Update (1800ET): Unfortunately, SpaceX’s attempt for a Starship double catch was thwarted this evening.
A few minutes after launch, the company canceled plans to retrieve the booster of its powerful Starship rocket, citing a technical issue, sending the so-called Super Heavy into the Gulf of Mexico, where it promptly exploded.
SpaceX had previously said it would only proceed with the maneuvers if conditions were optimal.
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A 75-minute launch window for Starship’s 15th test flight from SpaceX’s Starbase site in South Texas opens at 5:45 p.m. EST.
Looks like a scene from a sci-fi film but it’s just my drive to work this morning pic.twitter.com/lCur9tQmjC
— Andrew McCarthy (@AJamesMcCarthy) November 13, 2026
SpaceX wrote on its website that this evening's mission plans to deploy 26 next-generation Starlink satellites and bring both stages back of the rocket back to the launch tower for giant "chopsticks" to catch.
Starship 42 preparing for launch https://t.co/s2nMPoiV3H
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 13, 2026
"The upcoming flight is planned to be the first to return both Starship and Super Heavy to the launch site for catch. 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," SpaceX wrote on its website.
The upper stage is exp
