SpaceX attempts third test launch of massive Starship rocket in Texas

BOCA CHICA, Tx. – Starship will try to fly again Thursday morning, SpaceX says.

The company will attempt the third launch of its super-heavy rocket at 9:25 a.m. from Boca Chica, Texas.

(Watch the launch live by clicking the video player above)

According to News4JAX’s sister station WKMG, SpaceX has made two attempts to successfully launch Starship into space which ended in explosions, but SpaceX says both tests completed major milestones and led to invaluable data.

During the second test in November, the rocket ignited all engines successfully and completed stage separation, but the test was not completed and the rocket was destroyed.

The third flight attempt for Starship hopes to include several objectives, including opening and closing Starship’s payload door, re-lighting a Raptor engine while in space, and a controlled reentry for the spacecraft, which would splashdown in the Indian Ocean if successful.

Starship is the vehicle that is expected to land astronauts on the moon as part of the Artemis program. That mission is expected to happen no earlier than September 2026.

However, a Government Accounting Office report last year said delays in Starship’s development are hampering the launch of the Artemis III mission. The report said 2027 was a more likely scenario for launch.