March 10, 2026, 1:18 p.m. ET
- The upcoming mission will be the 12th flight test for the world’s largest rocket.
- This flight will debut a new-and-improved design known as Version 3.
- SpaceX is under pressure from NASA to prepare Starship as a lunar lander for future Artemis missions.
Elon Musk said SpaceX is pushing back even further the maiden launch of the company’s next version of its gigantic and powerful Starship rocket.
Starship, the world’s largest rocket, last launched in October 2025 from SpaceX’s Starbase headquarters in South Texas. Since then, billionaire Musk’s spaceflight company has been readying a revamped version of the spacecraft that could be the one to reach orbit and one day ferry astronauts to the lunar surface.
The latest delay of Starship’s debut 2026 flight test comes as both SpaceX and its Blue Origin competitor are under pressure from NASA to prepare lunar landers that could be used in 2028 as part of a mission now known as Artemis 4. SpaceX originally won the contract to develop a configuration of Starship for a human moon landing before NASA leaders indicated the space agency would consider other options amid slower-than-expected development for the vehicle.
Now, it might not be until April that Starship gets off the ground for its 12th-ever flight test since SpaceX began launching the 400-foot rocket in 2023.
But when it does, it will be a new-and-improved design of Starship known as Version 3.
Here’s everything to know about Starship’s next mission, which SpaceX refers to as flight 12.
When is Starship flight 12? What to know about next SpaceX launch date
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said Saturday, March 7, in a post on social media site X that the next Starship launch would be in four weeks, or early April.
The announcement comes after Musk, who founded SpaceX in 2002, said at the end of January that SpaceX was six weeks away from Starship’s next flight test, which would have been early March. Neither Musk nor SpaceX disclosed a reason for why the mission slipped.
Testing begins on Starship ahead of next launch
SpaceX, though, appears to be making progress in preparing Starship for liftoff at Starbase, the company town and headquarters in Texas near the U.S.-Mexico border.
In a March 7 social media post, SpaceX said it had completed “cryoproof” testing of the Starship upper stage vehicle assigned to the next flight, designated Ship 39. The test, which successfully demonstrated propellant loading and structural strength, is an important step in proving the upgraded Starship is ready ahead of flight 12.
SpaceX indicated in a Monday, March 9, social media post that the lower stage booster, called Super Heavy, is also ready for preflight testing.
What is SpaceX’s Starship? How tall is it?
Standing at more than 400 feet tall when fully stacked, Starship is regarded as the largest and most powerful launch vehicle in the world.
SpaceX is developing Starship to be a fully reusable transportation system, meaning the rocket and vehicle can return to the ground for additional missions. The fully integrated spacecraft is composed of both a lower-stage booster known as Super Heavy that provides the initial burst of thrust at liftoff, as well as an upper stage simply called Starship, which is the vehicle where crew and cargo would ride.
In the years ahead, Starship is due to help NASA astronauts land on the moon under the U.S. space agency’s Artemis program. Musk also has dreams of Starship being the vehicle that transports the first humans to Mars, though in February he announced SpaceX’s intentions of shifting its focus to building a lunar city first.
What happened with Starship in 2025?
SpaceX conducted five Starship flight tests in 2025, the first three of which ended in disaster when the vehicle met a premature fiery demise before completing many key objectives.
But SpaceX ended 2025 on a high note, with its final two Starship launches of the year in August and October being considered inarguable successes.
The most recent Starship test, taking place Oct. 13, was also the final flight for that iteration of the rocket, known as Version 2.
What’s next for SpaceX, Starship in 2026? Version 3 to make debut
SpaceX’s next prototype of Starship, known as Version 3, is expected to make its debut during flight 12 from Starbase.
At about 408 feet tall, Version 3 is expected to not only be slightly larger than its predecessor but considerably more powerful, according to Musk.
If all goes to plan, Version 3 (V3) could be the Starship model to reach orbit and also refuel its upper stage midflight. The complex process, requiring two Starships equipped with docking adapters to meet up in orbit to transfer hundreds of tons of super-cooled propellant, is necessary for Starship to reach distant destinations like Mars.
Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at elagatta@usatodayco.com
