SpaceX stacks Starship Flight 15 megarocket for launch
Good morning, Space Fans, it is launch day for SpaceX's Starship Flight 15 and the world's largest rocket is now hours away from attempting its first double landing test flight. Liftoff remains on target for today, Nov. 13, at 5:45 p.m. EST (2245 GMT) from SpaceX's Starbase launch site in South Texas. You'll be able to watch the Starship Flight 15 launch on this page, as well as on Space.com's homepage and our YouTube channel VideoFromSpace. Our live webcast will begin at 5:15 p.m. EST (2215 GMT).
Last night, SpaceX rolled the Ship 42 upper stage out to the Starship launch pad and stacked it atop its Super Heavy booster. The Ship's number was accompanied by a fun sci-fi message - "Don't Panic" - in a nod to the Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy books by Douglas Adams. Elon Musk's Tesla bore the same message when SpaceX launched it into space on the first Falcon Heavy mission.
Space.com's Josh Dinner is on site at Starbase and will be providing updates as possible from Starbase, which we'll share here as they're received.
Here's an update from Josh from the launch pad:
SpaceX's Starship Flight 15 is the 15th test flight of Starship, the world's largest and most powerful rocket. SpaceX has designed the rocket to be fully reusable, and has landed its massive Super Heavy first stage booster several times.
Flight 15 is SpaceX's first attempt to land both the Super Heavy booster and its Ship upper stage by returning them to their launch pad and catching them in the pad's metal "Chopstick" arms. The landings will be about 22 hours apart, with Super Heavy landing minutes after launch and the Ship upper stage returning to Starbase on Saturday afternoon.
We'll be updating this page throughout the day with news from Josh, SpaceX and Starbase for this unprecedented 22.5-hour test flight. Here's our full timeline for SpaceX Starship Flight 15.
Starship Flight 15 may be visible in the night sky!
SpaceX is now less than 24 hours from the planned launch of its Starship Flight 15 mission, with liftoff on track for Friday, Nov. 13, at 5:45 p.m. EST (2245 GMT). The test flight will attempt land both the Starship Super Heavy Booster 22 and its Ship 42 upper stage.
Because the mission will last 22.5 hours, Starship will likely be visible in the night sky to stargazers hoping to see the giant spacecraft in orbit. Space.com's Skywatching Writer Anthony Wood has a great guide on how to see Starship in the night sky.
"When it passes overhead, it will look like a bright, fast-moving star crossing the sky — similar to the International Space Station, but potentially even brighter depending on its orientation," our skywatching columnist Joe Rao told Wood.
Check out the full story:
SpaceX's Starship megarocket will launch to orbit on Nov. 13. Will you be able to spot it in the night sky?
One day until launch!
STARBASE, Texas — We are one day until launch of SpaceX's Starship Flight 15, and Space.com is onsite here in Texas prepping cameras and coverage.
Liftoff is currently targeted for tomorrow (Nov. 13), during a 75-minute window opening at 5:45 p.m. EST (2245 GMT).
This flight could be a historic one for SpaceX and the space industry. For the first time, SpaceX will attempt to catch both stages of its massive Starship rocket — Super Heavy just minutes after launch, and the Ship upper stage roughly 22 hours later, following several orbits around Earth.
I'll be covering the action from here in Texas, so stay tuned to Space.com for updates as we count down to liftoff!
SpaceX Starship Flight 15 explained
Happy Wednesday, Space Fans. We are now T-2 days away from SpaceX's planned launch of its Starship Flight 15 test mission, so I wanted to take a moment to give you a run down on what to expect.
Today, you can read my full guide to SpaceX's Starship Flight 15 launch here, which goes over what time and where to watch the launch online. Liftoff is on track for Friday, Nov. 13, at 4:45 p.m. CST, which is 5:45 p.m. EST (2245 GMT). But it ALSO (and this is new) includes what time to tune in a day later for the planned Starship upper stage (Ship) landing and catch by the metal "Chopstick" arms of its landing pad at SpaceX's Starbase facility in South Teas.
If you're wondering how the rocket's assembly is going, our Spaceflight Editor Mike Wall has this update on the Starship Flight 15 Super Heavy booster going through final catch tests yesterday. Flight 15 will mark the first time SpaceX will attempt to land and catch both the Super Heavy booster (which it has done several times) and the Ship from orbit.
If successful, it will be the first full recovery of an entire orbital rocket from space.
SpaceX sets Nov. 13 launch date for Starship Flight 15
Hello, Space Fans, and welcome to our coverage of SpaceX's Starship Flight 15 test flight, the first ever to attempt twin landings of the Starship Super Heavy booster and Ship upper stage.
SpaceX has officially set the launch date for Flight 15 for Friday, Nov. 13, at 5:45 p.m. EDT (2145 GMT). That puts launch just about 3 days away and Space.com will provide live coverage of the potentially historic flight, the first full recovery of an orbital rocket.
Space.com Spaceflight Writer Josh Dinner will be reporting live from near SpaceX's Starbase , Texas site for the launch, with myself (Tariq Malik), Spaceflight and Tech Editor Mike Wall and other team members tracking the flight remotely for you here. SpaceX has already test-fired the engines on its Starship Flight 15 vehicles.
Today, SpaceX moved Super Heavy Booster 22, the first stage for Flight 15, to the launch pad for vehicle stacking. Here are some photos of that move:
Super Heavy moved to the launch pad at Starbase. Booster 22 is the first Super Heavy V3 booster planned to return to the launch site for catch and was used for final catch testing upon arrival, including a suspended squeeze test at catch height https://t.co/iYTX1e6DEHNovember 10, 2026
We'll be updating this page regularly in the days ahead counting down to SpaceX's Starship Flight 15 launch (and landings). So check back for updates each day.