SpaceX rocket Starship launched on new test flight

The giant rocket Starship from tech billionaire Elon Musk's private space company SpaceX has set off on an extraordinary test flight. The largest rocket system ever built lifted off from a spaceport in the US state of Texas on Monday morning (local time). A mission lasting around ten hours was planned, during which the rocket would enter Earth orbit and circle the Earth around six times in total. According to initial information from SpaceX, the steering into orbit went according to plan.

In addition, according to SpaceX, Starlink satellites were to be deployed for the first time as part of the mission. Once deployed, these so-called V3 satellites will unfold their antennas, deploy solar panels, and then establish connections to Earth and other Starlink satellites. According to initial information from SpaceX, this initially seemed to work largely according to plan. The deployment of satellites had previously been simulated several times in tests.

Starship rocket system is larger than the Statue of Liberty

This is the Starship's 14th test flight. The missile system is larger than the Statue of Liberty in New York. It consists of two parts that separate after launch: the approximately 70 meter long booster Super Heavy and the upper stage - also called Starship - which measures around 50 meters.

Both parts are designed to be reused after returning to Earth. The US space agency Nasa wants to send astronauts to the moon with the Starship, while SpaceX also aims to reach Mars one day.

The rocket system was tested for the first time in April 2023 - and exploded completely after a few minutes. During further tests, the upper stage reached space and landed in a controlled manner in the Indian Ocean. However, several test flights had already fallen well short of expectations.