Starship Ship 24 has been installed on the Superheavy Booster 7, a milestone announced and shared by SpaceX on social media. A quick update from a drone capture shows the Starship being lifted by the Mechazilla grabbing mechanism, the towering robotic hands nicknamed to the public as the chopsticks. This clever rigging reduces the need for traditional hanging ears or crane cables, streamlining the process of positioning the vehicle for testing or flight operations. Elon Musk has floated plans for a direct landing onto the sticks, which would eliminate landing legs and enable a faster turnaround for relaunches across the Starship fleet. (SpaceX)
The exact propulsion configuration and mission profile for the immediate test window remain to be finalized, but Musk has previously suggested that an orbital attempt could be highly likely in the near term. This aligns with SpaceX’s broader cadence of milestones toward orbital capability for Starship paired with Superheavy, reflecting a push to validate rapid reuse and ignition-to-orbit orchestration. (SpaceX)
Starship represents a new class of heavy-lift, fully reusable launch system designed to maximize payload delivery and rapid reflight. The Superheavy first stage is envisioned to carry substantial cargo into low Earth orbit, after which a second Starship vehicle would proceed to complete the orbital insertion and fuel-transfer choreography. The concept hinges on orbital refueling: a dedicated Starship would rendezvous in orbit, transfer propellants, and return to Earth to reload, setting the stage for delivering a full science, exploration, or cargo package on subsequent orbits. This architecture supports the possibility of Moon missions or farther solar system objectives, with a design emphasis on reducing turnaround time between flights and expanding mission versatility. (NASA, SpaceX)
Historically, NASA selected Starship as the architecture for Artemis-era lunar landings, highlighting its potential for sustainable crewed deep-space operations and cargo delivery. The ongoing development and testing carried out by SpaceX continue to drive the conversation about how best to enable human exploration beyond Earth orbit. The broader space community watches closely as teams iterate on launch cadence, thermal management, and landing reliability to keep pace with ambitious timelines. (Agency briefings, SpaceX)
For readers seeking deeper context on agency plans and the evolving landscape of crewed spaceflight, recent materials and commentary provide a useful map of where development stands today and what milestones lie ahead. Development updates and analysis across 21st-century space exploration emphasize the convergence of reusable propulsion, orbital logistics, and international collaboration as the path toward a sustainable presence beyond our planet. (Spaceflight press summaries)