The most powerful stationary rocket ever built
Even with 31 of 33 Raptor engines lit, the Starship booster earned the distinction of being the most powerful rocket ever built, albeit a rocket that has yet to take flight. A quick bit of math suggests that, which each Raptor exerting 510,000 pounds of thrust, the rocket produced 15.8 million pounds of thrust during the test. By comparison, NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS), the most powerful rocket currently in operation, produces 8.8 million pounds of thrust at liftoff. In case you’re wondering, a series of clamps and restraints—a very strong series of clamps and restraints—prevent rockets from taking off during static fire tests.
