ORLANDO, Fla. – More than 30 engines roared simultaneously Thursday in a successful test of the first-stage booster for SpaceX’s Starship rocket system.
SpaceX conducted a static test fire of the Booster 7 and its 33 Raptor engines at its facility in Texas.
SpaceX founder Elon Musk tweeted that only 31 of the booster’s engines fired overall, but it would be enough to reach orbit during a launch.
Team turned off 1 engine just before start & 1 stopped itself, so 31 engines fired overall.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 9, 2023
But still enough engines to reach orbit! https://t.co/QYx3oVM4Gw
Starship is intended to carry crew and cargo to the Moon, Mars and beyond. The system consists of the Starship reusable spacecraft and the Super Heavy booster, which is also supposed to be fully reusable.
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SpaceX said Starship, when ready to fly, will be the most powerful launch vehicle ever developed. When both stages are together the system is nearly 400 feet tall.
Views from drone of Booster 7's static fire test pic.twitter.com/KN4sk1nohf
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) February 9, 2023
While testing for Starship continues in Texas, SpaceX is building a launch facility for Starship at Kennedy Space Center.
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