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Posted on 07/16/2026 7:44:08 PM PDT by citizen
WASHINGTON — SpaceX aborted the launch of its latest Starship test flight July 16 when some of the vehicle’s engines failed to ignite.
Starship was scheduled to lift off on the Flight 13 mission from the company’s Starbase, Texas, test site at 6:45 p.m. Eastern. However, the launch was aborted just as Raptor engines in the Super Heavy booster ignited. SpaceX said moments later that it was calling off the launch attempt for the day.
“Some of the engines didn’t start, triggering an automatic launch abort,” SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk posted on social media about 10 minutes after the abort. “Next launch attempt hopefully in a few days.”
“To be confident of a good flight, 2 Raptors will be removed & replaced. Most probable launch timing is early next week,” he posted later.
(Excerpt) Read more at spacenews.com ...
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Flight 13 will fly a similar suborbital profile as Flight 12, incorporating changes in response to issues seen on Flight 12. That included the failure of the Super Heavy booster to perform a controlled splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico and the loss of one of six engines in the Starship upper stage during its ascent.
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A setback but nothing major, looks like. Maybe a 4 or 5 days delay.
One notable change for Flight 13 is Starship’s payload. While some previous flights carried mass simulators of next-generation Starlink V3 satellites, this mission is carrying 20 functioning Starlink V3 satellites that will be deployed once Starship is in space.
>> A setback but nothing major, looks like. Maybe a 4 or 5 days delay.
Meanwhile, “Raptor” is still a cool name for the engines!
Posted elsewhere was that 4 interior Raptor engines didn’t start; other engines did but fortunately were immediately shut down in the launch abort.
So, it looks like a ship roll-back, a full inspection check and some engine will be replaced.
Thus far, I have seen no mention of another static fire test before the next flight attempt. I suppose this would depend on their confidence of the cause and correction for today’s abort.
Glad the abort was successful after some initial ignitions and the ship can be rolled back to prepare for another shot. Great test of that system.
I feel really bad about this. Happens every time I try to watch the launch live. I’ll skip then next attempt, but if successful I think Space X should pay me to not watch.
The indication is 4 Raptors in the second ring did not fire.
Right, the shut down system was very necessary today! The last thing they needed was a New Glenn type of blow up.
Raptor is a very cool name.
These V3 engines are still pretty new. I hope they hold up well, as the fine-tuning on the design and the stresses they endure are amazing.
>> I hope they hold up well, as the fine-tuning on the design and the stresses they endure are amazing.
I wouldn’t bet against Mr. Musk solving it, that’s for sure. He has a helluva track record of persistence.
He is also adept at assembling top-notch teams of dedicated people like himself. Maybe because he leads from the front...?
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