SpaceX prepares to debut Starship Version 3, its largest rocket yet

• SpaceX is preparing to launch a new, larger version of its Starship rocket, known as Version 3.
• The upgraded rocket stands about 407 feet tall and features more powerful engines and other performance improvements.
• This version of Starship is central to NASA's plans for crewed missions to the moon.
• The upcoming test flight will launch from a new, upgraded launch pad at SpaceX's Starbase facility in Texas.

The world's largest rocket is about to get even larger.

SpaceX is on the cusp of debuting a new version of its Starship vehicle that will become the largest rocket the company has ever launched. The third generation Starship, which is not just bigger, but more powerful than the previous two iterations, is also due to get off the ground from an entirely new launch pad at SpaceX's South Texas headquarters.

The long-awaited launch comes as the commercial spaceflight company that billionaire tech mogul Elon Musk founded in 2002 races to have Starship ready to serve as a lunar lander for NASA's crewed missions to the moon's surface.

The new-and-improved prototype features a slew of upgrades to both the Starship's lower stage booster and its upper stage vehicle that will fly in space to improve overall performance.

Ahead of the next test flight, which SpaceX refers to as flight 12, here's everything to know about Starship Version 3.

SpaceX to debut Starship V3 on next Texas flight test

The next version of Starship to launch from SpaceX's facility in South Texas will be the largest rocket the company has ever built. Standing at approximately 407 feet tall when fully stacked, the rocket is about 4 feet taller than its predecessor and more powerful than any iteration of the rocket that has launched to date.

SpaceX, which has not conducted a Starship flight test since October 2025, has taken extra time between missions to put the finishing touches on the new Starship, known as Version 3 (V3.)

The rocket is due to get off the ground May 19 with a launch window opening at 6:30 p.m. ET, SpaceX announced.

Starship V3 could reach orbit, land on moon, Mars

If all goes to plan, Version 3 of Starship could be the model to finally reach orbit and also refuel its upper stage midflight. The complex process requires two Starships equipped with docking adapters to meet in orbit to transfer hundreds of tons of super-cooled propellant.

The capability is a necessity if Starship is ever to transport humans into deep space, including to Mars – as Musk has long envisioned. Starship also remains central to NASA's Artemis moon program, as SpaceX (along with Blue Origin) is among the commercial companies contracted to design a lunar lander to take astronauts to the surface.

Similar to previous designs, the fully integrated spacecraft is composed of both a 236-feet-tall lower-stage booster known as Super Heavy, as well as a 171-feet-tall upper stage simply called Starship. Powered by 33 of SpaceX's Raptor-class engines, the booster provides the initial burst of thrust at liftoff, while the vehicle is where the crew and cargo would ride in orbit after the stages separate.

SpaceX is developing the rocket to be a fully reusable transportation system that can also carry huge satellites and other payloads to space, meaning both the rocket and vehicle can return to the ground for additional missions.

What makes Version 3 different from previous Starship?

Both the Super Heavy booster and the upper stage, sometimes simply referred to as "Ship," underwent significant upgrades in preparation for launch, according to SpaceX.

Among the changes SpaceX unveiled in a lengthy post on its website, SpaceX reduced the number of grid fins on the booster to help it land from four to three while enlarging each one by 50% and making them stronger. The upper stage that flies in orbit, meanwhile, underwent a redesign of its propulsion systems that, among other benefits, allows it to carry more fuel for long-duration missions.

The rocket's Raptor engines also were upgraded to provide more thrust at liftoff, according to SpaceX.

The main objective of the flight test, as SpaceX explained online, is simply to test both new pieces of hardware "in the flight environment for the first time."

Starship to launch from upgraded launch pad at Starbase

Since its maiden voyage in April 2023, Starship has always launched from SpaceX's Starbase company town and headquarters in Texas near the U.S.-Mexico border.

That's not due to change until SpaceX expands launch operations to Florida, potentially in 2026. But for flight 12, Space plans to get Starship off the ground from a completely new launch pad at Starbase.

The launch pad, which SpaceX calls Pad 2, has been outfitted with an upgraded "propellant farm" that has increased storage capacity and more pumps, "enabling much faster vehicle filling for launch," the company said. What's more, the mechanical arms on the launch tower tasked with catching a returning booster – nicknamed "chopsticks" – are now shorter to allow them to move more quickly to track and secure Super Heavy as it descends.

SpaceX puts Starship through preflight tests

SpaceX has been putting Starship through its paces at Starbase in the lead-up to announcing an official target launch date.

In April, SpaceX conducted individual static fire tests on both the Super Heavy booster and Starship upper stage while each was anchored on a test stand separate from the launch pad. A static fire test involves firing a rocket's engines while it's firmly on the ground, producing thrust to allow ground teams to ensure things are working properly before launch.

SpaceX then announced May 9 that the spacecraft had been fully integrated on the launch pad ahead of a launch rehearsal that involved fueling the rocket with more than 11 million pounds of propellant.

Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at [email protected]