Smolship's Scale Model Starship Launch

[Yazata]

Smolship has built a very accurate 1/30th scale (still pretty big) Starship and hopes to live-stream its launch Sunday evening.

He isn't sure what to expect and says he will count the flight as a success if it just gets off the pad

Livestream will be here

https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/jypzMfj0pLs

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He even made his own rocket engines which he has successfully hot-fired

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The static fire

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[C C]

Well, I guess it did get off the pad (in the most minimal way). Definitely has some guidance or navigational issues.

[Yazata]

Well, I guess it did get off the pad (in the most minimal way). Definitely has some guidance issues.

It got off the pad. I believe that the small black thing to its left is the camera that was supposed to be fixed to the forward flap.

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Then things went wrong. Here the nose is popping off along with something else I can't identify.

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And here the engines appear gimballed over, which is impossible since they are fixed in place without any thrust vector control. So the guys who built it think that the engine mounts broke.

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[C C]

[...second image...] Then things went wrong. Here the nose is popping off along with something else I can't identify.

If the shiny part is a flame being emitted by the unidentified object, then it may be the first time I've ever seen a rocket engine travel solo to a higher altitude than the rocket itself.

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