More than a month after sending its Starship spacecraft into Earth's orbit for the first time, SpaceX is expected to launch its next flight on Friday with the goal of catching the spacecraft and rocket, a significant step for the future of reusable rockets.
Starship 15 is expected to launch as soon as 4:45 Friday afternoon, pending regulatory approval. If successful, it will be the first time both Starship and its Super Heavy booster will be fully recovered and return to Starbase.
After launching from Starbase in South Texas, Starship will fly into Low Earth Orbit, roughly 170 miles above the Earth's surface. If all goes according to plan, Starship will complete about 14 orbits around the Earth over the course of 22 hours, bringing it back down to Earth around Saturday afternoon. While in orbit, Starship will also deploy 26 Starlink satellites.
Ship 42 moves to the Starbase pad ahead of launch https://t.co/pMUFTHneJQ
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) November 13, 2026
SpaceX has said it will only attempt the Starship catch — recovering the spacecraft at the launch site in Starbase — if the spacecraft enters and fires up its engines properly at the correct trajectory.
"If we don't succeed in Flight 15, we'll get there," Elon Musk, the CEO of SpaceX, said during the company's earnings call in October. "Success is not guaranteed on these first flights, but I'd say it's more likely than not that this succeeds next flight, and if not, we have a steady stream of Starship flight attempts through the end of this year and then accelerating next year."
The Starship 15 flight will be livestreamed on X, which is also owned by Musk, and on SpaceX’s website.
Starship is SpaceX's fully reusable super heavy-lift space vehicle, the tallest and most powerful rocket ever built. If the fifteenth flight proves successful, it would be a significant step toward reusable rockets.
SpaceX, one of the most valuable companies in the world, and Musk are at somewhat of a crossroads in Texas following the wave of Democrats who will take statewide office in January. Among them is governor-elect Gina Hinojosa, who has expressed skepticism toward data centers and Musk's development of them.
Hinojosa requested the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department pause a discussion of the sale of land near Boca Chica, where Starbase is located, afterTexas Monthly reported that SpaceX was courting it. On Friday, hours before Starship 15's potential launch, SpaceX said in a release that it is not proposing to buy the beach itself, but rather 1,200 acres surrounding the launch facility.
"Boca Chica Beach is not for sale, and SpaceX isn't attempting to buy it," the company said in a release on Friday. "The beach remains public, and we're investing substantial resources to keep it clean, healthy, and accessible. This proposal is about improving public safety around an active rocket launch facility, permanently protecting sensitive coastal habitat, and providing Texas with resources to expand its state park system and create better recreational opportunities."
SpaceX said the land largely consists of "mudflats and fragile coastal dunes, with no established hiking trails, campsites, or recreational facilities." The company also said it would conserve about half of the 1,200 acres under a permanent conservation easement.
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