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They want to use the same basic engine for both the ship and the booster, and they want to land the ship with 2-engines-out capability. Because starting rocket engines takes time, this means that at the very last moment before touchdown they need to have 3 engines lit, so they can ramp one up rapidly if two fail. Rocket engines also really don't like being throttled down too much, so the lowest throttle they can manage is about ~30%.Put together, this places a maximum thrust for an engine that is determined by the empty+payload weight of their ship. Raptors are designed to hit this limit.
They want to use the same basic engine for both the ship and the booster, and they want to land the ship with 2-engines-out capability. Because starting rocket engines takes time, this means that at the very last moment before touchdown they need to have 3 engines lit, so they can ramp one up rapidly if two fail. Rocket engines also really don't like being throttled down too much, so the lowest throttle they can manage is about ~30%.
Put together, this places a maximum thrust for an engine that is determined by the empty+payload weight of their ship. Raptors are designed to hit this limit.
