SUPER SPACEX ROCKET ENGINE
This revolutionary new propulsion system is set to change space launches
WORDS ANDREW MAY
Raptor engines are used to launch SpaceX’s giant Starship rocket
If you’ve ever watched one of the test launches of SpaceX’s 120-metre-tall Starship, you may have been amazed that such an enormous rocket can get off the ground, let alone reach outer space. That’s all thanks to its specially designed Raptor engines – six of them in its upper stage and an unprecedented 33 in the Super Heavy first stage. SpaceX is unusual among launch vehicle manufacturers in designing and constructing its own engines, rather than buying them from another supplier. But this gives it the flexibility to tailor the engines to its exact needs – and in the case of Raptor, it has led to one of the most revolutionary rocket designs to date.