Tesla’s Cybertruck is gearing up to begin deliveries to customers after years from when pre-orders began. The rather unique looking electric pickup truck showed up at Starbase to film some promotional video using the large Raptor Vacuum engine.
Expand Expanding Close
At 2:42 pm ET (1:42 pm CT), SpaceX performed another static fire of their Super Heavy booster. This test was performed using 11 of the 33 Raptor 2 engines. These static fire tests are intended to test the booster and ground support equipment to prove the system’s readiness for a planned orbital flight test and many future missions supporting Starlink and eventually NASA’s Artemis Missions.
Expand Expanding Close
On February 23, 2022, an OSHA Inspection was opened after a SpaceX employee was injured during a test of the Raptor V2 engine. The incident left the employee in a coma for months. Though the incident resulted in a rather disastrous outcome, these hazards are not unknown or unusual for spaceflight testing.
Expand Expanding Close
In an email sent to SpaceX employees, obtained by Space Explored, Elon Musk addressed the ‘crisis’ of Starship Raptor engine production and said the company could face a ‘genuine risk of bankruptcy’ if the company is unable to achieve a Starship flight rate of once every two weeks next year.
Expand Expanding Close
It has been a long time since we’ve seen engines test-fired in Starbase, but Thursday afternoon, SpaceX did not just one but two. These tests mark a significant milestone for Vacuum Raptor development.
Expand Expanding Close
This week, SpaceX has added the final section to the orbital Starship launch tower, integrated the orbital launch table, and completed a great deal of work on their first Superheavy booster slated for flight, booster 4.
Expand Expanding Close
While the focus in space this week has been on Virgin Galactic, Elon still shared many notable pieces of information about SpaceX on Twitter.
Expand Expanding Close
Yesterday the teams at SpaceX’s Starbase Starship facility received the first vacuum-optimized Raptor engine from Hawthorne. This is one of the most important pieces needed for an orbital Starship launch sometime this year.
Expand Expanding Close