SpaceX targets third attempt at Starship Flight 13 after back-to-back scrubs

SpaceX is preparing to make its third attempt in eight days to launch Starship’s 13th flight test Friday evening after back-to-back scrubs delayed the mission.

The company is targeting a 90-minute launch window opening at 5:45 p.m. from Starbase. A live webcast is scheduled to begin about 30 minutes before liftoff.

Friday’s attempt follows a last-second automated abort on July 16, when the countdown stopped at T-0 as the Super Heavy booster began igniting its Raptor engines. SpaceX later replaced several booster engines and made additional hardware changes before setting a new launch date.  

A second attempt Thursday was postponed because weather conditions prevented engineers from capturing clear ground imagery of Starship’s heat shield during ascent, one of the mission’s key test objectives. SpaceX said visibility is expected to be more favorable for Friday’s launch attempt.  

The mission will repeat many of the objectives planned for the previous attempts while continuing to evaluate upgrades made following issues encountered during Starship’s 12th flight in May.

Among the primary objectives is the first planned deployment demonstration of 20 next-generation Starlink V3 satellites, which are designed to expand the satellite network’s capacity and internet speeds. The satellites are expected to extend their solar arrays and antennas, connect with the Starlink constellation using high-capacity lasers and then burn up during atmospheric reentry after completing the test.  

SpaceX also plans to test modifications made to both the Super Heavy booster and the Starship upper stage.

During Flight 12, five of the booster’s 33 Raptor engines failed to relight during the boostback burn, causing the maneuver to end early. The company said it has updated hardware, engine alarms and software to improve relight reliability.

The Starship upper stage also received propulsion system upgrades after one of its three vacuum-optimized Raptor engines shut down shortly after stage separation during Flight 12. Despite the engine failure, the vehicle reached its planned suborbital trajectory. Friday’s mission will include another attempt at an in-space Raptor engine relight.

Engineers will also continue testing improvements to Starship’s heat shield. The flight includes new tile attachment methods, load-sensing heat shield tiles and six modified Starlink satellites equipped with cameras to photograph the vehicle during flight. Several heat shield tiles have also been painted white to simulate missing tiles and help engineers evaluate inspection techniques for future return-to-launch-site missions.

If the countdown proceeds as planned, the Super Heavy booster will separate about 2 minutes and 20 seconds after liftoff before attempting a controlled landing in the Gulf of Mexico. The Starship upper stage will continue on a suborbital trajectory, deploy the demonstration satellites, perform an in-space engine relight and conclude the mission with a controlled splashdown in the Indian Ocean about 65 minutes after launch.