SpaceX Starship Chopsticks '500 Tons' Lifting Test for 1st Catching! Why Vulcan Booster Fail?

exciting news SpaceX has just conducted a major test clearly signaling its determination to catch super heavy on the next flight today's highlight is Vulcan c 2 which encountered a notable issue however unlike SpaceX the FAA won't be investigating them meanwhile blue origin has announced a new spacecraft for its upcoming new Shephard Mission let's kick off the weekend by exploring these updates on today's episode of great SpaceX in the days awaiting the launch schedule SpaceX continues to advance preparations for both the vehicle and the launch system after destacking s30 from B12 SpaceX returned to testing the launch system specifically the Chopstick a familiar test was conducted using the giant water bag setup as early as the afternoon of October 4th two clusters of orange bags appeared hung on the two arms each cluster had three bags filled with water to simulate the mass of the rocket by late afternoon each side had two 100 T bags and one 50 ton bag creating a total mass of up to 500 tons suitable for testing Chopsticks efficiency in catching the super heavy booster when returning for a catch super heavy strive mass is 200 tons and with some remaining Fuel and movement impact the total mass could approach 500 tons during the test Chopstick moved slightly under the impact but everything remained stable this successful test once again demonstrated Chopsticks capability previously a chopstick lifted super heavy to unprecedented Heights and it appears ready for action however it will likely undergo additional testing during the waiting period the recent test has once again demonstrated Chopsticks capability previously SpaceX used the system to lift super heavy to unprecedented Heights and while Chopstick appears ready it will likely undergo further testing during the waiting period following this successful test we can expect an acceleration in the rocket testing process as mentioned earlier road closures are scheduled for October 7th 8th and the 9th though it's unclear if a full stack will occur however Chopstick will likely play a key role and its Effectiveness will be further evaluated when the time comes spacex's continuous testing reflects its determination to catch super heavy during flight 5 additionally a positive update on the launch schedule has emerged the next Starship launch is slated for October 13th to the 19th closely aligning with the previously announced NM or notice to Mariners notably the new document Now features the FAA logo signaling a step forward in the approval process so will the FAA truly allow flight 5 to launch within the time frame it's entirely possible as the notm would have been carefully evaluated before its announcement to avoid disrupting maritime operations if this holds true it would be fantastic news however I believe this is unlikely despite the optimism the FAA has not made significant changes after much criticism additionally spacex's ongoing commitment to catching super heavy with Chopstick continues to be a point of contention for the FAA potentially causing further delays while the recent developments are encouraging we may still be looking at a late November launch what do you think could Starship flight 5 launch sooner share your predictions in the comments section down below and don't forget to like share and subscribe to stay updated on SpaceX journey and with that we are wrapping up space X's updates and moving on to the Ula Vulcan SE 2 flight update at 7:25 a.m. EDT on October 4th Ula successfully launched its second Vulcan Centaur Mission known as c 2 this flight was critical for obtaining National Security launch certification from the US space force originally scheduled for 6:00 a.m. the launch was delayed due to a data system issue as explained by Tori Bruno powered by two be4 engines and two solid rocket boosters the rocket lifted off with an impressive 2 million pounds of thrust however this flight seemed more intense than the first with the combination of launch delays and the flight process itself raising concerns and then boom an explosion occurred around 37 seconds after liftoff seemingly originating from one of the solid rocket boosters debris could be seen flying near the rocket likely a piece of the booster that malfunctioned despite the explosion the Vulcan Centaur pressed on the two stages separated and the Centaur second stage continued its Ascent appearing to function as intended the incident is still under investigation by the Ula team but Tor Bruno offered an initial explanation yes it looks dramatic like all things on a rocket but it's just the release of the nozzle no explosions occurred however the smoke from the engine changed afterward and the separation of the solid booster from the main stage happened 20 seconds later than planned the issue seems likely to be related to the engine nozzle possibly due to a leak or the engine's inability to withstand the heat and pressure causing it to fail of course this is speculative and we'll need to wait for official confirmation from the Ula now the question on everyone's