SpaceX’s Starship could launch in October after being grounded by FAA

The acting head of the FAA said on Wednesday that it could advance a launch license as early as next month for the most powerful rocket yet built, reports Reuters. “We’re working well with them and have been in good discussions. Teams are working together and I think we’re optimistic sometime next month,” said FAA Administrator Polly Trottenberg to reporters during a conference.

While grounding Starship, the FAA said that it found multiple reasons that could have led to the explosion in April. Ahead of the next launch, SpaceX has 63 corrective actions that they need to take. If the company has made the corrections, it can then apply for and receive a license modification from the federal regulator before attempting another launch.

Some of the actions include modifications to the spacecraft itself like redesigns to prevent leaks and fires. The FAA also recommended changes to the SpaceX launch pad at the company’s Starbase launch facility in Boca Chica, Texas to make it stronger. There will also be reviews in the design process and added analyses and testing of critical systems like the Autonomous Flight Safety Systems.

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Elon Musk, meanwhile, hinted that the company has already made many changes to how Starship operates and is more hopeful for its next launch, reports The Independent. “We are doing a new staging technique called hot staging where you light the upper stage engines while the booster stage is still firing,” said Musk during an episode of a podcast he was participating in this week.

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