/sci/ - Science & Math

>>15846983
fuck wrong picture, anyway
> Heading east from the Texas Gulf Coast, the Super Heavy booster will accelerate the rocket to several times the speed of sound. About two minutes and 39 seconds after launch, the booster will start preparing for separation from the Starship upper stage.
> This is called a "hot staging" technique. Russian rockets, like the venerable Soyuz, have employed the hot staging technique for decades, but it’s not used on any modern US launch vehicle. On the upcoming test flight, most of the Super Heavy's 33 engines will shut down two minutes and 39 seconds into the launch, according to a timeline released by SpaceX. Hot staging comes two seconds later with the simultaneous ignition of the Starship upper stage and jettison of the Super Heavy booster.
> Musk said hot staging is one of more than 1,000 tweaks, upgrades, and modifications to the rocket since the April test flight. Some of the changes were already in the works for the second Starship launch before April, including electric thrust vector controls to replace the hydraulic steering system used on the first Starship test flight.