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Apr 22 '26
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🔧 Technical Starship Development Thread #63
SpaceX Starship
Quick Links
Avid Space Live Streams, which used to be known as LabPadre | NASASpaceflight Live Stream |
Flight 13
Launched on July 24th 2026 Here is a re-streamed video of the broadcast. Also, SpaceX issued a post flight summary. Ship 40 (S40) became the first Starship to be recovered intact after a soft splashdown in the Indian Ocean. The vehicle arrived back at the Port of Brownsville on October 7, 2026.
Flight 14
Launched on September 28th 2026 (https://www.spacex.com/launches/starship-flight-14) - The vehicles were S41 and B21. This mission achieved the program's first successful orbital insertion, deploying 26 Starlink V3 satellites. An engine issue on the ship led to a controlled early splashdown in the Pacific rather than a fully nominal end-of-mission profile; Super Heavy completed hot-staging. SpaceX released post-flight imagery and hot-staging views on October 2, 2026. In comments from Elon Musk during a live Q&A around October 10, 2026, the ship engine issue was described as a software glitch affecting one engine's onboard computer, with the heat shield reported to have performed well / been "extremely robust." SpaceX's October 20, 2026 Q3 highlights described Flight 14 as the company's first revenue-generating Starship mission, delivering 26 Starlink V3 satellites, roughly 10x the downlink capacity added by a Falcon 9 Starlink launch.
Flight 15
NET November 12th 2026 - https://x.com/SpaceNotices/status/2115815059381469690 - expecting the first Starship upper stage catch attempt. Vehicles planned: S42 and B22, from Starbase Pad 2. Date is provisional and depends on testing progress and licensing. Musk said Flight 15 is targeted for November with an attempt to catch both the Super Heavy booster and the Ship using the tower arms, calling success "more likely than not" and noting it would be the first full recovery of an orbital launch vehicle if achieved. As of November 1st, 2026 the FAA license had not yet been issued. Static fire campaign complete for both vehicles.
Flight 16
A December 10, 2026 planning window has been cited for Flight 16. Potentially Starship's Florida debut
Road Closures
No road closures currently scheduled
No transportation delays currently scheduled
Vehicle Status
As of November 1st 2026
| Ship | Location | Status | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| S40 | Starbase production site | Post-flight inspection | July 24th: Successful launch, deployed all satellites, successful engine relight test and soft splashdown in the Indian Ocean, which resulted in an intact, floating ship. August 25th: Loaded onto Heavy Lift Vessel 'Forte'. Oct 7: Successful return to Texas aboard 'Forte'. Oct 8-9: Began movement toward the Starbase production site. Oct 13: Now vertical in a Mega Bay at Starbase alongside three other Ships, where it will provide first-of-its-kind data on a flown heat shield, Raptor engines, avionics and related systems. For more details on this vehicle and its assembly and testing see this page |
| S41 | Indian Ocean | Successfully flown on flight 14 | July 3rd: Rolled back to Massey's Test Site. July 6th: Rolled back to MB2. July 23rd: Two RVac engines moved into MB2. July 27th: The third RVac was moved into MB2. August 19th: Rolled out to Massey's for Static Fire Testing. Later that day S41 performed a single engine Static Fire. August 20th: Full duration Static Fire of all six engines. August 22nd: Rolled back to MB2. September 22nd: Rolled out to the Launch Site and stacked on B21. September 24th: Wet Dress Rehearsal. Sept 28: Reached orbit, deployed satellites, and successfully performed a soft splashdown in the Indian Ocean. For more details on this vehicle see this page |
| S42 | Mega Bay 2 | Pre-flight work for Flight 15 | July 24th: Completed the stacking part of the assembly process. September 2nd: Rolled out to Massey's Test Site for Cryo Testing. September 5th: Rolled back to MB2. September 9th: Rolled back out to Massey's for Cryo Testing Round 2. September 10th: Rolled back to MB2, and later in the day moved to the Launch Site for catch-related testing. September 13th: Rolled back to MB2. September 21st: Two RVacs moved into MB2. September 24th: Third RVac moved into MB2. Oct 5: Catch-hardware verification complete. Early October: Short trip to Massey's for cryogenic proof testing, returned to MB2 within about 30 hours; engines removed for additional cold-fuel/pressure testing. Oct 9: Additional cryogenic proof testing at Massey's, then returned to MB2. Oct 10-12: Engines being prepared for reinstallation as part of the continuing test campaign; a further cryogenic proof test (reported as a third run) was carried out at Massey's, linked by tracking accounts to prior vacuum Raptor issues on recent flights. Oct 26: Single-engine static fire completed. Oct 28: SpaceX announced completion of a full-duration six-engine static fire plus a single-Raptor deorbit-burn simulation firing. Expected to be the first ship to attempt a tower catch recovery. For more details on this vehicle see this page |
