SpaceX to Attempt First Tower Catch of a Starship Upper Stage
By @sharedot · · 6 pages
- Science
- Space
- Spacex
- Starship
SpaceX plans to catch both the Super Heavy booster and the Ship upper stage at its towers on Flight 15, targeted for November at Starbase.
A double catch on the launch pad
SpaceX is preparing Flight 15 of Starship with its most ambitious landing test yet: a tower catch of not just the Super Heavy booster, but the upper stage itself.
Elon Musk said the company has gathered enough data from Flight 14, which flew in late September, to attempt the catch of both stages on the next flight.
According to Ars Technica, Musk believes success is "more likely than not," though he noted SpaceX is "hardware rich" if the attempts end in failure. Both catches would happen at Starbase in South Texas, with the launch targeted for November.
Booster 22 fires all 33 engines
The hardware assigned to the mission is moving through its final checks. space.com reports that Booster 22, the Super Heavy assigned to Flight 15, completed a full-duration static fire of all 33 Raptor 3 engines for about 15 seconds on Sunday, October 25, at Starbase.
The booster will be mated with the Flight 15 upper stage, Ship 42, which still must complete its own static engine fire and final systems checks. Flight 15 could carry another batch of Starlink V3 satellites, though SpaceX has not officially confirmed a payload, according to space.com.
Why the first Ship catch is a milestone
That flight was not flawless: space.com notes an upper-stage Raptor engine shut down prematurely during ascent, cutting a planned 10-hour mission short, though the ship completed a controlled reentry and splashed down in the Pacific about three hours after liftoff.
Proving the ship can be caught is central to Musk's stated vision of relaunching Starship "just like an airplane."
Regulatory hurdles and what comes next
Returning both stages over land, including northern Mexico, is a regulatory challenge.
Ars Technica reports that SpaceX president Gwynne Shotwell said the company has had "significant constructive engagement" with the FAA and expects the Flight 15 license to include return-to-launch-site and tower catch for both stages.
Beyond the catch, Ars Technica reports Shotwell said SpaceX aims to refly a Starship upper stage early next year and complete a long-delayed Starship-to-Starship refueling demonstration in early 2027 — a key milestone for NASA's Artemis lunar plans.
Musk added that he expects Starship to reach weekly flights in the first half of 2027.