Flight 6 of SpaceX's giant Starship is scheduled to fly no earlier than Monday, November 18, 2024. If there are no delays, the world's largest rocket ever to fly will lift off at 4:00 pm CST from the company's Texas Starbase. Here's how to watch.
It was only on October 27, 2024 that Starship completed its historic Flight 5 when the Super Heavy first stage was captured by a pair of "chopsticks" on the tower from which it launched. It may seem like rushing things to have another launch just three weeks later, but SpaceX is already racing to beat the clock.
Not only is SpaceX keen on perfecting a fully reusable space launch system with a ridiculously fast turnaround time between flights, Starship is also key to a number of major space projects. NASA has contracted SpaceX to use Starship technology to build a crewed lander for the space agency's Artemis Moon program. In addition, Elon Musk wants to make uncrewed landings on Mars by 2026 and crewed landings by 2028. That means a lot of test flights over a very short time.
For Flight 6, the Starship will expand on the achievements of Flight 5. Along with another Super Heavy capture attempt, the mission will have a new post-capture rapid fuel removal system. In addition, the Super Heavy will be testing new Go/No Go software abort protocols, along with a human flight controller decision that will determine if the capture will go ahead or the booster will fly off to land in the Gulf of Mexico.
Meanwhile, the second stage will carry out a restart of one Raptor engine to test out the deorbit burn that will be used on later missions. In addition, a new heat shield configuration will be flown and the spacecraft will have a higher angle of attack as it reenters the atmosphere to place more stress on the structure. The mission has also been timed so that the powered soft landing in the Indian Ocean takes place in daylight for better observation.
If you want to tune in on the mission, coverage begins 30 minutes before launch and can be seen on SpaceX, X @SpaceX, and the new X TV app.
Source: SpaceX
