Starship Hot Staging: More Complex Than You Think!

Keep exploring at Get started for free, the first 200 people get 20% off an annual premium subscription. In this episode we will examine the critical design considerations that had to be addressed to allow Starship to execute its hot stage maneuver without destroying both vehicles in the process! At the end you will hopefully gain an appreciation for the amount of work that went into being able to pull this off in a ridiculously short timeline. After covering the upgrades that needed to be made for this to be successful, we will get deeper into the physics of hot staging. This isn’t a unique mode of stage separation but the way it is executed is unlike any other rocket that has done this. Lastly, we will address all of the speculative explanations about what caused Booster 9 to explode shortly after stage separation. The goal is not to come to a definite conclusion, but get a visual understanding of each theory, and then determine which ones actually seem feasible to the real cause of failure. Join this channel to get access to exclusive perks: Please consider supporting CSI Starbase on: Patreon: PayPal: Twitter: CSI Starbase Production : Geoff Allan The Ring Watchers - Super Heavy Propellant Distribution Article Huge thanks to the following photographers and content creators who make all of this possible! Ryan Hansen Space Patreon - 𝕏 - ▶︎ @UCNxwUG0Vq8TztWdxL83FLHQ Chameleon Circuit Patreon - 𝕏 - Andi Ashtorak - Starbase Simulator Video Game: Download - 𝕏 - C-Bass Productions 𝕏 - ▶︎ - 📷Virtual Space 3D - Highbay & CSI Headquarters Renders Patreon - 𝕏 - ▶︎ RGVAerialPhotography Patreon - ▶︎ @@UCQbKe0RZ62u47TZ8vmKNnRA 📷 Starship Gazer Patreon - ▶︎ @UCBVnapKtPTNYl4phaGXxYng Randolph Visuals Patreon - 𝕏 - LabPadre - 24/7 Starbase Livestreams ▶︎ @UCFwMITSkc1Fms6PoJoh1OUQ NASASpaceflight ▶︎ Cosmic Perspective w/Audio from Andrew Keating ▶︎ @UCh3jrub_0od3EFoUtiIG4jQ Tim Dodd - The Everyday Astronaut ▶︎ @EverydayAstronaut Timestamps 00:00 - Elon Starship Presentation 01:17 - Introduction 07:04 - HSR Design - Overpressure Prevention 10:05 - HSR Design - Max Q Durability 14:00 - HSR Structural Verification Testing 19:14 - HSR Design - Ignition Survivability 24:17 - S25 Aft Heat Shield Explained 29:40 - S27’s Sudden Death 31:40 - S25 Aft Heat Shield Upgrade 33:47 - S27 Resurrection / Heat Shield Testing 37:00 - Falcon 9 v Starship Stage Separation 40:33 - Brilliant Sponsor Segment 42:00 - RVac Differential Thrust At Stage Sep 45:16 - Grid Fin Rotation During Hot Staging 49:30 - Raptor Relight Performance Issues? 51:50 - Booster Engine Plumbing - CH4 54:46 - CH4 Downcomer Collapse? 57:05 - Booster Engine Plumbing - LOX 58:04 - Fuel Slosh Intro 60:47 - RHS Fuel Slosh Simulation Explained 67:08 - Catastrophic Engine Cavitation Damage? 70:20 - B10 Upgraded Slosh Baffles 71:18 - Engine Plumbing Damage? 76:28 - Lessons Learned 77:08 - Outro Music Credits 2:30 “Do You Remember“ prod. by kochetkovv 7:03 11:08 14:21 19:28 20:52 24:51 30:19 Collapse - 31:40 Electric TVC - Spaceflight Memories 33:53 37:47 40:33 41:53 46:07 Saving Starship- Spaceflight Memories 53:04 57:00 67:04 73:31 74:57 79:14 Beat from “The Last Song Produced by Ghost“ Last but not least I want to give HUGE SHOUTOUT to the entire CSI Starbase team on discord. This dedicated team of 200 agents with specialties ranging all across the board, has been crucial in getting the most accurate info for these episodes. Couldn’t do it without yal!