SpaceX is targeting Tuesday afternoon (Nov. 19) for the launch of its sixth Starship flight test. The upcoming test flight is expected to lift off on Nov. 19 during a 30-minute window that opens at 5 p.m. EST (2200 GMT). The Starship megarocket, which consists of two fully reusable elements — a huge first stage called Super Heavy and an upper-stage spacecraft known as Starship, or simply “Ship” — will launch from the company’s Starbase facility near Boca Chica Beach in South Texas. You’ll be able to watch the launch live on Space.com, courtesy of a SpaceX simulcast, beginning 30 minutes before liftoff. Follow our Starship live updates for more mission milestones. “The next Starship flight test aims to expand the envelope on ship and booster capabilities and get closer to bringing reuse of the entire system online,” SpaceX officials said in a statement announcing the sixth test flight.
Starship Flight 6 follows a successful fifth test flight on Oct. 13, during which the Super Heavy booster was captured using giant metal “chopstick” arms upon its return to Starbase, while the upper stage continued in flight before completing a controlled entry and landing maneuver over the Indian Ocean. “The success of the first catch attempt demonstrated the design feasibility while providing valuable data to continue improving hardware and software performance,” SpaceX said in the statement.
If all goes according to plan, the booster will once again demonstrate a catch landing back at Starbase during Flight 6, which will take place about seven minutes after liftoff. Otherwise, Super Heavy will default to a controlled splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico.
Meanwhile, after separating from the booster, Ship will fly the same suborbital trajectory as it did on Flight 5. This time, however, the spacecraft will attempt an in-space burn of one of its six Raptor engines, testing its deorbit burn capabilities. Starship will also perform a series of heatshield experiments and maneuvering changes for reentry — including flying at a higher angle during the final phase of descent — before splashing down in the Indian Ocean about 65 minutes post-launch. The window for Tuesday’s test flight is purposefully scheduled for late afternoon, allowing for better observations of reentry during daylight, according to SpaceX.
Comment: The booster capture is plenty exciting, but I’m really looking forward to a Starship safely landing (on land) after an orbital flight. A booster failed landing just costs money, but a Starship failed landing would cost lives. I bet a Starship landing is in the works for next year.
BTW, I see Trump is scheduled to be Elon’s guest at his Starbase facility in Boca Chica tomorrow. Ought to be quite the spectacle for the father of Space Force to be there.
TTG
To indulge in my Taoïst leaning I propose than rather than playing with fancy toys we look into the problem of evil debated by Metzinger and Levin.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2XuNKMpOISw
If you have the patience it will really blow your mind.
(full of nasty commercials…)
BTW, I disagree with both of them, my own opinion rely on very different assumptions about what “exists”.
(full of nasty commercials…)
Hmm? Not for me.
But interesting. What “exists”?
@LeaNder
Well…
If you don’t have the patience (or the ad-blocker) to run the video you expect me to summarize 1h46 in a reply?
Any way that is probably not among your topics of interest, consciousness, definition of agency, emergence of life and intelligence, you appear too “matter of fact” to care about these.
The bone of contention is indeed the meaning of “exist”, the most common opinion is the Platonic one, a whole pandemonium existing in a world of “perfect ideas” for all eternity.
This is, more or less, the position of Levin and he is dead set on exploring it.
Metzinger is dismissive of such a rigid definition and recognize that only some “things” exist including suffering (the Buddhist stance) yet NO “self” (?) and that we still should care ethically about what we create even if inadvertently.
My own position is even more doubtful, not even “objects” exist (tables, chairs, particles, you and me) and I have the published papers to prove it, which should be obvious to anyone familiar with Quantum Mechanics double slit experiment, particles don’t exist unless someone/something tinkers with them.
If you don’t have the patience (or the ad-blocker) to run the video you expect me to summarize 1h46 in a reply?
thanks jdl, As I wrote: Not for me.], meaning: the video wasn’t interrupted by commercials for me. Incidentally I had just watched another YouTube video earlier, pretty long too, which was frequently interrupted, but not this one
Do Xenobots “exist”? Yes, seems they do a couple of seconds, apparently. In whatever form of existence.
I actually wondered:
a) what made you publish this under the starship header?
b) was your earlier link concerning “consciousness” related with Michael Levin’s research too???
c) the debate reminded me of a discussion I had with Babak Makkadinejad years ago on SST concerning CRISPR, and as then once again I am siding with Levin vs “vegetarian” Metzinger.
d) “evil” & the trolley problem?
@LeaNder
a) To contrast ethical /philosophical concerns with the “worldly” playing with technical toys (bordering idiotic/childish IMHO).
b) No, Christof Koch of IIT fame.
c) I am siding with neither, especially not Levin which, despite driving cutting edge progress in our understanding of life and intelligence is oblivious of the problems of consciousness proper and “playing with fire” in this respect (cyborgs…)
d) I have no “fixation” on the trolley problem as such, I reject the legalistic view that there MUST be someone responsible, shit happens.
But OTOH tinkering with things you don’t fully understand (the Metzinger objection beyond vegetarianism) is definitely evil (and stupid…)
But OTOH tinkering with things you don’t fully understand (the Metzinger objection beyond vegetarianism) is definitely evil (and stupid…)
Yes. …
Thanks, vegetarianism, highly ironicalliy*, came to mind due to my summer struggle with clothes and food moth, admittedly. All other moth I can allow to coexist. 😉
* This is interesting but beyond my paygrade, although triggering personal and cultural bits and pieces. Petit mal experiences & culturally homunculus among others.
Glad to see Starship is using nose art, kinda like what adorned thousands of US warbirds in WW2:
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/3DofxjgAuENnSSE3GoBr29-1200-80.jpg
https://cdn2.picryl.com/photo/1944/06/09/green-banana-and-crew-b4351a-1024.jpg
trump has found the son he always wished-for. musk has bought the daddy who does what he wants.