SpaceX's 11th Starship test focuses on engine shutdown dynamics

STARBASE, Texas (ValleyCentral) —  SpaceX is preparing for its anticipated 11th Starship test flight, with its primary goal to test the vehicle's dynamics as the engines shut down while it transitions through its different phases.

The launch window is scheduled to open at 6:15 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 13, at Starbase.

In a news release, SpaceX announced it will be targeting Monday for its 11th integrated Starship flight at Starbase.

Residents across Cameron County and those in areas near Starbase may hear a loud noise as a result of the rocket's 33 Raptor engines firing upon ignition as Starship launches toward space.

According to SpaceX, this scheduled test flight has been built upon the successful demonstrations from the 10th Starship test flight, following the data gathered from the Super Heavy booster, which stress-tests Starship’s heat shield and demonstrates maneuvers that will mimic the upper stage's final approach to the launch site.

SpaceX has been working with the FAA and international air traffic organizations to plan how to efficiently and safely launch and reenter all operations into airspace.

During the 10th Starship test flight, the FAA had reopened all affected airspace within nine minutes, and some portions were reopened within seven minutes, with no meaningful disruption to air traffic.

In this launch, the booster that will be used on this test flight has been previously used on test flight 8, and will launch with 24 flight-proven Raptor engines.

According to SpaceX, the main objective of this launch is to demonstrate a unique landing burn engine configuration planned to be used on the next-generation Super Heavy.

This configuration will be attempted while on a trajectory to an offshore landing point in the Gulf and will not return to the launch site for the catch.

The Super Heavy will ignite 13 engines at the start of the landing burn, before transitioning to a new configuration with five engines running for a divert phase.

SpaceX states this configuration was previously done with three engines, and it is now being planned with a baseline for V3 Super Heavy to use five engines during the section of the burn responsible for fine-tuning the booster's path and adding additional backup for spontaneous engine shutdowns.

The booster is expected to then transition to its three center engines for the end of the landing burn, entering a full hover while still above the ocean surface, followed by a shutdown and dropping to the Gulf.

Additionally, the test flight will include several experiments and operational changes that focus on enabling Staship's upper stage to return to launch on future flights.

SpaceX stated that for reentry, tiles have been removed from Starship to intentionally stress-test the vulnerable areas across the ship.

Additionally, several of the missing tiles are in areas where the tiles are bonded to the ship and do not have a backup sacrificial thermal protection system to protect the vehicle.

According to SpaceX, to mimic the path a ship will take on future flights returning to Starbase, the final phase of Stabship's path on test flight 11 includes a controlled reorientation and will test the subsonic guidance algorithms before a landing burn and splashdown in the Indian Ocean.

ValleyCentral will stream the SpaceX launch coverage on our website, on ValleyCentral+ and on air on KGBT 4.1.