SpaceX will take off its immense Starship rocket for the sixth time, on November 19, 2024. This mission will in principle be very similar to the flight on October 13. The event can be followed live.
The development of the giant Starship rocket must take a new step on November 19, with a new full-scale test. Broadly speaking, this test will be similar to the successful 5th flight attempt a month ago, if weather conditions permit and the rocket’s behavior is nominal.
The Starship rocket launch in summary
- Quoi ? The sixth test of a full Starship flight;
- When ? November 19, 2024, from 11 p.m. (Paris time);
- Or ? At Starbase in Texas, in space, then the Indian Ocean;
- What will we see? Takeoff of the Starship, atmospheric reentry of the spaceship, capture of the first stage with the Mechazilla.
How to see the Starship taking off?
The flight must be broadcast live by SpaceX. The video will be integrated into the article when it becomes available.
What is SpaceX aiming for with this 6th flight?
Overall, SpaceX wishes to reproduce the same mission profile as the 5th flight of the Starship, which notably made it possible to carry out the mid-flight recovery of the first stage of the rocket during its return to Earth. The Super Heavy – that’s its name – was recovered by the launch tower, named Mechazilla, a nod to Godzilla et Karate Kid.
The capture of the Super Heavy by the launch tower was not only a great first but, moreover, the maneuver was successful on the first try. At the same time, SpaceX validated the atmospheric reentry of the Starship (the name given to the upper stage, which is a spacecraft), which ended with a controlled landing in the Indian Ocean.
This sixth flight has been prepared for several months. SpaceX carried out tests of the first and second stages and received the prior green light from the Civil Aviation Administration in the United States, which regulates aviation activities across the Atlantic. So, no need to renew the license if this flight is similar to the previous one.
After this sixth flight, several notable acrobatics are expected in 2025. It is planned in particular to capture the upper stage by the launch tower and to demonstrate the transfer of fuel between two vessels in space. All this aims to prepare for the operational career of the Starship, which will in principle begin in September 2026.
When does the SpaceX rocket take off?
The rocket is scheduled to take off on Tuesday, November 18, 2024, from 11 p.m. (Paris time).
