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SpaceX may conduct the second orbital launch of Starship from Boca Chica as early as Friday, and could attempt to land both Starship and Super Heavy back at the launch site after a roughly 22-hour flight assuming “strict conditions” are met.
SpaceX has brought Super Heavy back to the launch pad three times, the first on Oct. 13, 2024, but hasn’t yet attempted to do the same with Starship, opting instead for ocean landings. Two of the boosters that were retrieved were flown again.
“If successful, this will mark the first full recovery of an orbital launch system and a breakthrough moment in making Starship a reliable, rapidly reusable rocket,” the company said.
The 75-minute launch window for Flight 15 would open at 4:45 p.m. on Friday pending regulatory approval, according to SpaceX.
The company said it will set up a safety zone perimeter in coordination with local law enforcement that will include temporary closures of State Highway 4 and Boca Chica Beach.
The plan is for Starship S42 to complete about 14 orbits around Earth at an altitude of approximately 171 miles, for a flight of roughly 22 hours duration.
Starship’s first orbital flight, on Sept. 28, was intended to last 10 hours but was cut to three hours due to issues stemming from partial engine loss early in the flight. However, the mission objective of deploying actual Starlink satellites — rather than mock-ups, as with previous flights — was achieved during Flight 14.
Flight 15 is similar in design to Flight 14, SpaceX said.
“The flight profile has been designed with the opportunity to insert into a passively safe suborbital trajectory or safely de-orbit at multiple predetermined areas over the ocean after raising to an orbital altitude,” according to the company.
For Flight 15’s Super Heavy booster (B22), the primary objective will be a successful launch and ascent, stage separation, “boost-back burn” and return to the launch site, where the plan is for it be caught just before touching down by the 480-foot-tall launch tower’s enormous mechanized pincers.
Besides the deployment of 26 newest version Starlink satellites, the main objective for Starship S42 will be the return and catch at the launch site, which would take place on Saturday, the day after launch.
“Starship will only execute a return to launch site if the flight control team has ensured that the vehicle systems critical for reentry maneuvers and final landing burn and tower approach are healthy,” SpaceX said.
Backup dates for the Flight 15 launch are Nov. 14-19, with the 75-minute launch window also opening at 4:45 p.m. each day.