News Desk
TEXAS: SpaceX tested the most powerful ever rocket system on Thursday, simultaneously igniting 31 out of 33 engines in a test fire of its gigantic Super Heavy rocket booster.
The trial marks the company’s first “static fire” test for what is expected to be the most powerful launch vehicle ever built.
Although the company initially attempted to fire all 33 engines; however, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk confirmed in a tweet on Thursday that only 31 engines were lit, saying the team had turned off one engine before the test and that another engine stopped itself. But, he added, it was “still enough engines to reach orbit.”
The static fire, which took place at SpaceX’s R&D facility in Boca Chica on the Texas/Mexico border, lasted only a few seconds, with everything fastened to prevent movement, according to the BBC.
Starship to become most powerful rocket system after maiden flight
Starship will become history’s most powerful operational rocket system when it makes its maiden flight, which is expected in the coming weeks assuming SpaceX is satisfied with the outcome of Thursday’s test.
Although the entire contingent of engines was not fired, it was still notable for the number of engines working in concert.
The closest to it was probably the N1 rocket developed by the Soviet Union in the late 1960s to take cosmonauts to the Moon. The rocket had 30 engines arranged in two rings, but it failed on all four of its flights and was eventually cancelled.
