Starship flight test 2

Starship flight test 2 was the second flight test of the SpaceX Starship launch vehicle. SpaceX performed the flight test on November 18, 2023. The mission's primary objectives were for the vehicle to hot stage—a new addition to Starship's flight profile—followed by the second stage attaining a near-orbital trajectory with a controlled reentry over the Pacific Ocean, while the booster does a boostback burn with a propulsive splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico. The vehicle successfully lifted off under the power of all 33 Raptor engines on the Super Heavy Booster and made it through stage separation. The booster was planned to land on the Gulf of Mexico, but experienced multiple engine failures and exploded during its boostback burn. The Starship second stage continued to accelerate for over 8 minutes, reaching an altitude of 149 km (93 mi). Towards the end of the second stage burn the Ship vented excess liquid oxygen, resulting in a fire in its aft section and loss of the vehicle. The Federal Aviation Administration issued a statement confirming that an anomaly had occurred and that there were no reports of public property damage or injuries. The Federal Communications Commission considered the launch as a failure and used this as a rationale for rejecting SpaceX's Starlink service as eligible for large US rural broadband internet subsidies. Shortly after the launch, SpaceX made a statement on their website saying that "success comes from what we learn" from a "test like this".

Background After the first test flight in April 2023, which ended in the destruction of the entire Starship vehicle, significant work was done on the launch mount to repair the damage it sustained during the test and to prevent future issues. Meanwhile, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) required SpaceX to conduct an investigation on the mishap, grounding Starship pending the outcome of their investigation. The FAA closed the investigation on September 8, 2023. The FWS fully concluded its environmental review on November 14, and the FAA gave its full approval for launch shortly after.

Investigation prior to launch

FAA investigation Following Starship's first flight failure, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) required SpaceX to conduct an investigation on the mishap, grounding Starship pending the outcome of their investigation. The FAA would oversee the investigation, a standard practice when a vehicle was lost in flight. The agency grounded Starship flights during the investigation, also a standard practice, and said that "a return to flight of the Starship/Super Heavy vehicle is based on the FAA determining that any system, process or procedure related to the mishap does not affect public safety" and that there were no reports of injuries or public property damage. The FAA also announced that it would monitor the cleanup, which included the standard removal of launch debris from "sensitive habitats". On May 15, SpaceX filed a request for FCC approval for a second flight between June 15 and December 15, using Booster 9 and Ship 25. In August, SpaceX submitted an initial mishap report to the FAA for review and approval.

The FAA stated in September 2023Following the launch, the FAA [...] required SpaceX to conduct a mishap investigation in accordance with its approved mishap plan under FAA oversight. The FAA conducted a final review of the mishap report, dated August 21, 2023 . The primary focus of this review was to ensure [...] the identification of root cause(s) and implementation of corrective actions to avoid a recurrence of the event. The FAA has been provided with sufficient information and accepts the root causes and corrective actions described in the mishap report. Consequently, the FAA considers the mishap investigation that SpaceX was required to complete to be concluded. The final mishap investigation report [submitted by SpaceX in August, as part of the investigation conducted by SpaceX and required by the FAA] cited a total of sixty-three (63) corrective actions for SpaceX to implement. These included actions to address redesigns of vehicle hardware to prevent leaks and fires, redesign of the launch pad to increase its robustness, incorporation of additional reviews in the design process, additional analysis and testing of safety critical.Following SpaceX's final report, the FAA closed the investigation on September 8, 2023. In the same statement, FAA officials emphasized that "The closure of the mishap investigation does not signal an immediate resumption of Starship launches at Boca Chica." And that SpaceX first had to "implement all corrective actions that impact public safety" and applied for a "license modification from the FAA" that addresses the FAA's "safety and other environmental regulatory requirements". The FAA also announced that the full investigatory report would not be released due to confidential contents including export control information. Prior to Starship's second flight, SpaceX's vice president and ex-NASA engineer Bill Gerstenmaier made statements at the U.S. Senate on the importance of innovation in light of "strategic competition from state actors like China". He said SpaceX was under a contract with NASA to use Starship to land American astronauts on the moon before China does, and that the Starship test flights campaign was being held up by "regulatory headwinds and unnecessary bureaucracy" unrelated to public safety.

FWS review By September 2023, the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) had not yet started a formal review of SpaceX's modifications, and based on the 135 day review period, the launch could have been postponed to NET 2024. The Federal Aviation Administration received the final biological assessment from the FWS. William H. Gerstenmaier, SpaceX's Vice President of Build and Flight Reliability, called on the FAA to increase licensing staff. On October 19, 2023, the FWS surveyed the area around Starbase and the consultation with the FAA has been extended into November. The FWS reviewed the changes to the launch pad, especially the water deluge system. By October 31, 2023, the FAA had concluded the safety review portion of the launch license.

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