SpaceX to launch its Starship rocket on next test flight, after a fiery explosion ended the last one

Spacex plans to launch Megarock Starship on the next test trip on Monday, approximately six weeks after the upper phase of the car over the Atlantic Ocean during the last test.

In that An accident on January 16Spacex lost communication with Starship about eight minutes of the trip, and the later car explosion sent the debris in the sky. Dust and small pieces It rained on parts of the Turks and cakesBut the local authorities said that there were no injuries.

The US Federal Aviation Administration launched an investigation after the accident and the missile was based during the investigation. On Friday, the agency cleansed the spacecraft to return to the trip, but said that its achievement was still open.

The private SpaceX investigation found that the potential radical cause is the leakage of the motivation in a section of the technical vehicle known as “attic”, which is located between the bottom of the liquid oxygen tank and the rear heat shield.

The leakage may have caused “sustainable fires” that eventually caused “each of the Starship engines to carry out the sequence of control closure”, ” Spacex said on Monday update.

The company said that it stopped receiving the data slightly more than eight minutes on the test trip, and that the car had separated three minutes after that.

Spacex said it has since made “many changes and operation” to the upper stage in Starship, but the company has not specified what these promotions are.

The next test, the eighth at Starship, was already scheduled to be Friday; There was no explanation for short delay.

FAA, who signed the trip, is one of the many federal agencies that the Trump administration Tired of lowering the budget and employees. Reuters mentioned The Ministry of Governmental efficiency, led by the CEO of Spacex Elus Musk, has infiltrated the FAA facilities and that Spacex engineers work in the agency as private government employees.

It is not clear whether DOGE employees have a presence in the FAA Commercial Space section, which oversees private companies such as Spacex, but some legislators and critics, Including Senator Ed MarkiD-mass. , However, it raised concerns about the conflict of interests in musk.

If Starship is launching as intended on Monday, you will try to launch four fake Starlink satellite satellites during the trip. If it succeeds, this would represent the first time that the car has spread a load.

The plan also calls for the first stage of Megarocting to return to the Launchpad platform after separating from the second stage, and Spacex to “Holds” He – she theRepeat Using giant mechanical weapons on the missile firing tower. Spacex completed this part as intended during the January trip, which prompted the test to consider the test a partial success.

Catch maneuver is a major part of the SPACEX goal to make the central vehicle completely reusable.

If things go according to the plan, the upper phase of the car will fly for an hour on Monday before it went in the Indian Ocean off the western coast of Australia.

Starship is the most powerful missile ever developed, with a length of 400 feet. The system contains two parts: a supporter of the first stage known as a high -stage spacecraft and an upper stage.

He is expected to play an important role in NASA’s efforts to return to the moon. The Agency has chosen to transport astronauts to the moon during the ARTEMIS III planned task in NASA, which is scheduled to be launched in 2027. MUSK also said, it is possible to use vehicles in the future clinics of Mars.

This article was originally published on NBCNEWS.com