A new version of SpaceX’s mammoth Starship rocket, featuring multiple upgrades, more powerful engines and major safety enhancements is poised for blastoff Thursday in a critical milestone for Elon Musk’s rocket company.It’s also a critical mission for NASA, which is counting on SpaceX to develop and deliver a flight-tested, human-rated version of the Starship upper stage to carry Artemis astronauts from lunar orbit to the moon’s surface and back before the end of 2028.A new, more powerful version of SpaceX’s huge Super Heavy-Starship rocket is loaded with supercold liquid methane and oxygen propellants in a prelude to launch Thursday on the program’s 12th sub-orbital test flight. / Credit: SpaceXWith dozens of successful test flights required between now and then, NASA is hedging its bets, working with Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin to develop an alternative lander.AdvertisementAdvertisementThe agency’s Artemis III mission late next year will test rendezvous and docking procedures in low-Earth orbit using one or both landers, depending on their readiness. NASA wants to test those procedures close to home before pressing ahead with a moon landing in the Artemis IV mission.But first, SpaceX must perfect the Super Heavy-Starship launch system after 11 test flights marked by impressive successes and spectacular failures. The company says the debut of the “version 3” Starship this week will open a new chapter in the rocket’s development.Using a new, beefed-up pad at SpaceX’s “Starbase” launch site on the Texas Gulf coast, the 12th integrated test flight of a Super Heavy-Starship rocket is set for blastoff at 6:30 p.m. ET Thursday, weather permitting. High winds and rain were blamed for two launch delays earlier this week.Whenever the mission gets off, it will mark the first flight of the version 3 rocket with all its upgrades and the first use of the company’s second Texas launch pad.The version 3 Super Heavy-Starship will be the first to take off from a new, beefed-up Starbase launch pad will require less refurbishment between flights, enabling a faster launch cadence. In this view, the version 3 Super Heavy booster carries out a ground-shaking test firing. / Credit: SpaceXAs with previous test flights, the Super Heavy’s 33 methane-fueled Raptor engines, lighter but more powerful than earlier versions, will propel the Starship upper stage out of Earth’s lower atmosphere. The first stage will then separate and fly itself back to a controlled splashdown off the Texas Gulf coast.AdvertisementAdvertisementBecause it is the maiden flight of a v …
