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Video has appeared taken from a cruise ship showing ship 33 exploding.

https://x.com/FlyerXT/status/1880027458642350095

Here it is reentering, photographed from the Turks and Caicos.

https://x.com/timmaayd/status/1880027549667061832

https://x.com/adavenport354/status/1880026262254809115

https://x.com/deankolson87/status/1880026759133032662

From an aircraft

https://x.com/_thatonedolphin/status/188...9099533342

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View of the Flight 7 booster catch by Frontera Espacial from the Mexican side of the border

https://x.com/FronteraSpacial/status/188...5171418477

Sounds good if that pans out, but the FAA will surely demand wearing of sackcloth and ritual ashes sprinkled on the head as penitence for unscheduled debris streaking across the Caribbean sky.

OTOH, it won't be Biden's FAA anymore (old expectations die hard).

https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1880060983734858130

Preliminary indication is that we had an oxygen/fuel leak in the cavity above the ship engine firewall that was large enough to build pressure in excess of the vent capacity.

Apart from obviously double-checking for leaks, we will add fire suppression to that volume and probably increase vent area. Nothing so far suggests pushing next launch past next month.

(Jan 17, 2025 06:15 AM)C C Wrote: [ -> ]Sounds good if that pans out, but the FAA will surely demand wearing of sackcloth and ritual ashes sprinkled on the head as penitence for unscheduled debris streaking across the Caribbean sky.

OTOH, it won't be Biden's FAA anymore (old expectations die hard).

The FAA says

"The FAA is aware an anomaly occurred during the SpaceX Starship Flight 7 mission that launched from Boca Chica, Texas, on Jan. 16. The FAA is assessing the operation and will issue an updated statement."

Quote:https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1880060983734858130

Preliminary indication is that we had an oxygen/fuel leak in the cavity above the ship engine firewall that was large enough to build pressure in excess of the vent capacity.

Apart from obviously double-checking for leaks, we will add fire suppression to that volume and probably increase vent area. Nothing so far suggests pushing next launch past next month.

This looks very similar to the problem that caused the Flight 2 ship to explode. So it was a vulnerability that they were already aware of. They obviously hoped that the mitigation measures they put in place then would be sufficient, but probably realized that they might not be.

I hope that the Version 3 Raptor engines eliminate some of this problem. Elon says that he absolutely hates flanges and seals on rocket engines because at the temperatures and pressures at which rocket engines work, preventing leaks is a huge engineering challenge. The solution on the Raptor-3's is to 3-D print as much of the engine as possible as a single unit.

I also note the 'next launch next month'

Musk's very expensive fireworks display for his buddy's inauguration?

SpaceX has released new photos of the Flight 7 booster catch

Decelerating



How I miss your loving arms



Downshifting from 13 to 3 engines



For precise maneuvering



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More totally extraordinary just released SpaceX photos from Flight 7

Hot staging



Stage sep



Going their separate ways - ship continuing to orbit, booster boosting-back to the launch site (visible below marked by the white launch ascent plume)



Booster return for a catch

SpaceX has just filed a proposal to construct a huge "Gigabay" vertical assembly building at Cape Canaveral, presumably for final assembly of the new stretched Starship ships and boosters

They have transported the pieces of the catching arms for Tower-2 from the Sanchez work area to the launch site, where they are being assembled and prepared for mounting on the tower.



(Photo by Carlos Nunez, a truly extraordinary photographer and a nice guy.)



(Photo by Shaun Gisler)



(Photo by Starship Gazer)



And a bunch of new tanks to serve Tower-2 have arrived at the Port of Brownsville

(Photo by Starship Gazer)



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The new Arms are being lifted to Tower-2 and attached as I write this.

(Photo by starbase tracking)



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