SpaceX to conduct seventh Starship flight test on January 13

SpaceX is preparing to launch the seventh flight test of Starship, its mega-rocket, on Monday (January 13) from the Starbase in South Texas, US.

This 400-foot-tall (122 metres), fully reusable mega rocket is designed to help humans settle on the moon and Mars.

Notably, the Starship was previously flown six times, including twice in 2023 and in March, June, October, and November of last year.

Following the flight, Starship’s 165-foot-tall (50 metres) upper stage will aim for a splashdown in the Indian Ocean.

Moreover, SpaceX will try to catch the Super Heavy booster using the launch tower at Starbase, a feat the company successfully achieved in October 2024; however, it failed to repeat in November due to a communication issue.

With this Starship test flight, SpaceX is preparing for a major milestone. Elon Musk’s aerospace company is set to demonstrate payload deployment capabilities for the first time.

According to the company, this flight test mission will carry 10 Starlink satellite simulators. These simulators are designed to match the size and weight of the next-generation Starlink V3 satellites, which Starship will eventually deploy in space.

The Starship is scheduled to launch at 5pm EST. A live webcast will be also available on SpaceX’s X (formerly Twitter) handle 35 minutes before the liftoff.