The American space company SpaceX has postponed the second test flight of its giant rocket ‘Starship’, scheduled for Friday, by a day. The reason: in its current state, a return to Earth is difficult to achieve.
SpaceX boss Elon Musk wrote on the online platform X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday that a “grid fin actuator” needed to be replaced. “That is why the start was postponed to Saturday.”
A so-called grid fin is a part intended to stabilize the rocket when it returns to Earth and when it lands. It is brought into position by the actuator.
First test failed
‘Starship’ is the most powerful rocket ever built in the world and the largest with a height of 120 meters. The first test flight in April ended in an explosion: The rocket tumbled a few minutes after liftoff from SpaceX’s Starbase space station in Boca Chica, Texas, when several engines failed and the first stage failed to separate from the second stage. SpaceX then detonated the rocket in mid-air.
On Wednesday, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) gave SpaceX the green light for a second launch attempt. The company has now “met all necessary criteria, especially with regard to safety, the environment and financial responsibility,” the authority said. SpaceX boss Musk wants to take people to Mars in the future with the Starship rocket. The American space agency NASA wants to use them for its Artemis moon landing mission.
Source: Krone
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