SpaceX postponed the launch of its tenth Starship mission on Sunday due to a technical issue at its Texas launch site, delaying a critical test flight aimed at achieving several long-awaited development milestones. The fully stacked vehicle—comprising the 232-foot Super Heavy booster and the 171-foot Starship upper stage—was positioned on the launch mount at the company’s Starbase facility and undergoing propellant loading ahead of a scheduled liftoff at 7:35 p.m. ET.
Approximately half an hour before launch, SpaceX announced via X that it was standing down to investigate a problem with its ground systems. Elon Musk had been expected to deliver an update on Starship’s progress prior to liftoff, but a placeholder livestream suggested the briefing had been cancelled.
While similar delays have typically been resolved within days, SpaceX now targets Monday, August 25, for the next launch attempt, according to its official website. The Starship program, central to SpaceX’s long-term launch strategy and Musk’s vision for Mars exploration, has encountered multiple setbacks this year. These include two early flight failures, a malfunction during the ninth mission in orbit, and a dramatic explosion at a test stand in June that scattered debris into nearby Mexican territory.
Despite these challenges, SpaceX continues to rapidly manufacture new Starship prototypes at its expansive Starbase complex. NASA has expressed interest in deploying the rocket for its first crewed lunar landing since Apollo, tentatively scheduled for 2027.
The latest version of Starship incorporates several upgrades, including enhanced thrust, a more durable heat shield, and reinforced steering flaps—all essential for surviving atmospheric reentry and enabling rapid reuse. These features are being tested under extreme conditions to validate their performance.
Sunday’s launch was expected to begin with the Super Heavy booster propelling the vehicle skyward before separating from the Starship upper stage at high altitude. Unlike previous tests where the booster returned to the launch pad using mechanical arms, this flight planned a soft water landing in the Gulf of Mexico to evaluate a backup engine configuration.
Starship’s role in the mission included a brief engine burn to ascend further into space, followed by the release of mock Starlink satellites and a mid-flight engine reignition while on a suborbital trajectory. The final phase involved a high-stress reentry over the Indian Ocean, designed to test the resilience of new heat shield tiles and aerodynamic flaps. According to SpaceX, the reentry profile is engineered to push the structural limits of the upper stage’s rear flaps at the point of maximum dynamic pressure.
