SpaceX's Starship IFT-6 Flight: A Step Forward and a Splashdown
0:04 Rapid Turnaround & Test Objectives: SpaceX's 6th Starship & Super Heavy flight followed quickly after the 5th, aiming to repeat the booster catch, achieve a daylight ocean landing, and test in-space engine re-ignition.
0:32 Hardware-Rich Testing: The program emphasizes rapid iteration and learning through testing, even if it means sacrificing hardware along the way.
1:15 Flight Plan Changes: Key differences from IFT-5 included a daylight landing for better visibility, an in-space Starship engine relight test, a more aggressive booster landing strategy, and modifications to Starship's heat shield (tiles removed to test potential hardpoint areas).
2:30 Banana Payload: A banana was added to the payload bay, primarily for scale, but also as a fun element for engagement.
3:00 Launch & Ascent: The launch went smoothly, with the ascent profile similar to IFT-5.
3:52 Booster Return & Abort: During booster return, a sensor issue triggered an abort, leading to a controlled splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico, roughly 30km offshore.
4:57 Offshore Landing Footage: Multiple sources captured footage of the booster's splashdown and subsequent explosion after engine shutdown.
6:20 Engine Bay Observations: Footage revealed significant fire and heat emanating from between the Raptor engines during ascent and re-entry, possibly due to methane pre-burn.
7:04 Starship Engine Bay Camera: A new engine bay camera provided spectacular views of engine operations, including the vacuum Raptor shutdown and a later relight test.
7:46 In-Space Engine Relight Success: A single Raptor engine was successfully ignited in space, demonstrating a key capability for orbital maneuvers and controlled re-entry.
9:45 Re-Entry & Heat Shield Performance: Re-entry was more aggressive, leading to noticeable wrinkling and deformation of the Starship's skin in areas where heat shield tiles had been removed.
11:31 Fin Damage: A tile broke off and impacted a fin, leaving a visible mark, and a fin's leading edge showed signs of significant heating.
12:01 Daylight Footage Reveals Damage: Daylight footage during the latter stages of re-entry clearly showed heat damage to the interior of a fin, likely due to hot gas ingress.
13:14 Belly Flop Through Clouds: Starship executed a successful belly flop maneuver, with daylight providing stunning visuals as it descended through cloud layers.
14:48 Daylight Landing Success: Starship performed a soft landing on two engines, achieving another successful daylight ocean landing.
15:14 Banana's Fate: The banana payload was likely destroyed upon booster splashdown and explosion.
15:44 Tower Catch Abort Cause & Future Plans: The tower catch abort was likely due to a sensor issue or potential damage to the tower from the previous flight's pad avoidance maneuver. Future plans include another Starship ocean landing followed by a Starship catch attempt, potentially utilizing the upgraded Starship 33 (V2 design) and Booster 14.