Elon Musk Announces SpaceX’s Attempt to Catch Starship Upper Stage in Flight 8

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SpaceX’s Ambitious Plans for Starship: Catching the Second-Stage Craft

According to recent statements from Elon Musk, SpaceX is setting its sights on catching the second-stage Starship during Flight 8 using the tower arms. This follows the completion of Starship Flight 6, which focused primarily on the second-stage vehicle. The test included executing the first in-space re-ignition of the Starship’s engines, testing the forward flaps under a steeper entry profile, and validating the heat shield design with older thermal protection tiles.

The mission concluded successfully with a soft splashdown in the Indian Ocean. Musk indicated that if Flight 7 also results in a smooth splashdown, SpaceX would be primed to attempt a tower catch on the subsequent flight.

Highlights from Starship Flight 6: Key Developments and Challenges

Starship Flight 6 was described as remarkable—or in Musk’s words, “bananas.”Following the successful tower catch during Flight 5, much attention was directed at the Super Heavy booster and the tower catching mechanism for Flight 6. Preliminary checks conducted prior to the boost back burn appeared to indicate that the tower was ready for a catch attempt.

However, as the Super Heavy rocket began its descent after shutting off its engines, mission controllers decided to divert the landing to the ocean. While the specific reasons for this change in plans remain confidential, local media reported that a communications tower on the launch site may have been damaged.

Musk had previously mentioned an escalation in the catch attempt’s complexity during Flight 6, yet the specific issues leading to the catch being aborted remain undisclosed at this time.

SpaceX's Starship Super Heavy booster — SpaceX’s Starship Super Heavy booster approaches the ocean for a successful soft splashdown. Image: SpaceX

Preparations for Future Missions: Catching the Upper Stage Starship

The upper stage of Starship took center stage during this mission. SpaceX tested the craft at a steeper descent angle and used older heat shield tiles, deliberately leaving some areas exposed. This strategy was intended to assess potential locations for the catch hardware necessary for a future tower catch.

Following Flight 6, Musk took to social media platform X, asserting that if the upper stage successfully achieves another ocean landing during Flight 7, SpaceX will move forward with a catch attempt on the next test flight. He previously outlined a strategy of securing at least three successful splashdowns before transitioning to a tower catch.

According to Musk, SpaceX will conduct one more ocean landing. If this goes smoothly, they will proceed with the catch attempt using the tower. His statements suggest that early assessments of potential catch hardware locations have yielded positive feedback, bolstering confidence following the robust performance of the second-stage Starship in the recent tests.

Insights from Flight 6: Data and Future Implications

In its initial post-Flight 6 statement, SpaceX noted that the data gathered from various thermal protection experiments, coupled with the successful flight at a more aggressive angle, will provide crucial information to enhance flight hardware performance in future missions. This knowledge is vital as SpaceX aims for successful ship returns and catch operations.

Additionally, the successful in-flight ignition of the Raptor engine has demonstrated essential capabilities needed for conducting deorbit burns, paving the way for fully orbital missions in the near future.

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