Did you Watch the SPACEX STARSHIP Launch Today?

[AviatorTom]

SpaceX launched the complete Starship today (18-Nov-2023, 0700 CST), its 2nd launch attempt, from its Southern Texas launch complex.

The launch was flawless, with all 33 engines performing until stage separation, which also went well. Then, things started to go wrong, as the main booster went out of control and suffered when SpaceX calls a RUD (Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly). The Starship 2nd stage continued on for several minutes until it too suffered an RUD.

Despite the two RUDs, SpaceX views today's launch as a success, going much farther (successfully) than the first launch several months ago. The data that they gathered, and the lessons learned, will help make the next launch even more successful.

Remember that Starship and its main booster are still experimental, and no one is expecting things to go perfectly... not yet.

So what do you think?

Did you watch today's launch?

[WindAtMyBack]

No, but I watched the first moon landing in 1969. I kinda lost interest after that. I didn't even pay much attention the the other moon landings after that. Well, driving the car on the moon was kinda cool. :)

Yea, rockets blowing up have always been part of the space program from the very beginning. Alan Shepard was the first American in space. When he watched his first unmanned launch in the same kind of rocket he was scheduled to ride in, it blew up. He famously said to Glenn, "I'm glad they got that over with." Then he got in the same kind of rocket himself. Those guys had some balls.

It's a prototype, much like prototypes that are the norm in engineering. Prototypes are part of the learning process, to hopefully work most of the bugs out before it goes into production. This launch was a very big and very expensive prototype, but still a prototype serving the same function of testing the design, learning from it, and making changes where necessary. It's completely standard engineering.

[OlderAndWiser]

I didn't watch the launch. The privatization of space travel is inevitable and this is just a small chapter in that ongoing story.

[purplepoppy]

I never watched it but I question their argument it was a success after all it did go bang. Yes it was experimental but this isn't the 18th century, we shouldn't be just hoping for the best. New planes don't blow up because everything is fully tested before hand, they don't send them up not knowing the limits just to see what happens. He's got the same irresponsible attitude as those titanic submarine guys.

[AviatorTom]

@purplepoppy These are test flights SpaceX is doing the exact same thing that aircraft companies have done for years... and there have been quite a few crashes during testing... before the companies got it right.

[DeeDeeDeVour]

I wanted to watch the launch but I was watching F1 live in Las Vegas.

Anyway, I think the "hot staging" portion of yesterday's mission worked out well.

However, the starship's computer (s) detected something wrong and somehow "self-destructed" the entire latter sage of the mission.

Did that blow up? I don't know.

Too bad the huge rocket blew up.

Not all successful but not all failure.

[DeeDeeDeVour]

Thanks for the MHO @AviatorTom. :)

[NathanDavis]

I actually missed it... lol

but this is great news... they might get it done by the fourth try, if lucky

[Constatine]

Nah I wait for the first satellite made out of wood.. 😄

[Fireguy17]

Nope, didn't even know it was on.
Might have to watch it now that I know it was a fubar.

[collie22]

I saw there was a spacex video on the weather channel but I didn't look.

[Guido]

I didn't watch it. I was at work and missed it all.

[Miristheiss]

No.

I didn't even know about it.

[exitseven]

Cool, space is the final frontier

[msc545]

This was NOT a success. Total failure - again.

[Mansearching]

Didn't know it was going to

[Sparkie460]

Can't watch TV while I'm driving.