Watch: SpaceX fires biggest Super Heavy rocket ahead of 12th Starship flight

SpaceX fired all 33 Raptor engines on its upgraded Super Heavy V3 booster in a full-thrust static fire at Starbase. The test moves Starship closer to its 12th integrated flight as engineers assess reusability and upper-stage fixes.

In Short

• The static fire took place at Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas
• Super Heavy V3 upgrades aim to improve thrust, reuse and reliability
• The booster stayed clamped down as exhaust plumes swept across site

SpaceX has carried out the most powerful Super Heavy booster test in the company’s history, firing all 33 Raptor engines at full thrust in a major milestone ahead of the upcoming 12th integrated test flight of its Starship launch system.

The static fire test, conducted at SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica, involved the upgraded Super Heavy V3 booster, the latest iteration of the massive first-stage rocket designed to propel Starship toward orbit and eventually to the Moon and Mars.

The company described the test as a “full duration and full thrust” firing, meaning the engines burned for the entire planned sequence while operating at maximum power.

The Super Heavy booster is already the most powerful rocket stage ever built, but the V3 version is expected to push performance even further with upgrades aimed at improving reliability, thrust output, and reusability.

During the test, the booster remained anchored to the launch mount while the engines roared to life, generating millions of pounds of thrust and sending massive plumes of exhaust across the test site.

The successful firing marks a critical step toward Starship’s next launch attempt, which could take place in the coming weeks pending regulatory approvals and final system checks.

SpaceX has been rapidly iterating on the Starship system after earlier flight tests demonstrated both breakthroughs and failures.

The company achieved a major milestone during recent missions by successfully catching returning Super Heavy boosters using the giant mechanical “chopstick” arms attached to its launch tower, a key part of SpaceX’s plan for rapid rocket reuse. However, challenges remain with Starship’s upper stage, which has faced issues during re-entry and controlled splashdowns.

The upcoming 12th test flight is expected to further evaluate the performance of both the upgraded booster and the Starship spacecraft. Engineers are particularly focused on improving flight stability, heat shield durability, and recovery operations as SpaceX moves closer to operational missions.

Starship is central to the ambitions of SpaceX and its founder, Elon Musk. Nasa also plans to use a modified Starship as the human landing system for its Artemis program missions aimed at returning astronauts to the Moon later this decade.

Standing nearly 400 feet tall when fully stacked, Starship and Super Heavy together form the largest and most powerful rocket system ever developed.

SpaceX believes the fully reusable vehicle could dramatically lower the cost of spaceflight and eventually enable long-term human settlements beyond Earth.

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