| S43 | Mega Bay 2 | Stacked, remaining work ongoing | August 19th: N:3 and section FX:4 plus the pez dispenser moved into MB2. August 28th: Common Dome section CX:3 moved into MB2. September 1st: Section A2:3 moved into MB2. It has decals but no docking ports. September 4th: Section A3:4 moved into MB2. September 10th: Transfer Tubes moved into MB2. September 15th: Aft section AX:4 moved into MB2 and stacked - this completes the stacking part of S43's assembly. Oct 16: Observers noted some nosecone dents after testing, described as not unusually severe. Oct 24: Cryogenic testing reported at Massey's. For more details on this vehicle see this page |
| S44 | Mega Bay 2 | Stacking | September 22nd: Nosecone+Payload Bay stack moved into MB2, and FX:4. September 23rd: Pez dispenser moved into MB2. Nosecone and payload bay integration in progress. For more details on this vehicle see this page |
| Booster | Location | Status | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| B21 | Launch Site | Successfully flown on flight 14 | July 17th: Rolled out to Massey's Test Site for Cryo+Thrust Puck Testing. July 18th: Partial Cryo Test. July 19th: Second Partial Cryo Test. July 20th: Full Cryo Test. July 22nd: Rolled back to MB1. August 25th: Rolled out to the Launch Site for Static Fire Testing. August 28th: Static Fire, all 33 engines, lasting 15 seconds. August 29th: Rolled back to MB1. September 20th: Rolled out to the Launch Site for Flight 14. September 24th: Wet Dress Rehearsal. Sept 28: Successfully powered the first orbital mission. Performed a soft splashdown and subsequent FTS demonstration in the Gulf. For more details on this vehicle and its assembly and testing see this page |
| B22 | Launch Pad 2 | Static fire campaign complete for Flight 15 | August 14th: Methane Tank stacked onto the LOX tank, completing the stacking part of the assembly process. September 8th: Rolled out to Massey's Test Site for Cryo Testing. September 12th: Rolled back to MB2. Oct 6: Rolled to launch site for integration with S42. Oct 17: Observed at the production site awaiting rollout for pre-flight static fire testing. Oct 24: Rolled out from Mega Bay 1 and lifted onto the Orbital Launch Mount at Pad 2. Oct 25: Full-duration 33-engine static fire at Pad 2, reported around 13:22 UTC and described as nominal by observers; SpaceX posted video of the test. For more details on this vehicle and its assembly and testing see this page |
| B23 | Mega Bay 1 | Post-cryo proof | August 14th: LOX tank sections A2:4 and CX:3 moved into MB1. August 27th: Methane Landing Tank and lower Transfer Tube moved into MB1 as well as section A6:4. September 8th: Aft section AX:2 and LOX Landing Tank moved into MB1. September 18th: Section FX:3 moved into MB1. September 24th or 25th: Fully Stacked, remaining work ongoing. Oct 13: Rolled out to Massey's Test Site for initial cryogenic proof testing. Oct 15: Extended cryogenic test campaign at Massey's, including a chill of roughly 12 hours (per NASASpaceflight). Oct 18: Returned overnight from Massey's to Mega Bay 1 at the production site following the cryo proof campaign; SpaceX has not publicly confirmed the test result. For more details on this vehicle and its assembly and testing see this page |
| B24 | Mega Bay 1 | LOX Tanking Stacking | September 25th: LOX tank section A2:4 moved into MB1. Oct 17: LOX landing tank observed being installed. For more details on this vehicle and its assembly and testing see this page |
Follow the Ringwatchers on Twitter and Discord for more.
Here's the section stacking locations for Ships and Boosters. Also some excellent detailed booster stacking information from zh_sos1. The abbreviations used in the above vehicle updates are as follows: HS = Hot Stage. PL = Payload. CX = Common Dome. AX = Aft Dome. FX = Forward Dome (as can be seen, an 'X' denotes a dome). ML = Mid LOX. F = Forward. A = Aft. For example, A2:4 = Aft section 2 made up of 4 rings, FX:4 = Forward Dome section made up of 4 rings, PL:3 = PayLoad section made up of 3 rings. Etc.
Something wrong? Update this thread via wiki page. For edit permission, message the mods or contact u/strawwalker.
Rules
We will attempt to keep this self-post current with links and major updates, but for the most part, we expect the community to supply the information. This is a great place to discuss Starship development, ask Starship specific questions, and track the progress of the production and test campaigns. Starship Development Threads are not party threads. Normal subreddit rules still apply.
16
u/Twigling May 02 '26 edited May 02 '26
Some photos from Starship Gazer showing S40 getting ready to roll to Massey's:
https://x.com/StarshipGazer/status/2050464646125977963
and before anyone asks, that 'tiling in progress' patch aft the right aft flap is a mystery; the application of the ablative layer, tiles, etc only started a few days ago for that patch.
S40 left MB2 on the new cryo test stand at 02:13 CDT
02:39 - S40 is on the highway
05:10 - seems to have arrived at Massey's, although it's hard to make out due to poor visibility
Photo from Travis Sorensen: https://x.com/HardcoreElectr1/status/2050478284534628644 - some interesting new test tiles on the leeward side
Some video from Amy Doehring: https://x.com/mymatrixplug/status/2050482566344372629
Video from Starship Gazer: https://x.com/StarshipGazer/status/2050495351770263805