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Images of SpaceX is ramping up its Starship flight test program, with the next rocket launch expected to show the first payload launch.
The proposed payload will be 10 Starlink “simulators” that will be similar in size and weight to the next generation of satellites SpaceX plans to use Starship for use in space. Spaceships of this type will travel on the same trajectory as the surface stage, also called Starship, and fly in the Indian Ocean.
This version of the satellites, called V3, may be the first real Starship flight. Indeed, bringing Starship online is at the heart of SpaceX’s plans to rapidly deploy its Starlink constellation and reduce costs per launched satellite. SpaceX is currently launching Starlink using its workhorse Falcon 9 rocket, but the next-generation V3 satellites are expected to be heavier than the V2 Mini spacecraft. Due to the increased payload of Starship, SpaceX has said that it plans to send 60 V3 satellites on Starship’s launch, which will add 60 terabits per minute of power to the Starlink network.
On the satellite, that equates to more than 10 times the downlink and 24 times the uplink power compared to the V2 Mini satellites.
In blog post ahead of the seventh test, which is expected to take place at the end of this month, the company said that it is bringing back several rocket boosters. These include changes to the propulsion system, avionics, and thermal protection, which SpaceX says will improve reliability and performance. In this experiment, SpaceX will also try to “catch” the Super Heavy booster, which the company did. for the first time in the fifth exam in October.
