SpaceX has pushed its Starship Flight 13 launch to Friday after Tropical Storm Bertha grounded Thursday's attempt, citing the need for clear visibility to capture ground-based imagery of the vehicle's heat shield during maximum dynamic pressure.
What Happened
The company confirmed the weather delay on X, stating it is targeting a 90-minute launch window opening at 5:45 p.m. CT on Friday. This marks the second postponement in two weeks for Flight 13. The first attempt on July 16 ended in an automated abort at T-0 when four of Super Heavy Booster 20's 33 Raptor engines failed to ignite. According to SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, two Raptors required removal and replacement. SpaceX spent the following week destacking Ship 40 and Booster 20, performing engine swaps, running leak checks, and restacking the vehicle on Pad 2 Wednesday night.
Why It Matters
Flight 13 carries significant firsts for the program: it will deploy 20 production Starlink V3 satellites—the first operational payloads rather than mass simulators flown on Starship. Six of those satellites are equipped with cameras to inspect the heat shield from a different angle during ascent, providing engineers a second data source beyond ground imagery. The company is targeting higher dynamic pressure this flight and has outfitted Ship 40's heat shield with load sensing tiles to measure structural stress. If successful, Flight 13 could be the final suborbital test before SpaceX pushes for an orbital attempt on Flight 14.
The Bottom Line
SpaceX needs favorable weather Friday to capture the ground-based heat shield footage that Thursday's storm blocked. Flight 13 is the second outing for V3 versions of Starship and Super Heavy, following their debut in May, and represents a step toward operational payload deployment on the vehicle.