Elon Musk's SpaceX Plans pivotal engine test for Starship on Thursday
1 min read . Updated: 09 Feb 2023, 02:28 AM IST
PremiumSpaceX plans to fire up all 33 engines powering its massive Starship launch system ahead of its first orbital launch, a key milestone in the company’s efforts to reach the moon and Mars.
SpaceX plans to fire up all 33 engines powering its massive Starship launch system ahead of its first orbital launch, a key milestone in the company’s efforts to reach the moon and Mars.
The so-called static fire is scheduled for Thursday, Gwynne Shotwell, president and chief operating officer, said Wednesday at an industry conference. That would pave the way for the rocket’s orbital launch within “the next month or so," she said.
The announcement comes about two weeks after the company, formally known as Space Exploration Technologies Corp., filled the rocket and booster with propellant in a “wet dress rehearsal." Starship is SpaceX’s next-generation launch vehicle, designed to take cargo and people to deep space destinations.
Shotwell made the comments on Wednesday while speaking at an industry conference in Washington co-sponsored by the Federal Aviation Administration.
Shotwell also spoke about the need to provide support of Ukraine’s war effort, within limits, with its Starlink satellite system.
She said she was pleased to provide Starlink to Ukraine, but that “it was never intended to be weaponized." Ukrainians “leveraged it in ways that were unintentional," she said.
SpaceX sent a letter to the Pentagon in September asking for the agency to pay for Ukraine’s Starlink service, according to documents obtained by CNN.
This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.
