting the booster in the
ship quick, quick. Disconnect the qds to minimize damage during liftoff at T-minus eight seconds, the Raptor engine startup sequence, commenced in the 33, Raptor two engines, ignited, in a staggered manner before ramping up to flight thrust levels. Now, for this test flight, the edges were initially limited to around 90 percent thrust.
And despite the Restriction, booster 7 broke records by generating an astounding 67. 8,000, kilonewtons of thrust surpassing the Soviet Union's N1 rocket, which held the previous record. It 45 thousand four hundred kilonewtons of thrust. Now with the hold-down clamps released booster 7 and ship, 24, lifted off from the pad, it T. Minus 0 simultaneously, the ship QT, arm responsible for fueling ship 24, this engaged and retracted to avoid damage from the departing rocket. And it's exhaust.
Now as the full stack began, its gravity turn the vehicle, clear? The tower and pitched down range toward the Gulf of Mexico and booster seven experience. The loss of five to six Raptor engines during the first stage Ascent but successfully endured Max Q. This is the period of peak aerodynamic stress around 55 seconds. After liftoff at this Milestone tested, the structural Integrity of both 24 and and booster seven.
Now unfortunately, though the vehicle began to spin and was ultimately destroyed by the flight termination system, despite the premature end, the test flight provided invaluable insights into the performance of the Starship system. Now in a hypothetical full mission, profile booster 7 would have continued burning until around the t plus 2 minutes and 49 seconds Mark at which point all 33 engines would have.
Down four booster engine cutoff. The vehicle would have then been at an altitude of approximately 64 kilometers or 40 miles up and climbing rapidly ship. 24 would have separated from booster, 74 seconds. Later coasting away from the booster for five seconds before igniting. It's six wrapped or two engines. Now this ambitious test flight was designed without the intention of placing ship 24 in a stable orbit. Now instead the Engines have what a fire. Just short of full orbital
insertion. Sending the spacecraft on a trajectory to re-enter over the Pacific Ocean near Hawaii. Now, meanwhile, booster 7 would have flipped around just after stage separation in reignited. Its inner 13 engines for What's called the Boost back burn, which would have occurred a little over three minutes after liftoff. Now, this burn would have lasted about 55 seconds. Directing the booster towards a splash Down in the Gulf of Mexico, roughly 19 miles off the Texas coast.
Now, unlike the Falcon 9 though booster 7 wasn't designed to perform an entry burn as the stainless steel construction offers great temperature resistance compared to the aluminum used in Falcon 9 instead, booster 7 would have relied on its for grid, fins for orientation and steering towards the targeted, Landing zone of the Gulf of Mexico. Now, the vehicle was expected to go. Go transonic around seven and a half minutes after liftoff with
a final Landing burn. Starting around 10 seconds later at this Landing burn lasting approximately 23 seconds would have used the boosters three innermost engines, bring you the booster to an impact speed of about eight point five milliseconds which is 19 miles per second. Sorry 19 mph upon hitting the water. The water and 10 seconds after Splashdown boost. Seven would have tipped over onto its side in the event. That the tip over did not cause the vehicle to break apart vent.
Veils on both propellant tanks, would have opened to allow water to flood the vehicle sinking. It intentionally, they don't plan to recover those now. SpaceX is ultimate goal is to fly super heavy boosters, back to the launch site and use the massive Chopsticks mounted on the launch Tower to catch the boosters as they come in for a landing.
Now, this Innovative approach could enable Turnaround times for the boosters as no recovery assets would be needed in the vehicles could be placed directly back onto the launch Mount shortly after landing. Now, assuming ship 24 had reached engine cutoff, it would have coasted for slightly over
an hour. And during this time, the vehicle would have vented all, but nearly 14, tons of propellant, that's 10, tons of locks liquid oxygen and four tons of CH4 And to maintain the correct amount of ballast during re-entry. That would have happened if the vehicle had survived. The nearly 10 minute long re-entry, phase shift 24 would have gone, transcending, just under 1 & a half hours after lifting off from Starbase for
this test flight don't recovery. Attempt would have been made for ship 24. Unlike booster 7 ship 24 would not have performed a landing burn. It was expected to impact the ocean at terminal velocity. Approximately one and a half hours after liftoff, had the mission progressed that far. Unfortunately, they did have to terminate the flight with the flight termination system over the Gulf of Mexico and they lost both the booster and the ship
during this flame. Now, despite the challenges faced during the test flight, the data in the experience, gained from the event will contribute to the development of future Starship missions with each new test. Each new booster, each new ship, SpaceX takes one step closer to transforming space travel, making the dream of affordable, huge space, travel, huge, Rockets affordable, and sustainable for the future of all humankind.