SpaceX launches new V3 Starlink satellites but suffers another booster failure
SpaceX successfully launched new Starlink satellites but experienced a booster failure during a simulated landing of its Starship rocket. This marks the second consecutive failure for the V3 booster, impacting the company's stock performance.
Why it matters
As a publicly traded company, SpaceX's 'fly, fail, fix' development strategy is now under increased scrutiny from investors following recent technical setbacks.
SpaceX successfully deployed the first third-generation Starlink satellites on Friday using an upgraded version of its prototype Starship — the 13th test flight of its mega-rocket to date. But the company suffered another failure with its Super Heavy booster during a planned simulated landing in the Gulf of Mexico.
It’s the second time the company has had an issue with the Super Heavy booster on this V3 version of Starship. In May, on the first Starship V3 flight, SpaceX encountered a failure of the Starship’s Super Heavy booster as it separated from the upper stage of the rocket.
The launch came a little more than a week after SpaceX tried to conduct the 13th Starship launch. That attempt had to abort immediately after ignition due to a number of rocket engine failures . SpaceX said it replaced six engines ahead of Friday’s flight to fix the problem.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in