SpaceX will attempt its most ambitious Starship launch to date today, aiming to catch both the rocket and its Super Heavy booster for the first time.
The launch from the company’s Starbase facility in Texas is scheduled for 4:45 pm local time (10:45pm GMT), with a 75 minute window allowing for any potential delays.
“Starship’s initial return to launch site mission is expected to orbit the Earth at an altitude of ~275 km and complete approximately 14 orbits around the planet over the course of a more than 22-hour flight,” SpaceX said.
“If successful, this will mark the first full recovery of an orbital launch system and a breakthrough moment in making Starship a reliable, rapidly reusable rocket.”
SpaceX boss Elon Musk has described Starship Flight 15 as a “profound technology milestone” in rocket science and space exploration, with rocket reusability being a key part of achieving his Moon and Mars ambitions.
“Success is not guaranteed on these first flights, but I’d say it’s more likely than not that this succeeds,” he said in October.
“If not, we have a steady stream of Starship flight attempts through the end of this year and then accelerating next year.”
SpaceX is aiming to have Starship fully operational ahead of Nasa’s Artemis III mission, which has a target launch date no earlier than June 2027.
The mission will see an uncrewed Starship attempt to dock with four astronauts aboard the US space agency’s Orion spacecraft.
Nasa then hopes to use Starship to send astronauts to the lunar surface as part of the Artemis IV mission in 2028, though doubts have been raised about the spacecraft’s suitability for the attempt.
Recent estimates from Nasa’s Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel suggested that SpaceX will need to perform 22 refueling missions in space in order to get Starship to the Moon.
Mr Musk claimed in a post to X that the actual number of refueling missions “will be more like six to eight”, with this figure potentially set to be tested for the upcoming Starship Flight 15.
A test of the in-orbit propellant transfer system could form part of the Starship test flight.
A live stream of the launch will be available on SpaceX’s website.
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