SpaceX’s Starship Reaches Orbit for First Time, Deploys 26 Starlink Satellites
publishers 49articles 63first reported 26 Sep, 13:00 UTCdeveloping since 26 Sep · 5 editions
SpaceX’s Starship reached low-Earth orbit for the first time Monday during its 14th uncrewed test flight, deploying 26 next-generation Starlink satellites before splashing down in the Pacific Ocean.
The 407-foot rocket lifted off from SpaceX’s Starbase facility in South Texas at about 7:49 a.m. local time. Its Super Heavy booster, powered by 33 engines, separated from the upper stage roughly two and a half minutes after launch and later completed a controlled splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico rather than returning to the launch tower.
One of Starship’s six Raptor engines failed during ascent. After assessing the problem, mission managers decided about 22 minutes into the flight to continue into orbit. SpaceX shortened the mission from a planned six orbits over nearly 10 hours to approximately three hours.
Starship released all 26 Starlink V3 satellites, which are larger than satellites normally carried aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. Engadget reported that SpaceX established contact with all 26 after deployment. Three carried cameras intended to collect data on Starship’s heat shield during reentry.
The spacecraft subsequently reentered Earth’s atmosphere and splashed down in the Pacific north of Hawaii. Previous Starship tests had followed suborbital trajectories. The Federal Aviation Administration had granted SpaceX an orbital launch license for Flight 14.
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