Watch SpaceX launch its fourth Starship flight test

SpaceX is preparing to send its massive Starship rocket on its fourth flight test on Thursday. The Starship Super Heavy vehicle is scheduled to lift off from SpaceX’s launch site in South Texas during a 120-minute window that opens at 8:00AM ET. The most recent schedule update from SpaceX says it’s targeting an 8:50AM ET launch with weather conditions looking 95 percent favorable.

You can watch the livestream via SpaceX’s account on X or via third-party streams like the NASASpaceFlight channel broadcasting from near the launch site.

SpaceX says the primary objective for the fourth flight test is to demonstrate the ability to return and reuse Starship and its Super Heavy booster — requiring the spacecraft to survive the reentry phase through Earth’s atmosphere, where it broke apart during its last flight test. This launch builds on what SpaceX learned during Starship’s flight in March, which saw the craft successfully launch into space and complete several objectives before contact with the vehicle was lost.

SpaceX says it has made several hardware and software updates to address previous issues. The third flight test was the most successful to date, with the first two Starship launches ending with fiery explosions shortly after liftoff.

If all goes to plan this time, we should see a controlled entry for Starship with a splashdown in the Indian Ocean, with the Super Heavy booster expected to perform a landing burn and soft splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico

Updates, June 6th: Added revised launch estimate and live video streams.