Starship Completes 11th Test Flight, Successfully Deploys Simulated Satellites for the Second Time | WPN World People News

Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) conducted the 11th test flight of its giant Starship rocket on October 13 local time, successfully completing the mission and deploying a set of test simulation satellites in space.

According to foreign media reports, SpaceX had already achieved a successful 10th test flight in August, during which it deployed eight simulated Starlink satellites for the first time. In this latest launch, the Starship lifted off from the company’s Starbase spaceport in southern Texas. About ten minutes after liftoff, the Super Heavy booster separated from the spacecraft as planned and fell into the Gulf of Mexico. The spacecraft then released a second batch of simulated satellites into orbit.

Standing at about 123 meters tall, Starship is the world’s most powerful and largest rocket. NASA plans to use it to help astronauts return to the Moon, and it also represents the core of Elon Musk’s vision to send humans to Mars.

NASA’s Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel noted that SpaceX has a multi-billion-dollar contract with the agency to modify Starship for its lunar landing missions, with the goal of completing the lunar lander by 2027. However, due to slow progress in the lander’s design, the Artemis III crewed Moon landing—originally scheduled for mid-2027—may be delayed by several years.

Musk acknowledged that the biggest challenge lies in developing a fully reusable orbital heat shield, as refurbishing the shield after each flight currently takes about nine months. This test flight was also a demonstration of Starship’s fully reusable design concept. In the future, beyond satellite launches, the ultimate goal is to transport humans to the Moon and Mars.