mind is how the FAA will respond if this were SpaceX an investigation would likely be underway but with Ula there is no investigation initially the FAA released a statement the FAA is aware of an anomaly that occurred during the United launch Alliance Vulcan centar 2 mission that launched from Cape canaval space force station in Florida on October 4th 2024 this involved one of the solid rocket boosters no public injuries or public property damage have been reported the FAA is assessing the operation and will issue an updated statement if the HC determines an investigation is warranted shortly after the FAA concluded regarding Ula the FAA assessed the operation and determined no investigation is warranted at this time so it seems Vulcan has completed its flight and can move on to planning its next mission but this feels like a clear bias when falcon9 had issues with its second stage or Landing attempts none of which caused safety concerns the rocket was still grounded for investigation so what's up with this double standard back to Ula after completing this Mission they are likely to secure the National Security launch certification from the ussf which is a significant Milestone however this achievement is just the beginning as many challenges lie ahead in the remaining months of the year Ula must contend with two critical missions Under The Phase 2 nssl contract the delays in these missions have already led to penalties from the Pentagon putting additional pressure on the company to deliver results Beyond these immediate challenges Ula faces the daunting task of executing over 20 missions in Phase 2 over the next 2 years the sheer volume of work combined with tight deadline poses a serious test to Vulcan capabilities and ula's operational efficiency adding to the complexity Ula has been selected for phase three of the nssl contract further increasing their responsibilities in the near future with such a heavy workload it remains uncertain whether Vulcan at its current Pace can meet these demands while maintaining the reliability and precision required for National Security launches as Ula navigates these challenges the pressure is on for the Vulcan rocket to prove itself not only through successful flights but also through its ability to meet the strict deadlines and high expectations that come with these crucial defense contracts all eyes will be on Ula to see how they manage this Monumental task and whether they can rise to the occasion in this highly competitive industry next up we have an update from Blue origin on notable preparations for the upcoming new Shephard Mission blue origin is currently preparing for its next mission NS 27 scheduled for October 7th at 900 in the morning EDT notably this Mission will feature a new spacecraft as a test flight it will be uncrewed n s27 will Mark the debut of the second human rated new Shepard vehicle consisting of a first stage known as booster 5 and a crew capsule named RSS Carmen line blue Origins stated the vehicle features technology upgrades to improve performance and reusability an updated library and accommodations for payloads on the booster even without a crew the the mission will carry 12 research payloads five on the booster and seven inside the capsule these include new navigation systems developed for both new Shepard and blue origins new Glen rocket as well as two lar or light detection and ranging sensors designed to operate in lunar environments blue origin has high expectations for its latest upgrade the company stated this second human rated spacecraft will enable expanded flight capacity to better meet growing customer demand while this sounds promising the True Performance of the new spacecraft will only become clear after a crude Mission however this upgrade may not fully address blue Origins under lying Hardware shortage the company has produced only four boosters for the new Shephard system but three of those have either been retired lost or encountered technical problems since the incident in late 2022 blue origin has been conducting missions with just one operational booster if they experience another setback they risk returning to a precarious situation where their suborbital program grinds to a halt this raises concerns about the company's ability to remain competitive in the increasingly crowded suborbital Market where Rivals are quickly advancing their own Technologies while the new spacecraft may offer expanded capabilities it cannot resolve the company's Reliance on a limited Fleet of boosters without better preparation and Hardware redundancy blue origin could lose market share to other suborbital companies eager to capitalize on their vulnerabilities for now all eyes are on their upcoming ns2750d new spacecraft it'll be crucial to see how this upgrade performs in real conditions the success or failure of this Mission could determine whether blue origin can maintain its position in the suborbital space race or fall behind to its competitors well folks that's about it for today's episode thank you so much for tuning in and as always this has been Kevin from great SpaceX until next time keep looking up