SpaceX Starship Second Test Is Also a Success, Despite Explosive Landing

SN9, the second prototype to go out for a test flight after predecessor SN8, took off at the Boca Chica, Texas testing facility at 14.24 local time. For six and a half minutes, it flew gloriously, performing just as it should have: the three Raptor engines took it to the intended altitude of 6.2 miles (10 kilometers), slightly lower than SN8, then two of them turned off, and it hovered in place.

Then, it was able to successfully perform the belly flop maneuver, where it transitioned into a vertical position, and free fell. Unlike SN8, SN9 overcorrected and went nose down first but soon came back to the correct position. As it approached the landing pad, the Starship prototype was supposed to revert back to a vertical orientation in order to attempt a soft propulsive landing. It hit the ground at an angle and burst into flames.

You can see the video of the entire test flight below; just skip to the 04.24.40 mark if you wish to get right to the action.

Hilariously, the commentator still screamed with joy, “Yes, we’re going to Mars!” and you can hear everyone else in the background celebrating what seems, to the untrained eye, a failed flight. In reality, this was another successful test flight for SpaceX, much like the SN8. As a test flight, the possibility that the landing might result in a crash is part of the equation, and the purpose is to gather data and check whether certain theories hold up in practice.

As far as the SN9 prototype, it seems to have performed as it should have in all aspects except for the landing part. SN10 was right there next to it, so hopefully, whatever data was gathered in the explosion of SN8 and SN9 will serve to keep SN10 from suffering the same fate.

SpaceX hopes that the first unmanned Starship to Mars will take place by 2024 and virtually lay the grounds for the colonization of Mars.