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SpaceX Schedules Starship Launch July 23 Amid Storm Risks

7/23/2026

42 6 Full Breakdown

Summary

Story summary

SpaceX targets a Starship launch on July 23, 2026 from Starbase in South Texas.
The 5:45 p.m. CT window faces Tropical Storm Bertha, thunderstorms, and a recent July 16 engine abort that led SpaceX to replace the Raptor engines after four booster engines failed to ignite.
Flight 13 will carry 20 Starlink V3 satellites, six with heat-shield cameras, while NASA contracts Starship as Artemis’s Human Landing System, pending a 2026 Florida launch.

History

Historical Context

SpaceX announced its reusable Falcon 9 first-stage landing in December 2015, cutting payload capacity by about 30 % and proving vertical-landing technology. By 2017 booster reflights became routine, leading to the development of the fully reusable Starship system aimed at lunar and Mars missions. The historic 2015 breakthrough now drives industry pressure for similar low-cost launch designs.

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Story summary

SpaceX targets a Starship launch on July 23, 2026 from Starbase in South Texas.
The 5:45 p.m. CT window faces Tropical Storm Bertha, thunderstorms, and a recent July 16 engine abort that led SpaceX to replace the Raptor engines after four booster engines failed to ignite.
Flight 13 will carry 20 Starlink V3 satellites, six with heat-shield cameras, while NASA contracts Starship as Artemis’s Human Landing System, pending a 2026 Florida launch.

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