Elon Musk’s SpaceX Gets Greenlight for Starship Launch

SpaceX’s Starship could soon return to the sky after the Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday confirmed it had issued a new license to Elon Musk’s space company to try to relaunch the vessel.

That could happen this week. The FAA has issued an air-traffic advisory that lists a Starship launch from Boca Chica, Texas on Friday from 1 p.m. to shortly after 5 p.m., as well as back-up times for Saturday and Sunday.

The news came a day after the Fish and Wildlife Service concluded its environmental assessment in consultation with the Federal Aviation Administration as part of its license evaluation process. 

“The FAA has given license authorization for the second launch of the SpaceX Starship Super Heavy vehicle. The FAA determined SpaceX met all safety, environmental, policy and financial responsibility requirements,” a spokesperson for the agency told The Messenger.

This is the news Elon Musk and SpaceX have been waiting for.

Starship, which has been in development for years, was put on ice after its first full orbital flight test ended in flames and debris on April 20. The chaos set off a months-long review by the FAA and FWS as the agencies assessed what went wrong and how SpaceX could fix the problem in order to try again. Now, it seems they are ready. 

Musk had posted to X, formerly Twitter, that a Friday launch looked increasingly likely. SpaceX has said that it will stream the launch on its site and on X, but timing has not been confirmed.  

Starship is a massive rocket capable of lifting several hundred tons of cargo or 100 people into orbit and beyond. Musk has said that Starship is designed to help SpaceX reach Mars and build a human settlement there by 2050, although more immediately, NASA is counting on it to help it set up permanent bases on the moon in the next decade as part of the Artemis program.