When Will Space Starship Launch?

The launch window opens at 6:30 p.m. EDT (local time 5:30 p.m. CDT) on Friday, May 22, from SpaceX’s newly upgraded launch pad at Starbase. Launch timing remains subject to technical checks and weather conditions, meaning delays are possible.

The launch will be streamed live on SpaceX.com, YouTube and X from about 45 minutes before the launch.

New Starship Hardware

The mission will mark the debut of upgraded versions of both elements of the launch system — the Starship spacecraft itself and the Super Heavy booster beneath it. The booster will fly using the latest generation of SpaceX’s Raptor engines, with all 33 expected to ignite during ascent.

Unlike several recent Starship test flights, however, this mission will not attempt a dramatic return-to-launch-site catch using the tower’s giant mechanical “chopstick” arms. Instead, SpaceX plans for Super Heavy to make a controlled splashdown in the Gulf of America.

Starlink’s Flight 12 Experiments

After reaching space, Starship is expected to release 22 Starlink simulators designed to mimic the size and shape of SpaceX’s next-generation satellites.

Two of those payloads will carry out imaging experiments focused on Starship’s heat shield, sending photographs and engineering data back to mission controllers. To aid those inspections, some heat shield tiles have been deliberately painted white to imitate visible damage and provide tracking targets for onboard cameras and sensors.

Engineers have also intentionally removed a single thermal protection tile entirely — a high-risk test intended to reveal how surrounding tiles behave under the extreme heating and aerodynamic stress of reentry.

Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.