\n<\/p>\n
SpaceX has scrubbed the first launch of its third-generation Starship rocket system from its headquarters in Starbase, Texas. The company is expected to make another attempt on Friday.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a crucial launch for the company \u2014 and not just because it\u2019s the first real test of the upgraded Starship V3 hardware; it also comes at a pivotal moment for SpaceX financially. The company recently filed for an IPO and is expected to go public within weeks, putting added pressure on SpaceX to demonstrate that its next-generation rocket program is making meaningful progress.<\/p>\n
This launch \u2014 Starship\u2019s 12th \u2014 will mark the first flight of Starship since the company\u2019s last attempt in October 2025. SpaceX has spent the interim months working on developing and testing this third version of Starship, which has encountered a few problems. In November, for example, one of the first V3 boosters suffered an explosion<\/a> during testing.<\/p>\n The company pushed back the Thursday liftoff a number of times and ultimately tried to send the rocket into space near the end of its expected launch window. Starship and its massive rocket booster were fully fueled, and the countdown dipped under T-40 seconds, but issues with the various rocket and launchpad systems caused the company to re-cycle the countdown multiple times.<\/p>\n SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said in a post<\/a> on X that the \u201chydraulic pin holding the [launch] tower arm in place did not retract,\u201d and added that the company will try again on Friday at 5:30 p.m. local time if the issue \u201ccan be fixed tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n This new version of Starship represents a massive upgrade in vehicle design and how the company\u2019s launchpad infrastructure works. One of the bigger changes were to SpaceX\u2019s third-generation Raptor engines, which put more thrust in a streamlined design. The third-gen Starship booster is supposed to be easier for the launch tower to catch and has one fewer grid fin.<\/p>\n SpaceX has also made a number of changes that are supposed to make this version of Starship more reliable. For example, the new design is supposed to stop leaking propellant from building up inside certain sections of the Starship upper stage \u2014 which has presented problems on multiple previous Starship test flights. The goal is to make the entire vehicle totally reusable, similar to the company\u2019s workhorse rocket, the Falcon 9.<\/p>\n This particular flight, if it goes as planned, will not accomplish all the goals that SpaceX has set for proving out Starship V3. The company is not trying to recover the booster or the Starship vehicle itself. Both are expected to perform \u201csoft landings\u201d in the water \u2014 the booster in the Atlantic Ocean, and Starship in the Indian Ocean. Starship also won\u2019t be flying in a true Earth orbit, meaning SpaceX will still have to wait another mission or two to prove that this mega-rocket\u2019s upper stage is capable of delivering commercial payloads.<\/p>\n SpaceX needs Starship V3 to become a reliable launch system in large part because the company has made a massive bet on Starlink, which generated $11 billion in revenue last year, according to the company\u2019s now-public IPO filing<\/a>. SpaceX has demonstrated Starship\u2019s ability to deploy dummy versions of its upgraded Starlink satellites in previous launches, but has yet to put a working payload into space with the new rocket system.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission<\/a>. This doesn\u2019t affect our editorial independence.<\/em><\/p>\n