The Super Heavy rocket, carrying Elon Musk’s jewel-in-the-crown Starship, will attempt to re-launch from SpaceX’s own Boca Chica Texas launch site at 1:28pm GMT (11:00pm AEST) today.
Its failure to hit space on Monday meant its new launch window – just 62 minutes – would open on Thursday.
The pair of SpaceX properties are intended to work as a reusable space transport system, which can take crews and cargo to the Moon. Chief Musk’s future plans for Starship include commercial moonlight.
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As the first stage of the Starship launch system, Super Heavy is the most powerful rocket ever built, with its 33 next-generation Raptor engines driven by sub-cooled liquid methane and oxygen, and capable of generating 7,590 tonnes of thrust force. Together, the whole Starship launch system stands at 120 metres.
Once in space, it is hoped Starship will circle the Earth at an altitude of 234 kilometres before returning to splashdown off the Hawaiian coast. Super Heavy will land in the Gulf of Mexico.
Watch the launch live below.
Originally published by Cosmos as Let’s try again: Elon Musk’s big Starship prepares for second launch attempt
Matthew Ward Agius
Matthew Agius is a science writer for Cosmos Magazine.
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