"Elon Musk's mammoth SpaceX Starship on Monday completed its 11th test flight from a Texas launch site. This was the last test flight before SpaceX starts test-launching a new version of the giant rocket equipped with more features for Moon and Mars missions. The Starship was launched Monday from SpaceX's south Texas launch facilities just after 6:25 pm local time (2325 UTC)."
"Upgrades on the way for Starship SpaceX, in future tests, expects to launch a more advanced Starship prototype tailored with upgrades essential for long-duration missions in space, the company said on Monday. The upgraded prototype "is really the vehicle that could take humans to the Moon and Mars," SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell said at a conference in Paris last month."
"Until August's successful test flights, doubts surrounded Starship's capabilities to lead Moon missions. NASA's Artemis program aims to return humans to the Moon, and Musk's SpaceX has a multibillion-dollar federal contract to develop a modified version of Starship as a lunar lander. The manned Artemis III mission is intended for mid-2027; however, refueling still remains one of many testing objectives required before the rocket carries humans to the moon."
SpaceX's Starship completed its 11th test flight from the company's south Texas launch site just after 6:25 pm local time (2325 UTC). The flight carried the Starship upper stage stacked atop a Super Heavy booster. Super Heavy returned for a controlled entry into the Gulf of Mexico about seven minutes after liftoff, and the upper stage splashed down in the Indian Ocean as planned. The flight deployed mock Starlink satellites. SpaceX plans future tests of an upgraded Starship prototype designed for long-duration missions to the Moon and Mars. NASA's Artemis program has contracted a modified Starship as a lunar lander, with Artemis III targeted for mid-2027; refueling remains a key testing objective.
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