Elon Musk unveils SpaceX’s Super Heavy Reinforcement Recovery Plan that grabs the engine with the launch tower
- Elon Musk revealed that the Starship Heavy booster would be caught on his return
- Musk suggests using the launch tower arm that is used to stabilize the vehicle
- This would reduce costs and immediately position the booster for another launch
- Musk also said this method would allow him to take off again in less than an hour
Elon Musk is known for revealing ambitious plans and the latter suggests that Startship’s Super Heavy booster will not land, but will be trapped when it returns to Earth.
The CEO of SpaceX shared on Twitter that the heavy reinforcement, which is still under development, will be recovered by the launch tower arm used to stabilize the vehicle during pre-take-off preparations.
The proposed method would immediately reposition the reinforcement on the launch mount, allowing it to fly again “in less than an hour.”
SpaceX is working on the Super Heavy rocket at test facilities in Boca Chica, Texas, but is expected to make more test flights of its Starship prototypes that do not have mass reinforcement.
Starship consists of two: the Super Heavy Reinforcement and the rocket designed by Musk to carry up to 100 people to Mars at once.
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Elon Musk is known for revealing ambitious plans and the latter suggests that Startship’s Super Heavy booster won’t land, but will be trapped when it returns to Earth. The CEO of SpaceX shared on Twitter that the heavy reinforcement, which is still under development, will be recovered by the launch tower arm used to stabilize the vehicle during pre-take-off preparations
Now that SpaceX has launched three of the starship’s prototypes into the air, it looks like the company is starting to make plans on how the process will work when reinforcement is added.
Musk’s ambitious plan would be a way to reduce costs and mass by eliminating the need for the booster to have legs to land on.
However, if the CEO wants to achieve his goal by sending a million people to Mars in 2025, SpaceX will have to launch several starships in a single day.
When the tower arm grabs the booster, it is immediately put back into “ready” mode, allowing it to take off again in less than an hour.
The proposed method would immediately reposition the reinforcement on the launch mount, allowing it to fly again “in less than an hour.”
Starship consists of two: the Super Heavy reinforcement and the rocket designed by Musk to transport up to 100 people to Mars at once
The Starship star that lasted a test flight, serial number 8 (SN8), has been considered the most successful launch, but it was also the most destructive.
The world tuned in on Dec. 10 to see the massive launch of the Boca Chica rocket with the goal of reaching 41,000 feet in the air, the highest “jump” of any starship.
The ascent of the prototype spacecraft took about six minutes before the engines stopped and the SN8 began its journey to the launch pad.
The world sat on the edge of their seats as the rocket approached the ground, wondering if Musk’s prediction of a crash landing would be correct.
When Starship finally touched down, it ignited in flames, and once the fire and smoke were cleared, only a pile of debris remained topped with what was left of the cone of the boat’s nose.
Musk shared his excitement over the launch on Twitter, writing, “Successful ascent, change to head tanks and precise control of the flap to the landing point.”
“The fuel tank pressure was low during the landing burn, which caused the contact speed to be high and RUD, but we got all the data we needed. Congratulations, SpaceX team, damn it !!
Starship consists of two: the Super Heavy reinforcement and the rocket designed by Musk to transport up to 100 people to Mars at once
Later, the CEO thanked South Texas for their support in a separate tweet, followed by another that says “Mars, here we come !!”
Last year alone SpaceX completed two low-altitude flight tests with SN5 and SN6 and more than 16,000 seconds of run time during the ground engine start.
‘In addition, with the acceleration of production and increased fidelity, SpaceX has built 10 prototypes of starships. SN9 is almost ready to move to the platform, which now has two active stands for rapid development testing, ”the firm said.
Landing is one of the most important aspects, as it must be fully reusable to achieve the goals and price per flight set by the SpaceX team.
There are a number of potential uses for Starship, including the deployment of hundreds of satellites in orbit at once and the landing of astronauts on the Moon and Mars.