SpaceX launches 7th Starship spacecraft for testing before next launch (photos)

The world’s most powerful rocket is nearing its next test flight.

The seventh launch of SpaceX’s Starship megarocket is expected in about a month. After a recent static fire from the vehicle’s massive first stage Super Heavy booster, the company prepared the Starship’s upper stage for its own testing.

“The Starship is ready for testing ahead of Flight 7,” SpaceX said in an article on South Texas.

The upper stage of the Flight 7 spacecraft at SpaceX’s Starbase facility. (Image credit: SpaceX)

SpaceX has not announced a date for the next Integrated Test Flight (IFT), but an email from NASA to the US Federal Aviation Administration identifies January 11 as the likely target.

When the Starship’s upper stage is stacked atop the Super Heavy, the integrated vehicle stands nearly 400 feet (122 meters) tall, larger than any other rocket ever built. The upper floor, known as the Ship, is 50m high alone.

Ship 7 moving. (Image credit: SpaceX)

Starship is the first ever fully reusable launch vehicle; Both Super Heavy and Ship are designed to return to their launch sites to be caught in the air by the “stick arms” of the Starship’s launch tower.

SpaceX first attempted to catch Super Heavy during IFT-5, which launched in October. This attempt was successful; the chopsticks made a perfect snag of the return reminder.

The company wanted to perform another booster capture on the IFT-6, which flew on November 19. But communication problems with the tower caused this attempt to fail, and the Super Heavy instead diverted for a controlled water landing in the Gulf of Mexico.

The upper stage of the Starship is approximately 50 meters high. (Image credit: SpaceX)

IFT-7 will be SpaceX’s first Starship launch in 2025. This year saw the launch of four Starship flights, spaced in March, June, October and November, and doubling the number of Starship flights compared to 2023.

The number of Starship launches in 2025 is expected to increase again, as Starship checks the boxes toward operational qualification. SpaceX and NASA are eager for Starship’s success, as the space agency has chosen the new SpaceX vehicle as the lunar lander for the upcoming Artemis 3 mission to send astronauts to the Moon.