SpaceX’s Starship Faces Key Test Amid Recent Failures

SpaceX is preparing for a pivotal test of its Starship megarocket on Sunday, following a series of recent failures that have raised concerns about the vehicle’s reliability. The test is scheduled to take place at the company’s Starbase facility in southern Texas at 18:30 local time (23:30 GMT) during its tenth flight. The mission aims to evaluate the upper stage as it travels halfway around the world before splashing down in the Indian Ocean.

In a departure from prior attempts, SpaceX will not attempt to catch the booster stage using the launch tower’s large “chopstick” arms. This decision comes after all three test flights conducted so far in 2025 resulted in the upper stage exploding—two instances occurring over Caribbean islands and another after reaching space. Additionally, a static fire test in June resulted in another explosion on the ground.

Challenges Ahead for Starship

The Starship program is crucial to Elon Musk’s vision of colonizing Mars. Furthermore, NASA is relying on a modified version of Starship to act as the Artemis lunar lander, facilitating the return of astronauts to the Moon. Despite its ambitious goals, recent setbacks have led some analysts to question whether SpaceX can replicate its previous successes with this new, larger rocket.

“There is a lot of pressure on this mission,” said Dallas Kasaboski, a space analyst for consulting firm Analysys Mason. He noted that the string of failed tests has cast a shadow over SpaceX’s previously stellar reputation. “The successes have not exceeded the failures,” he added, highlighting the increasing scrutiny surrounding the program.

Critics have raised concerns about the design of the Starship itself. Will Lockett, a former engineer and commentator, expressed in his Substack newsletter that the absence of heavy payload tests suggests that “the concept of Starship is fundamentally flawed.” He argued that SpaceX is reducing the weight of Starships to enhance payload capacity, which could compromise their structural integrity and contribute to the failures observed during testing.

Future Prospects and Environmental Concerns

As speculation mounts—evidenced by headlines such as “Is Elon Musk’s Starship Doomed?” in New York Magazine—the stakes for SpaceX remain high. Musk has committed to the Starship program as the cornerstone of the company’s future, planning to phase out existing rockets and spacecraft in favor of this new system.

Even if the upcoming test proves successful, significant technical challenges remain. SpaceX must demonstrate the system’s ability to be fully and rapidly reusable at a low cost, as well as its capacity to refuel super-cooled propellant in orbit, a critical step for future deep-space missions.

Despite the challenges and criticism from environmental groups regarding the ecological impacts of increased launch activity, SpaceX continues to accelerate its launch schedule. The company is also expanding its facilities in Florida, including the construction of new launch and landing pads at the Kennedy Space Center.

As Sunday’s test approaches, all eyes will be on SpaceX to see if Starship can turn the tide from recent failures to a successful mission, paving the way for future endeavors in space exploration.