SpaceX's next-generation Starship spacecraft atop its powerful Super Heavy rocket is set for a third launch from the company's Boca Chica launch pad on an uncrewed test flight near Brownsville, Texas, on March 13. March 2024.
Joe Captain | Reuters
Elon Musk's SpaceX is preparing to launch its third Starship test flight Thursday morning after federal regulators approved the attempt.
The Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday granted SpaceX the launch license the company needed to fly its latest Starship prototype.
The FAA said SpaceX “met all safety, environmental, policy and financial responsibility requirements.”
SpaceX is targeting a launch window between 8 a.m. ET and 9:50 a.m. ET on Thursday. The company plans to livestream the launch, with a webcast starting 30 minutes before the window opens.
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The company aims to build on last year's Starship prototype flights, the second and most recent of which reached space in November. The test flights had mixed results: both rockets flew for a few minutes and reached a few milestones before eventually being destroyed due to problems.
SpaceX and the FAA conducted an investigation into problems with the November launch, prompting the company to make changes to the monster rocket before the third attempt.
Additionally, SpaceX said it intends to demonstrate new capabilities with Starship's third flight, including opening and closing the spacecraft's door, in-flight fuel transfer in a NASA demonstration, and landing in the Indian Ocean.
