On August 27, at 22:03 UTC, on occasion of the new test carried out at Boca Chica, Texas, SpaceX’s Starhopper (demonstrator of the future giant launch vehicle Starship) performed a free vertical flight lasted a little over 57 seconds.

It peaked at 150 m high before a soft landing at the center of the planned area, a few tens of meters from the lift-off point.

The Starhopper, which looks like a pressure cooker covered with stainless steel — making it look so bright — was powered by a single Raptor engine.

Check the test here: https://youtu.be/bYb3bfA6_sQ

A sense of déjà vu.

The test really looks like those of the DC-X (Delta Clipper Experimental) — a reusable single-stage orbital launch vehicle SSTO prototype developed between 1991 and 1997 by McDonnell Douglas for the Defense then the Nasa, and able to perform vertical takeoff and landing.

The contraption was 12 m high and weighted 9.1 t.

The second test flight of its “advanced” version DC-XA, which took place in June 1996, peaked at an altitude of 3,140 meters.

Check the test here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=o2sHf-udJI8&feature=youtu.be