SpaceX is targeting Monday for the next flight of its Starship system, the most powerful rocket ever built, pending final regulatory approval. The uncrewed suborbital test flight, launching from the company’s Starbase facility in South Texas, represents another critical step in the development of a fully and rapidly reusable heavy-lift launch vehicle. The primary goal of the mission is to fly a trajectory similar to the program’s successful fourth test, culminating in the controlled splashdown of the Super Heavy booster in the Gulf of Mexico and the Starship upper stage in the Indian Ocean.
This flight will build on the major strides made during the previous mission, which for the first time saw both the booster and the upper stage complete their powered descents and make soft landings on the water. Engineers will be closely monitoring the performance of both vehicles, particularly the Starship’s ability to withstand the intense heat of atmospheric reentry, a phase that caused visible damage to a control flap and the loss of several heat-resistant tiles on the last flight. Gathering extensive data on these events is a core objective, as SpaceX pushes toward an operational system designed to carry satellites, cargo, and eventually astronauts to Earth orbit, the Moon, and Mars.
Ambitious Mission Trajectory
The mission will follow a flight plan that has become standard for the Starship program. After lifting off from the orbital launch mount at Starbase, the 33 methane-fueled Raptor engines of the Super Heavy booster will power the ascent. One of the most complex maneuvers, known as hot-staging, will occur minutes into the flight. This involves shutting down most of the booster’s engines and igniting the six Raptor engines on the Starship upper stage before the two vehicles have fully separated. This technique, proven on prior flights, provides an efficient performance boost.
Booster’s Return Journey
Following stage separation, the Super Heavy booster is tasked with a series of precise burns to reverse its course. It will perform a flip maneuver and then execute a boostback burn to direct it toward its designated splashdown zone in the Gulf of Mexico. The booster will jettison its hot-stage adapter ring to reduce mass before attempting a final landing burn intended to bring it to a gentle, vertical touchdown on the ocean surface. While this flight still targets a water landing, the accuracy and control demonstrated are vital precursors to the company’s ultimate goal: catching the returning booster directly with the launch tower’s massive robotic arms for immediate reuse.
Starship’s Suborbital Coast and Reentry
After the Super Heavy begins its return, the Starship second stage will continue to accelerate to a near-orbital velocity, placing it on a long suborbital path that will take it nearly halfway around the planet. After coasting through space, the vehicle will orient itself for a challenging reentry. It will use its four large flaps for control as it descends through the atmosphere at hypersonic speeds, enduring temperatures generated by plasma buildup. The final phase of its journey involves another flip maneuver and the ignition of its central Raptor engines for a landing burn, aiming for a soft splashdown in the Indian Ocean approximately 66 minutes after liftoff.
Iterating on Previous Successes
This upcoming test is part of SpaceX’s iterative development philosophy, where each flight provides crucial data to inform rapid upgrades. The fourth test flight in June 2024 was widely considered a landmark success for the program. It was the first time both stages achieved a controlled splashdown, fulfilling the primary objectives of the mission. The Super Heavy booster completed a full-duration ascent burn and executed a successful landing burn seven minutes and 24 seconds into the flight. The Starship stage reached its planned trajectory, transmitted high-definition video throughout its reentry via its onboard Starlink terminal, and survived the period of maximum aerodynamic pressure.
However, that flight also highlighted areas for improvement. Onboard cameras showed the reentry plasma visibly tearing away heat-shield tiles and causing significant damage to one of the vehicle’s forward flaps. Despite the damage, the ship maintained control and completed its landing burn. Engineers have since analyzed the data from the damaged flap and tiles to implement design and material enhancements aimed at increasing durability for this and future flights. The successful return of both stages, even to a water landing, is fundamental to proving the system’s reusability.
The Path to Operational Flights
Each test flight is a stepping stone toward making Starship a workhorse for a new era of space exploration. The vehicle’s immense size and capability for rapid reuse are central to SpaceX’s long-term plans. The system is designed to deploy larger and more powerful satellite constellations, conduct scientific missions, and transport cargo and crew around the solar system. Its engines use liquid oxygen and liquid methane, propellants that could theoretically be produced on Mars, enabling ambitious round-trip missions.
The program is also a cornerstone of NASA’s lunar exploration plans. The U.S. space agency selected a modified version of Starship as the Human Landing System for its Artemis program, which aims to return astronauts to the lunar surface. Under the current timeline, Starship is slated to land astronauts near the Moon’s south pole on the Artemis 3 mission. Before that can happen, SpaceX must demonstrate not only safe launch and landing but also complex in-orbit operations, such as the refueling of one Starship from another, a capability required for the journey to the Moon.
Regulatory and Launch Readiness
All Starship launches are contingent on receiving a modified launch license from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The agency oversees the safety of the national airspace and reviews extensive data from previous flights before granting approval for the next. The FAA’s process involves ensuring that any anomalies or failures during a test do not pose a threat to public safety. For the fourth flight, the FAA determined that its predecessor had not threatened public safety and issued a license just days before launch. A similar review process is underway for this upcoming flight, with SpaceX providing mishap investigation data and outlining corrective actions to satisfy the agency’s requirements. Pending this final sign-off, SpaceX teams at Starbase are completing final launch preparations for the world’s largest rocket to take flight once again on Monday.
