Successful 12th Starship test flight: perfect timing for an IPO

May 26th, 2026   Rédaction   No Comment   Technology    Elon Musk, Etats Unis, Space X, Starship V3    1170 views

SpaceX’s last and 11th Starship flight (October 14, 2025) marked the end of a cycle, since the Starship sent was the last of its generation; new versions were expected for future launches, both for the upper stage and for the booster. So, on the night of May 22nd and 23rd, 2026, everyone had their eyes glued to the 12th test flight of Starship.

Once again, and after two consecutive launch postponements, the world’s largest and most powerful rocket, Elon Musk’s, was in the hot seat.

While the Moon remains the priority for the coming years, the launch of Starship V3 is crucial for the future of space exploration.

With the modifications made, SpaceX engineers hope to have a rocket capable of conducting initial flights to Mars as early as the end of 2026.

This 12th Starship test flight was intended to validate numerous modifications made since the previous launch in the fall of 2025.

These modifications, in addition to an even larger rocket and a new-generation engine, focused primarily on two major aspects:

A new type of propulsion

SpaceX, with this Starship V3, introduced a new type of cryogenic propulsion that replaced the liquid hydrogen used until then.

For this new launch, SpaceX opted for liquid methane, combined with liquid oxygen.

Advantages: Liquid methane allows for more compact tanks because it offers a higher volumetric energy density, and can therefore be stored at much lower temperatures, around -162°C compared to around -253°C for liquid hydrogen, thus limiting evaporation and resulting in easier thermal insulation.

Improved thermal protection.

One ​​of the rocket’s new features was improved thermal protection for the engines, protecting the sensors and controller of the Raptor 3.

A successful flight!

Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQUYFiZWJlw

« Congratulations to SpaceX and Elon Musk for a fantastic Starship V3 launch, » the CEO of the NASA, Jared Isaacman. « This brings us closer to the Moon… and Mars. »

The model used for this 12th Starship test, even larger than the previous one, with the entire assembly measuring 124 meters tall, took off from Texas shortly after 5:30 PM local time (10:30 PM GMT), and the two parts of the spacecraft successfully separated.

With this launch, SpaceX wanted to verify that the work done over the past eight months had paid off, which it largely did.

This success was confirmed to AFP by Clayton Swope of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS): « This improved version of Starship accomplished most of what SpaceX hoped it would do at launch. »

One minor setback: one of the Super Heavy booster’s engines shut down shortly after liftoff, while the upper stage also lost one of its six main engines during ascent, altering its orbit.

Starship nevertheless successfully returned to Earth, landing vertically in the Indian Ocean before tipping over and splashing down a bit too hard.

As a reminder, Starship is intended for NASA’s lunar programs, which is why Starship V3 carried everything necessary for the lunar landing mission, which should ultimately allow the establishment of a base on the Moon’s natural satellite.