SpaceX is in the final stages of preparations for the 10th test flight of its Starship rocket. On July 31st, the company transported Starship to its Starbase launch site in Texas. This flight is crucial for both technical proficiency and public trust. The setbacks experienced in recent launches have significantly hampered SpaceX’s development of a fully reusable rocket system.

SpaceX Plans New Test Flight

This flight is expected to be successful before its unmanned Mars mission, scheduled for 2026. Most of SpaceX’s Starship tests so far have experienced significant technical issues. On the last flight in May, the rocket reached its planned speed but lost control due to a fuel leak.

It completely disintegrated during the landing stage. On the eighth flight in March, a hardware failure occurred in one of the Raptor engines, resulting in the flight being aborted. In January, the test resulted in unexpected vibrations in the upper stage, leading to an explosion.

Another problem has also arisen ahead of the upcoming 10th flight. On June 18, the upper stage of Starship exploded during testing at SpaceX’s Massey test facility near Starbase. This 52-meter-long section was damaged by a malfunction in the pressurized nitrogen tank. This incident further illustrated the risks and complexities of pre-flight ground testing.

SpaceX has adopted a fast-paced development strategy so far, risking errors to accelerate rocket design and testing. However, the Starship project is now not only a company engineering achievement but also a component of national and international projects.

The landing system selected for NASA’s Artemis lunar program is based on Starship. SpaceX also plans to launch a crewed Mars mission by 2029. Therefore, Starship is expected to achieve a reliable and stable flight profile as soon as possible.