Failure at stage separation is a huge success for a first full stack test flight. It'll be interesting to see
Posted by
TWuG
Apr 20 '23, 08:10
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What caused the failure. Everything looked like it went well with the booster, but something in the flip didn't happen correctly.
That could be failure of the Raptor engines on the booster failing to gimble properly, the control surfaces on Starship itself may have failed to perform properly, or Starship may not have fired up its engines to aid in separation.
The coolest shot was looking up at the base of the booster in flight. I'm not sure how many Raptors appeared not to be lit, but I thought based on spacing it was about 6. 4 or 5 in the outer, fixed ring, and 1 in the center, gimballing ring.
Could be the shut off during launch or they may never have fired.
The reason it took awhile to lift off is because the engines don't all fire up at once. They are lit in groups.
And for those doubting or mocking, SpaceX is launching Falcon 9 rockets and recovering their boosters about every 4 days. Starship will successfully fly and both Starship and boosters will be successfully recovered.
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