New Launch Vehicles To Be Tested In 2023 - Part 1 of 2 Parts

New Launch Vehicles To Be Tested In 2023 - Part 1 of 2 Parts

Part 1 of 2 Parts
     In 2022, fans of space exploration witnessed the long-awaited first test flight of NASA’s lunar Space Launch System rocket. This year could see even more action at the launch pad as a bunch of new rockets make their debut.
   Colleen Anderson is a historian of technology at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. She said, “There’s a lot to look forward to. It’s going to be an interesting time with first flights for a lot of new launch vehicles.” From new boosters to the replacement of old workhorses to the much-anticipated flight of a huge rocket advertised as the tallest and most powerful ever build, here is a preview of 2023.
      The huge Starship from SpaceX has attracted a great deal of awe curiosity. The Starship booster and the Starship spacecraft stand almost four hundred feet tall. The combination launch vehicle is taller than NASA’s retired Saturn V rocket. The Saturn V was used send astronauts to the Moon during the Apollo Moon program. The Starship is also taller than NASA’s new Space Launch System. The Starship next generation rocket is designed to carry human crews to the Moon and eventually Mars.
      Laura Forczyk is the executive director of Astralytical, a space consulting firm based in Atlanta. She said that “The Starship has the opportunity to really revolutionize the way that we do space transportation, so it’s a big deal.”
     The Starship is classified as a super heavy-lift launch vehicle. This refers to rockets that can carry more than one hundred and ten thousand pounds into orbit. SpaceX says that the reusable Starship could lift up to three hundred and thirty pounds to low-Earth orbit.
     The Starship is expected to launch on its first uncrewed orbital flight test this year. No specific date has been announced by SpaceX. This January, the company said it had completed a “wet dress rehearsal”. This involved fully fueling the rocket with ten million pounds of propellant, as would be done prior to liftoff for an actual mission.
     Next, SpaceX will probably conduct another key safety test by firing up all thirty three Raptor engines on the booster’s first stage. This process is called a “static fire test.” Once the company obtains a license from the Federal Aviation Administration, the Starship could finally take flight from SpaceX's launch site in Boca Chica, Texas.
     Another new rocket that could play a critical roll in the years head is the Vulcan Centaur. This launch vehicle was developed by the Denver-based United Launch Alliance (ULA).
     The Vulcan Centaur is another heavy-lift rocket. It is designed to carry satellites and other spacecraft to various orbits around the Earth. The approximately two-hundred-foot-tall rocket will be utilized primarily for commercial launches. However, it will also be used for launches on behalf of NASA and the U.S. Space Force. The Vulcan Centaur is expected to eventually replace the United Launch Alliance’s workhorse Atlas V and Delta IV Heavy rockets.
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