SpaceX Starship's seventh test flight: "Chopsticks holding a rocket" reappears, but the spacecraft lost contact

SpaceX's Starship seventh test flight, also the debut of the second-generation Starship, showcased the "chopsticks catching a rocket" operation, laying the foundation for reusable rockets and commercialization. However, it also faced setbacks, as the spacecraft unexpectedly lost contact, failing to achieve its preset goals.

At around 06:37 Beijing time on January 17, SpaceX conducted the seventh integrated test flight at its Starship facility in Texas, achieving some important progress but also encountering unexpected setbacks.

The rocket's total height for this launch reached 403.5 feet (approximately 123 meters), making it the largest and most powerful rocket system in the world. This test flight successfully returned the Starship's massive first-stage booster (named "Super Heavy") to the launch tower, paving the way for future "chopsticks catching the spacecraft" operations.

However, not everything went according to plan, as SpaceX lost contact with the spacecraft approximately 8.5 minutes into the flight and failed to deploy 10 simulated satellites, which is significant for the future expansion of Starlink, a core revenue component for SpaceX.

Reproducing the "Chopsticks Catching a Rocket"

One of the key objectives of this test flight was to safely return the Starship's massive first-stage booster to the launch tower.

After liftoff, the Super Heavy booster propelled the Starship into space before separating and falling back to Earth. As the descending booster approached SpaceX's facility in Texas, it executed a complex maneuver.

About 7 minutes after launch, the booster, equipped with 33 engines, smoothly landed into the "chopsticks" arm of the launch tower, a maneuver that had only been successfully achieved once before during the fifth test flight last October.

It is worth mentioning that this recovery strategy is crucial for SpaceX, as it can significantly save time and costs. The company plans to apply this method for the recovery of both the Super Heavy booster and the Starship.

SpaceX's goal is to build a fleet of fast, fully reusable rockets to help reduce space travel costs, advance the company's business model, and ultimately construct a city on Mars. The booster and Starship can also serve as capture mechanisms during their return.

Spacecraft Lost Contact, Failed to Achieve Preset Goals

However, not everything went according to plan.

SpaceX lost contact with the spacecraft approximately 8.5 minutes into the flight. Dan Huot, a member of the company's communications team, stated during the live broadcast:

As the ascent burn was about to end, we saw telemetry data showing the engines shutting down one by one, and then we lost contact with the spacecraft.

According to the original plan, the spacecraft was supposed to orbit the Earth for more than half a circle and then soft land in the Indian Ocean near the west coast of Australia about 66 minutes after launch. However, due to unexpected circumstances, this goal was not achieved.

The seventh flight was supposed to bring something new to the spacecraft: it was originally planned to deploy 10 simulation satellites 17.5 minutes into the flight, which are similar in size and weight to the next-generation Starlink broadband satellites, as a practice for the eventual deployment of Starlink, but this was not achieved due to the loss of the spacecraft.

It is worth mentioning that the deployment of Starlink is a key part of SpaceX's commercialization. In its final form, the Starship should be able to launch up to 100 second-generation Starlink satellites at once, thereby increasing SpaceX's internet coverage and becoming a core pillar of its revenue.

Second-generation Starship achieves a series of upgrades and improvements

This test flight marks the first flight of the new generation Starship, which has undergone a series of upgrades and improvements:

1. The size of the front flaps has been reduced, and their position has been moved towards the tip of the cabin, away from the heat shield, significantly reducing the heating during re-entry into the atmosphere. These designs will ultimately help the interstellar spacecraft return to the ground and land, making it reusable.
2. The propulsion system has been redesigned, including a 25% increase in propellant capacity, a new vacuum jacket feed line, and a new fuel supply system for the vacuum Raptor engines. It is reported that the propellant loading for the second-generation Starship reached 1,500 tons, nearly 25% more than the first-generation Starship.
3. These improvements have increased the length of the Starship by about 6.5 feet (nearly 2 meters), but the payload space is smaller than that of the first-generation Starship, mainly to free up more space for propellant.
4. An improved avionics module for the propulsion system, used to control valves and read sensors.
5. The recycled Raptor engines were used for the first time, marking the first use of second-hand hardware in the Super Heavy booster.

SpaceX's previous six test flights of the Starship took place in April and November 2023, as well as in March, June, October, and November of last year. Based on today's actual performance, the new spacecraft is still not mature.

Looking ahead, the launch frequency of the Starship may increase. Musk has stated:

In 2025, there will be 25 Starship launches. We often have to take his words with a grain of salt; if there are 20 launches throughout the year, that would already be quite a lot. Notable highlights in 2025 also include: in-orbit transfer tests of the booster, recovery capture tests of the Starship, and the actual start of Starlink satellite deployment