Today, SpaceX will try again to launch Starship on test flight; check launch time in India
2 min read . Updated: 20 Apr 2023, 07:47 AM IST
PremiumLess than 10 minutes prior to the scheduled launch, a pressurization problem occurred in the first-stage booster, resulting in the cancellation of the originally-planned April 17 launch of SpaceX's Starship.
On April 20, SpaceX is set to make a second attempt to launch the Starship spacecraft, the world's most powerful rocket built to take astronauts to the Moon, Mars and beyond. The first scheduled launch on April 17 was aborted less than 10 minutes ahead of time due to a pressurisation issue in the first-stage booster.
Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX, has been cautious about the inaugural test flight, noting the high risks involved. He cast some doubt on whether the launch would go ahead on April 20, saying, "The team is working around the clock on many issues. Maybe 4/20, maybe not."
If the launch goes according to plan, the Super Heavy booster will separate from Starship about three minutes after launch and splash down in the Gulf of Mexico. Starship, which has six engines of its own, will continue to an altitude of nearly 150 miles, completing a near-circle of the Earth before splashing down in the Pacific Ocean near Hawaii about 90 minutes after launch.
NASA has selected the Starship spacecraft to ferry astronauts to the Moon in late 2025, marking the first time humans will travel to the Moon since the Apollo program ended in 1972. Starship comprises a 164-foot spacecraft that sits atop a 230-foot tall first-stage Super Heavy booster rocket.
Also Read: Elon Musk's SpaceX postpones debut flight of Starship rocket system. Here's why
The planned test flight aims to assess the performance of the spacecraft and the Super Heavy rocket in combination. SpaceX conducted a successful test-firing of the 33 massive Raptor engines on the first-stage booster in February, but the Starship spacecraft and the Super Heavy rocket have never flown together.
Starship is both bigger and more powerful than NASA's heavy rocket called the Space Launch System (SLS), which has been in development for over a decade. Starship generates 17 million pounds of thrust, more than twice that of the Saturn V rockets used to send Apollo astronauts to the Moon.
Also Read: Elon Musk Lowers Expectations for SpaceX’s First Starship Launch Attempt
Musk has said that the eventual objective is to establish bases on the Moon and Mars and put humans on the "path to being a multi-planet civilization." The plan is to make Starship reusable and bring down the price to a few million dollars per flight.
Starship launch time in India
The launch window opens at 8:28 am Central Time and lasts for about an hour. For India, the timeframe for the launch of Starship on April 20 commences at 6:58 PM IST and concludes at 8:00 PM.
(With agency inputs)
