It’s time—after myriad ground tests, SpaceX will let its Starship fly free

Today may determine the fate of SN8.

An early morning view of SN8 on the launch pad in South Texas, with the Gulf of Mexico in the distance.

Enlarge / An early morning view of SN8 on the launch pad in South Texas, with the Gulf of Mexico in the distance. (credit: SpaceX)

Today's the day. Probably.

After multiple ground-based tests of the propellant tanks inside its Starship prototype, and firings of the vehicle's three Raptor engines, SpaceX says the large vehicle may fly on Tuesday from the company's launch site near Boca Chica Beach in Texas. The earliest the flight may begin is 11am ET (1600 UTC), but more likely it will not occur until some time during the afternoon hours. Weather conditions are nearly perfect, but there are still myriad technical issues with this new hardware that could prevent a flight today.

This is the first time SpaceX has attempted to fly Starship to a high altitude—the vehicle may fly as high as 12.5km. Previous tests have only gone up to about 150 meters and have not included the flaps, nose cone, and other features needed to control the vehicle's flight in the thin, upper atmosphere.

Read 6 remaining paragraphs | Comments

Cybercrime-Konvention: Strittig sind verdeckte Ermittlungsmaßnahmen und andere Ermittlungstechniken

Gleich drei internationale Organisationen arbeiten an verschiedenen Abkommen, um Polizei und Justiz den Zugriff auf Server im Ausland zu erleichtern. Im Europarat könnte die EU-Kommission den Vereinten Nationen zuvorkommen. Probleme gibt es mit Forderu…

Gleich drei internationale Organisationen arbeiten an verschiedenen Abkommen, um Polizei und Justiz den Zugriff auf Server im Ausland zu erleichtern. Im Europarat könnte die EU-Kommission den Vereinten Nationen zuvorkommen. Probleme gibt es mit Forderungen aus den USA

Apple AirPods Max are $549 noise-cancelling headphones

Apple has earned a reputation over the years for offering high-quality hardware that comes at a high price tag. But the truth is some of the company’s latest phones, laptops, and desktops have starting prices that are pretty competitive (even if…

Apple has earned a reputation over the years for offering high-quality hardware that comes at a high price tag. But the truth is some of the company’s latest phones, laptops, and desktops have starting prices that are pretty competitive (even if you have to pay a pretty penny for upgraded specs). But Apple’s new wireless, […]

The post Apple AirPods Max are $549 noise-cancelling headphones appeared first on Liliputing.

Radeon RX 6900 XT im Test: AMDs Rasterization-Renner

Mit der Radeon RX 6900 XT stößt AMD zwar in die klaffende Preislücke zwischen beiden Geforce-Karten, es mangelt aber an Mehrwert. Ein Test von Marc Sauter (AMD Navi, AMD)

Mit der Radeon RX 6900 XT stößt AMD zwar in die klaffende Preislücke zwischen beiden Geforce-Karten, es mangelt aber an Mehrwert. Ein Test von Marc Sauter (AMD Navi, AMD)