SpaceX conducts 2 test firings of Starship 20 in Texas

Fri, 22 Oct 2021 12:03:23 GMT
Space Daily

Washington DC (UPI) Oct 22, 2021 SpaceX conducted two engine test firings of its Starship 20...

SpaceX conducted two engine test firings of its Starship 20 prototype rocket at its facility near Brownsville, Texas, on Thursday.

The launch vehicle, a part of SpaceX's plans to travel to the moon and eventually Mars, fired its engines for only seconds.

The rocket was held down for a so-called static fire later.

The Federal Aviation Administration is currently reviewing a license request for the rocket.

SpaceX has been working to make the Starship 20 completely reusable with the ability to land itself much like its current Falcon 9 rockets.

The Starship 20 will eventually contain six Raptor engines, three standard and three vacuum, according to Space.com.

SpaceX has launched three-engine prototypes before that reached an altitude of six miles.

Elon Musk's space company said it hopes to launch the fully-equipped rocket for test flights in the coming months.

Starship 20 and SpaceX's Super Heavy will launch from Brownsville and return to the Gulf of Mexico.

The mission is one of several this year by non-professional astronauts, including 90-year-old "Star Trek" actor William Shatner who on Wednesday completed a space flight on board a Blue Origin rocket.

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