# TWiS 212: Kabooms, Starship, and a Moon Base

**URL:** <https://www.twit.community/t/twis-212-kabooms-starship-and-a-moon-base/20071>\
**Category:** This Week in Space\
**Tags:** episode\
**Created:** [May 29, 2026, 11:00pm UTC](https://www.twit.community/t/twis-212-kabooms-starship-and-a-moon-base/20071 "2026-05-29T23:00:17Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Leo](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex020/user_avatar/www.twit.community/leo/32/16203_2.png) [@Leo](https://www.twit.community/u/Leo)\
**Post date:** [May 29, 2026, 11:00pm UTC](https://www.twit.community/t/twis-212-kabooms-starship-and-a-moon-base/20071/1 "2026-05-29T23:00:17Z")

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# This Week in Space #212 - “Kabooms, Starship, and a Moon Base”

This Week in Space #212 is now available.

- Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket explosion during static fire testing and its impact on NASA’s Artemis 4 timeline
- NASA’s updated lunar base plans and infrastructure contracts for landers, rovers, and robotics
- SpaceX Starship Flight 12 performance and booster mishap investigation
- Intensifying US-China lunar competition and national security implications of lunar operations
- Astronomical phenomenon Manhattanhenge and lunar exploration strategy updates

> **[This Week in Space: Kabooms, Starship, and a Moon Base | TWiT.TV](https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-space/episodes/212)**
>
> What a wild week in space news! We were all set to discuss Starship Test Flight 12 and NASA's recent press conference updating their lunar base plans, when on Thursday night

#SpaceNews #Artemis #SpaceX #BlueOrigin #Starship #NASA #MoonBase #LunarExploration

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**Author:** ![dodgy.heat.shield](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex020/user_avatar/www.twit.community/dodgy.heat.shield/32/23281_2.png) [@dodgy.heat.shield](https://www.twit.community/u/dodgy.heat.shield)\
**Post date:** [June 5, 2026, 3:48am UTC](https://www.twit.community/t/twis-212-kabooms-starship-and-a-moon-base/20071/2 "2026-06-05T03:48:01Z")

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Hi, I discovered TWiS on YouTube just recently, as I was looking for discussion on Starship’s latest launch and the Blue Glenn… incident.

I’m curious about the language SpaceX uses in its official commentary, but I haven’t found any information that sufficiently clarifies it for me. Early in the Flight 12 livestream, there was this graphic referring to “orbit insertion”:

 ![Bottom right-hand corner of SpaceX Starship Flight 12 livestream, taken at 17:23. Shows a graphic of the upper stage Starship, with the phrase "orbit insertion" above it.](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex020/uploads/twit/original/3X/9/9/99a8bc26d45f9b62ef45fb36b00e8539248a460a.png)

The commentator verbally said “suborbital trajectory” at the time that this graphic was shown.

Then, during the flight, the commentators said (approximate times given):

- T+00:10:30: “awaiting the callout of nominal insertion”
- T+00:15:45: “I wouldn’t call it a nominal orbital insertion but we’re on a trajectory that we’d analysed, and it’s within bounds”
- T+00:16:05: “we should still be on for payload deploy, at least at this time, so, very dynamic moments right here with the ship, uhh but we do have it in space, it is on a trajectory now headed towards the other side of the planet”

**Why I’m wondering about this**

As I understand it, “orbital insertion” means something very specific - an insertion into orbit. And when you’re on a suborbital trajectory, you’re not really “inserting” into anything… right?

Am I mistaken? Does “orbital insertion” ever mean anything other than an insertion into orbit?

If so, I’d really like to know, because I incorrectly told someone that Flight 12 was going into orbit after I heard the commentator say “awaiting the callout of nominal insertion” (at the time, I was unaware that a launch for orbit is not likely to happen until SpaceX has tested a Raptor relight in space).

I’m a novice. I rely on expert commentary to understand what is happening. Consistent language helps me to compare different vehicles and missions.

So I’m wondering if there are examples, outside of SpaceX, where “orbital insertion” describes a planned suborbital trajectory - so I can avoid tripping over this language in future. 🙂