updates
What a returning Super Heavy boom would be
On July 29, 2024, SpaceX described sonic booms from a returning Super Heavy as louder than Falcon's but not an injury risk, based on Flight 4 splashdown data.
Topics: space-civilization starship
This page is an original Muskularity summary. It does not republish SpaceX’s full post. Figures are the company’s statements on the cited date unless another primary link is named.
Summary
SpaceX explained the noise that would come with flying Super Heavy and Starship back to the launch site. A sonic boom, it wrote, is the quick pressure change heard when an object exceeds the speed of sound. The pressure change itself is described as a few pounds per square foot, compared with the feeling of an elevator ride of several floors. The strongest effect sits under the flight path and the landing site.
The company compared the sound with Falcon’s double clap and with the space shuttle. Using data from the first Super Heavy landing burn and splashdown, on the fourth flight test, SpaceX said the boom would be more powerful than a Falcon landing boom and still would not injure people nearby. The strongest effects would be immediately around the Starbase pad, an area cleared before launch. Weather, mass, shape, altitude, and path all change the result. This is a company interpretation of its own flight data, published ahead of the catch attempt.
Key facts
| Fact | Label |
|---|---|
| Boom data source: Super Heavy splashdown on Flight 4 | Company analysis |
| Strongest effects localized to the cleared pad area | Company assessment |
| Overpressure described as a few pounds per square foot | Company explainer |
Why it matters
Return-to-launch-site is the reuse claim on the Starship page. This note is the public noise case SpaceX later cited when the FAA consulted on booms before Flight 5. It is not an independent acoustic study.
On this site
Sources
- SpaceX update, July 29, 2024 — Grade A, company post
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