The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has granted Elon Musk’s SpaceX a license for the first orbital flight of the Starship super-heavy launch vehicle, the most powerful ever built. It is reported by RBC with reference to CNN.
The statement of the department, which leads the TV channel, says that SpaceX meets all the requirements of safety, ecology, “airspace integration and financial responsibility.”
The launch will take place on Monday, April 17, from Starbase’s private spaceport in Boca Chica, Texas. The 150-minute launch window will open at 8:00 AM EST (15:00 GMT).
The total height of the Starship is 120 m, the rocket system consists of a spacecraft and a Super Heavy carrier. The company’s website says that the ship is a reusable transport system, it is capable of delivering people and cargo to low Earth orbit, the Moon and Mars. The flight will take place in unmanned mode, if everything goes according to plan, the Booster 7 super-heavy rocket booster will put the ship into orbit, which will make one flight around the Earth. After that, the two parts of the missile system will land in the Pacific Ocean on a floating platform.
In February, SpaceX tested the simultaneous operation of 31 of the 33 Raptor engines installed on the Booster 7 rocket booster. As Musk reported, engineers turned off one engine before launch, and another turned off on its own. However, he said, even 31 engines are enough to put the ship into orbit.
Source: Rosbalt
Mario Twitchell is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his insightful and thought-provoking writing on a wide range of topics including general and opinion. He currently works as a writer at 247 news agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
