SpaceX plans to catch Starship Ship 42 and Super Heavy B22 with tower arms in the 15th flight

SpaceX has scheduled the 15th Starship flight for 14 November. The launch window opens at 01:45 Moscow time and lasts 75 minutes, Naked Science reports. The launch is to take place from the Starbase site in Texas, with the Super Heavy B22 booster and the Ship 42 vehicle, the second stage. SpaceX has confirmed readiness, but the US Federal Aviation Administration has not yet issued a permit naked-science.ruNaked Sciencenaked-science.ruOpen source ↗.

Catching both stages

The main goal of the mission is to test a new scheme for returning both stages. After separation from the ship, Super Heavy should return to the launch complex in about 6.5 minutes. There it is to be caught by the mechanical arms of the tower, which SpaceX calls Chopsticks. The company has already used this system successfully three times to return a booster. However, B22 will be the first stage of the Super Heavy V3 version to attempt such a maneuver.

The ship, meanwhile, continues its flight. According to the plan, it will reach Earth orbit at an altitude of about 275 kilometers and spend more than 22 hours there, making about 14 orbits around the planet.

Starlink V3 and the ship's return

During this time the ship is to deploy 26 Starlink V3 satellites, the second batch of the new-generation vehicles sent to orbit by Starship. Three satellites are additionally equipped with cameras, which specialists expect to use to obtain images of the ship's heat shield and assess its condition naked-science.ruNaked Sciencenaked-science.ruOpen source ↗.

After the orbital part of the flight, Ship 42 is to return to the launch site. About 22 hours after liftoff, an attempt will be made to catch it with the arms of the same tower that, if all goes well, will also catch Super Heavy. It would be the first attempt to return the Starship upper stage this way; previously, ships splashed down in the ocean after test flights.

These are plans so far. SpaceX intends to catch Ship 42 only if all of the ship's critical systems work normally. If problems are found, the company may abandon the maneuver and direct the ship to a safe splashdown in the Pacific Ocean. The attempt to return Super Heavy may be canceled in the same way.

Full reusability is one of the key goals of the whole Starship program. Returning both stages directly to the launch complex is meant to shorten the time needed for inspection, servicing and preparation for the next launch naked-science.ruNaked Sciencenaked-science.ruOpen source ↗.