SpaceX just Broke the Internet with Ship 37 Full Engine Firing On PAD!! Flight 10 Count Down begins…

Ship 37's full duration static fire is done. Flight 10 can't be far behind. Crew 11 launched successfully, though new issues have surfaced post-flight, and the US Space Force is prepping its next X37B space plane mission. Today on Great SpaceX, we break down what's next. After the rapid return to static fire testing and the success of ship 37's single engine trial, SpaceX prepared for its most significant ground milestone in months, the full duration six engine static fire. Though the closure of local roads for this event, scheduled quietly from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. on August 1st, wasn't widely publicized. It underscored just how critical this test would be. Early that morning, the familiar choreography unfolded. The Raptor work platform descended into place around ship 37, then rolled back to clear the way. Support crews activated the detonation suppression system and inspectors sealed off safety perimeters. By midm morning, the giant chopstick cranes lifted into position, ready to hold ship steady once the burn concluded. At roughly 2 p.m., the first clouds of vapor drifted from the tank farm. Liquid oxygen and methane flowed through freshly inspected lines on the orbital launch mount into ship 37's tanks. Though a few utility vehicles made lastminute trips past the pad, reflecting minor troubleshooting, the fueling sequence proceeded without hiccup. Steel frost rings delineated the liquid oxygen fill level while methane's telltale frosting crept across the lower tank surfaces. The live stream cameras even caught another flap exercise, reminding viewers that attitude control surfaces would play their part during ascent. With fueling complete, the site fell silent for a tense minute. Then water gushed from the massive deluge nozzles beneath the pad. Within heartbeats, six Raptor engines roar to life. Each one thrusting against the dampened flame trench and sending shock waves through the desert air. A plume of smoke and dust billowed outward, momentarily obscuring the booster before clearing to reveal a steady simultaneous shutdown after roughly 10 seconds. SpaceX later confirmed on X full duration static fire for the Starship preparing for our 10th flight test. It was a succinct victory lap. Ship 37's engines and plumbing had performed flawlessly. The new test stand and water deluge system had withstood the harsh thermal and acoustic stresses. And most importantly, the groundwork was set for flight 10 itself. In the hours that followed, the post- test routine began. Chopsticks lowered ship 37 gently onto its transport stand. Then the crane released. Ground crews fastened inspection plates over each engine's throat and exhaust, preparing the vehicle for its slow trek back to Mega Bay 2. Over the coming hours, S37 would be stowed beneath the bay's roof, where technicians would pour over telemetry, sample engine components, and ready the ship for its next transformation. The installation of avionics, payload fixtures, and final heat shield touches. Meanwhile, across the yard, activity at Meabay 2 continued a pace. Early that morning, after S37's cryo test, ship 38 had been rolled inside for its own series of checks. With engines soon to be installed and flaps already in place, S38 is poised to follow its sister vessel through cryogenic proof, static fires, and ultimately a full launch cycle. If all goes according to plan, flight 11 could arrive barely a month behind flight 10. Not far off, B16, the super heavy core designated for flight 10, sat in its own workshop. After weeks at the Star Factory for hot staging, ring installation, and final plumbing tweaks, B16 was wheeled back into the bay. Teams ran inspections on its methane transfer tube and grid fin mounts before beginning mating operations with ship 37's stack. Musk's mid August launch target now felt within reach. With static fires complete and stacking underway, only pad refurbishments and integrated dress rehearsals remain. Returning to Starbase, the success of ship 37's static fire marks the transition from ground tests to the final push. Flight readiness. Within days, we should see the towering stack roll onto pad A for system checkouts, tank pressurization tests, and ultimately the countdown to flight 10. If you're ready for that next leap, declare it in the comments with here we go. Then make sure you like the video and subscribe to the channel. We'll always be right here tracking every bolt, every ignition, and every roll out. As SpaceX forges ahead into an unprecedented era of space flight, SpaceX and NASA faced one last hurdle before Crew 11 could depart on schedule, the Florida skies. Despite a 90% favorable forecast, thick cumulus clouds rolled over launch complex 39A just as the countdown neared zero, forcing a rare scrub of the July 31st launch. Crew members, suited and ready, were escorted back to the operations and checkout building under sudden rain, a vivid reminder that even the most streamlined missions remain at nature's mercy. Barely 24 hours later, under clearer skies, Crew 11 lifted off at 11:43 a.m. Eastern aboard Dragon Endeavor. In 7 and 1/2 minutes, the nine Merlin engines powered the Falcon 9 first stage skyward, then guided booster B1067 back to landing zone 1 for a precise touchdown, ironically marking the final flight to that facility. The US Space Force announced that LZ1's home, Launch Complex 13 at Cape Canaveral, will be leased to Phantom Space and Vaia Space, opening new opportunities for private providers to secure their own landing zones through a rigorous review process. High above, Dragons separated cleanly from the second stage. Over the next 40 hours, the capsule and its four astronaut crew will chase the station's orbital carousel, conducting periodic engine burns to fine-tune their approach. Once docked, veteran