Figuring out Starship’s next launch date is never easy, but the are early indicators you can watch, One of them came in the form of an FCC filing late last week.
SpaceX has listed February 24th as the earliest that the agency can launch Starship’s next flight. This filing is for launch communications between the Starship/booster and launch facilities back at Starbase. The filing is good for six months.
This notice comes quickly, only a few weeks after Flight IFT-7. That flight test resulted in an explosion of Starship, likely as the result of an internal propellant leak. Several flights throughout the debris zone had to be diverted or put on hold for safety following that launch, causing a bit of consternation for the FAA. Many tourists and residents alike captured video of Starship debris falling from the sky throughout the Turks and Caicos Islands in what amounted to a spectacular explosion.
This FCC filing is in no way an approval to launch. The next Starship launch date remains up in the air, with perhaps the biggest obstacle being the completion of an FAA safety investigation. Regulations require the FAA to investigate the accident and issue a new launch license before another Starship can leave Boca Chica. With flight 7’s explosion bringing flight disruptions and some negative news coverage, it may take some extra time for full FAA launch approval .
The detonation during flight 7 hasn’t stopped SpaceX from preparing for their next mission from Texas though, which seems to be a constantly evolving process. SpaceX is planning to potentially static fire Ship 34, which will be used for flight 8, later this week at Starbase. The formal flight plan for the mission has yet to be released, but CEO Elon Musk has previously shared what will be improved upon.
As always, the exact launch date of IFT-8 remains a mystery, but early indicators are at least hinting at a late February or early March time frame. There are a lot of other indicators that bear watching for a better idea of a possible Starship launch date. For a comprehensive guide, take a look at Chris Leymarie’s FMN article Tracking Launches-Starship Edition.
