In the early morning hours of Dec. 31, 2024, SpaceX ended its year as it began it, with one final launch of Starlink satellites into orbit. The launch marked SpaceX's 134th mission of the year (138 missions if you count Starship test flights).

SpaceX is also flying rudimentary catch fittings on Starship to test their thermal performance on reentry. The ship will fly a more demanding trajectory during descent to probe the structural limits of the redesigned flaps at the point of maximum entry dynamic pressure, according to SpaceX.

SpaceX rolled the upper stage of its Starship megarocket out to the pad this morning (Jan. 9) ahead of its planned Jan. 13 test flight.

Starship is set for liftoff as early as Friday, January 10, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk wrote on X in late December. The past few launches have been a treat, and SpaceX is ready to take it up a notch for lucky number seven.

SpaceX crews are preparing for the 7th test launch of its Starship mega rocket. The world’s biggest rocket could launch again from SpaceX’s Starbase in Texas at 5 p.m. on Monday. SpaceX said Starship 7 is a “new generation” of its spacecraft that will test significant upgrades.

The South Texas commercial space company has two objectives with this flight: landing its booster and demonstrating its ability to carry payloads.

SpaceX could make serious strides with its Starship vehicle in 2025, perhaps launching 25 test flights of the fully reusable megarocket.

SpaceX is preparing for the seventh flight test of the Starship vehicle on Monday afternoon from Starbase in Boca Chica near Brownsville, Texas.