The Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday granted SpaceX permission to test-launch the company’s gargantuan Starship rocket system from Texas, clearing the way for an early demonstration of a vehicle crucial to Elon Musk’s satellite launch business and NASA’s lunar exploration plans. The FAA said it had determined SpaceX met all safety, environmental, and policy requirements for the upcoming flight.
SpaceX’s third Starship test flight will include re-lighting the rocket’s engines in space and an onboard experiment that could pave the way for future Starships to refuel themselves in orbit. The company also aims to demonstrate opening and closing the rocket’s payload door, transferring fuel during the flight in a NASA demonstration, and splashing down in the Indian Ocean.
This latest test will build on the lessons learned from two previous flights, including one in April that ended in spectacular explosions as the rocket’s first and second stages separated, flinging concrete chunks across a 385-acre area near the South Texas launchpad. The second test, in November, was aborted just before the rocket was due to start a loop around Earth for a planned splashdown in the Pacific Ocean north of Hawaii.
In the wake of these failures, engineers have worked to improve several systems, including beefing up the rocket’s self-destruct system and a high-powered water deluge system designed to protect the launch pad from engine ignition while deadening the acoustic shock of its explosions. The FAA will require many more successful tests before allowing SpaceX to fly Starship with people aboard.
Despite its failures, SpaceX’s rocket is vital to NASA’s plans for landing astronauts on the Moon later this decade — and Elon Musk’s hopes of eventually colonizing Mars. The company has developed a fully reusable, massive rocket capable of flying crew and cargo missions to Earth’s Moon and Mars. The goal is to send dozens of humans simultaneously and hundreds of tons of cargo.
Buzz Aldrin, the second man to set foot on the Moon, has said it should be humanity’s “number one priority” to establish a permanent human presence on another planet.
SpaceX has already won a contract from NASA to transport the agency’s astronauts to the Moon starting in 2026, using a modified version of its Starship rocket and Dragon capsule. SpaceX beat out competitors from Blue Origin, founded by Amazon tycoon Jeff Bezos, and defense contractor Dynetics to win the award.
SpaceX must prove it can successfully launch, fly, and land Starship before the clock runs out on the final opportunity to make a dent in our understanding of the universe. The company’s next big challenge comes on Thursday when it will attempt to blast off with Starship from its headquarters in southeast Texas, aiming for a 110-minute window that opens at 7:00 am local time. A live webcast will begin on SpaceX’s website 30 minutes before launch.
