SpaceX 'Mechazilla' stacks Starship to initiate pre-flight testing –'We are proceeding very carefully,' says Elon Musk

This week, SpaceX 'Mechazilla' stacked Starship atop the Super Heavy rocket to initiate pre-flight testing. SpaceX founder Elon Musk nicknamed the Starbase launch tower 'Mechazilla' in reference to the 'Mechagodzilla' character from the Godzilla film franchise.The 469-feet-tall launch tower is designed to stack and recover the spacecraft by 'catching' it as it descends from the sky. Mechazilla's robotic arms lifted prototype Starship SN24 on to Super Heavy Booster 7 on October 20. The stacking operation took approximately an hour. It marks the fifth time SpaceX stacks the two-stage rocket. SpaceX shared an incredible video of Mechazilla stacking Starship, linked below. 

Launch and catch tower stacking Starship at Starbase pic.twitter.com/KOpX8tZMHh

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) October 21, 2022

In the days ahead, engineers are expected to perform a static-fire test of the gigantic rocket's 33 methane-fueled Raptor V2 engines. It would be the first time they fully fuel and ignite a stacked Starship duo. –"We are proceeding very carefully," said Musk, "If there is a RUD on the pad, Starship progress will be set back by ~6 months." RUD is short for 'Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly,' it is the term SpaceX uses when a rocket undergoes a serious failure that destroys a vehicle, like an explosion. Because the new launch system is actively under development anything could happen during pre-flight testing. If an explosion happens at the launch pad it could potentially destroy vital components that would have to be fixed and rebuilt. 

 

We are proceeding very carefully. If there is a RUD on the pad, Starship progress will be set back by ~6 months.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 16, 2022

 

SpaceX has experienced multiple RUD's at Starbase since 2019; These failures were not necessarily a bad thing because it provided engineers with vital insight on how to improve the spacecraft. They achieved multiple 10-kilometer flight tests of Starship prototypes. Now, they are working to launch Starship to the edge of space (~100 kilometer altitude) for the first time and Super Heavy it is set to become the world’s most powerful rocket. If all testing goes smoothly, in the coming weeks Booster 7 could propel Starship SN24 to orbit before the year ends. The orbital flight will originate from Boca Chica Beach, Texas, and end with an ocean landing along the northwest coast of Kauai, Hawaii.

Starship engineers are actively working on multiple stainless-steel Starship prototypes that will undergo similar testing. This week, they transported Starship SN25 vehicle out of the Starbase factory to the launch pad. Now there are two spacecraft and two rockets awaiting testing, pictured below. It is important for SpaceX to have a high production rate because it enables engineers to move on rapidly to test the next prototype after a failure. "A high production rate solves many ills. If you have a high production rate, you have a high iteration rate. For pretty much any technology whatsoever, the progress is a function of how many iterations do you have, and how much progress do you make between each iteration,” Musk told reporters in 2020. “If you have a high production rate then you have many iterations. You can make progress from one to the next."  

Sunrise Family Portrait

Metal print: https://t.co/NFo67t5ZVO
-@NASASpaceflight pic.twitter.com/yhwtuFmUqV

— Nic Ansuini (@NicAnsuini) October 20, 2022

It is amazing to see SpaceX’s work up-close!
Would you ride Starship if you had the opportunity? pic.twitter.com/F8Z4VUDXvJ

— Evelyn Janeidy Arevalo  (@JaneidyEve) October 18, 2022

 

Featured Image Source: SpaceX