astronaut Jasmine Mugbelli along with mission specialists Andreas Mogusen, Satoshi Furakawa, and Constantine Miserin will join the orbiting laboratory's multinational team for an expedition originally slated at 6 months and now under consideration for an 8month extension. That potential stretch reflects more than scientific ambition, it responds to broader NASA budget pressures. Proposed cuts threatened 2,100 senior staff and dozens of programs, while the Senate's reconciliation bill partially restored funding. Yet, uncertainty over future resupply flights and the eventual retirement of the station motivates efforts to lengthen each crew's tenure, preserving research continuity as cargo traffic adjusts. Crew 11's science itinerary underscores that imperative. Experiments slated for the South Pole research module will simulate lunar landings and test vision protection measures against microgravity's ocular impacts. Biologists aboard will probe plant cell division in space and biomedical teams will work to boost ondemand stem cell production, stem cell production, and nutrient synthesis. Every test takes advantage of Dragon's flawless record. Six flights for the Endeavor capsule and a perfect success rate across 19 Crew Dragon missions. On Earth, SpaceX's turnaround tempo remains fierce. While Crew 11 orbits, teams will retrofit LZ1 for new tenants. Even as LC4 at Vandenberg continues to receive returning boosters from polar launches, the company's mixed fleet Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy, Dragon, and Starship prototypes demonstrates a versatile approach, relying on proven hardware while racing ahead with next generation vehicles. Crew 11's smooth departure reaffirms that balance. Looking ahead, Crew 11's return date could slip into April of 2026 if the 8month extension is approved. But the science payoff may prove well worth the wait. By the time Endeavor undocks to carry its crew safely back through Earth's atmosphere, their experiments will have advanced knowledge in fields as varied as lunar exploration, regenerative medicine, and food production, paving the way for both NASA's Aremis program and future commercial stations. For now, the eyes of the space community turned skyward once more to monitor Crew 11's docking, to track the evolution of landing zone logistics, and to anticipate the next intersection of human space flight and private enterprise. In this era of tight budgets and fierce global competition, every moment aboard the ISS and every touchdown on Terrairma matters. And as Dragon Endeavor glides into its orbital home, it carries not just for astronauts, but the hopes of a program determined to push the boundaries of human presence in space. In the meantime, the US Space Force has quietly unveiled plans for the next flight of its experimental X37B robotic space plane. Scheduled to ride a top a SpaceX Falcon 9 on the 21st of this month. This mission designated OTV8 or orbital test vehicle 8, designated OTV8 or orbital test vehicle 8 and cataloged as USSF-36 marks the eighth flight of the reusable craft and follows the conclusion of its records shattering 434day OTV7 mission earlier this year. X37B resembles a miniature space shuttle measuring just 8.8 8 meters long, but its mission set is anything but small. On OTV8, the vehicle will deploy and operate cuttingedge hardware, the highest performing quantum inertial sensor ever tested in space, and a laser communications experiment designated to tap into proliferated commercial satellite networks, most notably SpaceX's Starlink constellation. Laser links promise data rates and security unattainable with traditional radio frequencies. While quantum inertial navigation offers the tenalizing prospect of GPS-free positioning by measuring atomic rotations and accelerations, the sensor can autonomously calculate its orbital coordinates and invaluable capability for operations in GPS denied environments such as the moon, Mars, or deep space destinations. OTV8's laser communications demonstration will mark an important step in the US Space Force's ability to leverage proliferated space networks as part of a diversified and redundant space architecture, said Space Force Chief of Space Operations General Brigadier Chance Saltzman. He added that these tests will strengthen the resilience, reliability, adaptability, and data transport speeds of our satellite communications architecture. The 5-tonon vehicle's clandestine nature only heightens public interest. While OTV7 offered occasional glimpses, camouflaged launch photos, and re-entry videos, the true scope of its experiments remained classified. OTV8 promises a similar blend of mystery and ingenuity with the added allure of high-speed laser links and next generation navigation. Details on mission duration remain under wraps, but past X37B flights have ranged from a few months to over a year. The swift 5 and a half month turnaround from landing to relaunch underscores the Space Force's commitment to rapid iteration and the operational maturity of both the vehicle and its commercial launch partner. As the countdown to August 21st begins, all eyes will be on Cape Canaveral's SLC 40 pad. Falcon 9's first stage will attempt another high precision boost back and recovery on an offshore drone ship while X37B embarks on its silent voyage. success will not only validate the new technologies aboard, but also reinforce the strategic value of a resilient, adaptable space plane, one capable of shuttling back and forth between Earth and orbit to test the technologies that will underpin America's future presence in space. This has been Kevin with Great SpaceX. Don't forget to like the video and subscribe if you haven't already to stay up to date with yours truly on the latest milestones in SpaceX's journey. Thank you so much for watching and always remember curiosity, imagination and inspiration will follow you so long as you keep looking up.