Keeping track of when a Starship Prototype is going to launch is hard. Here, we’ll keep you up to date on the latest launch date and what’s happening with SN9.
| Launch date: | February 2, 2021 |
| Tim’s take: | See it with your own eyes! |
SN9 will perform a 10 km test flight and attempt a propulsive landing in Boca Chica, Texas. To learn more, check out our Prelaunch Preview.
SN9 Updates
T+6:26:
One of SN9’s engines appeared to have an issue and didn’t properly ignite. SN9 was not able to flip correctly and crashed into the landing pad.
T-0:
Liftoff.
February 2 – 20:06 UTC [14:06 CST]:
Vent from methane tank.
February 2 – 19:27 UTC [13:27 CST]:
SN9 is venting. SN9 went into a hold soon after.
February 2 – 19:16 UTC [13:16 CST]:
The methane recondenser is active.
February 2 – 15:39 UTC [11:39 CST]:
The pad is clear.
February 2 – 13:00 UTC [7:00 CST]:
SpaceX has been given FAA approval to launch.
February 2 – 6:00 UTC [00:00 CST]:
Residents have been told to evacuate for a possible flight attempt today.
February 1 – 18:00 UTC [12:00 CST]:
Temporary flight restrictions are posted for February 2nd, 3rd, and 4th. SpaceX is still waiting for FAA approval for a flight.
January 28 – 21:53 UTC [15:53 CST]:
Residents are now free to to return to their homes.
January 28 – 20:52 UTC [14:52 CST]:
Sustained depress vent, indicating an abort.
January 28 – 20:40 UTC [14:40 CST]:
Engine chill has begun
January 28 – 19:40 UTC [13:40 CST]:
The tank farm is active and SN9 is venting.
January 28 – 17:39 UTC [11:39 CST]:
The pad is now clear
January 28 – 16:52 UTC [10:52 CST]:
SN9’s flaps are being tested.
January 28 – 15:00 UTC [9:00 CST]:
Things are progressing well towards a flight attempt today. The village residents have been evacuated and teams are working on final vehicle preparations.
January 25 – 20:00 UTC [14:00 CST]:
Today’s TFR has been cancelled, making a flight today impossible.
January 25 – 17:00 UTC [11:00 CST]:
SN9 has passed its flight readiness review (FRR) and is go for launch.
January 24 – ~1:30 UTC [January 23 – 19:30 CST]:
Road closures, temporary flight restrictions (TFRs), and marine notices are now all in place ahead of a potential flight tomorrow.
[Static fire] January 22 – 15:00 UTC [9:00 CST]:
SN9 has static fired.
[Static fire] January 22 – 00:33 UTC [January 21 – 18:33 CST]:
Residents have received a notice of a static fire tomorrow.
[Static fire] January 21 – 22:45 UTC [16:36 CST]:
SN9 may have just static fired for a very short period of time. It may not have been nominal.
[Static fire] January 21 – 22:36 UTC [16:36 CST]:
Engine chill has begun and the ten minute siren has sounded.
[Static fire] January 21 – 22:20 UTC [16:20 CST]:
The methane recondenser is active.
[Static fire] January 21 – 21:15 UTC [15:15 CST]:
The pad is clear and the road is closed ahead of another static fire attempt.
[Static fire] January 21 – 2:01 UTC [January 20 – 20:01 CST]:
Residents have received a notice of a static fire tomorrow.
[Static fire] January 20 – 23:49 UTC [17:49 CST]:
SN9 has aborted its static fire attempt. Testing is over for today.
[Static fire] January 20 – 23:38 UTC [17:38 CST]:
SN9 has recycled for another attempt and engine chill has begun.
[Static fire] January 20 – 21:40 UTC [15:40 CST]:
Sustained double vents, indicating an abort.
[Static fire] January 20 – 21:31 UTC [15:31 CST]:
Engine chill has begun.
[Static fire] January 20 – 20:25 UTC [14:25 CST]:
The tank farm is active.
[Static fire] January 20 – 18:30 UTC [12:30 CST]:
The road is closed to non-SpaceX vehicles. The pad is now clear.
[Static fire] January 19 – ~19:00 UTC [13:00 CST]:
Tomorrow’s [January 20] flight TFR has been removed and residents have been given a notice of a static fire tomorrow. This pushed the static fire to NET January 20 and the flight to NET January 21.
[Static fire] January 19 – 1:12 UTC [January 18 – 19:12 CST]:
Residents have been given a notice of a static fire tomorrow.
[Static fire] January 18 – ~19:00 UTC [13:00 CST]:
Today’s road closure has been cancelled. The static fire is now scheduled for tomorrow.
January 17 – ~23:30 UTC [17:30 CST]:
Static fire noticed handed out to residents. Expecting a 3 engine static fire tomorrow.
January 16 – ~00:40 UTC [18:40 CST]:
A new Raptor engine has arrived at the launch site.
January 15 – 18:36 UTC [12:36 CST]:
Raptor SN44 has been removed from SN9. It was moved to the production site several hours later.
January 15 – 5:41 UTC [January 14 – 22:00 CST]:
Two out of SN9’s three Raptor engines will need to be replaced. Another static fire is required.
January 15 – ~4:00 UTC [January 14 – 22:00 CST]:
SN9’s apogee has been reduced from 12.5km to 10km.
[Static fire] January 13 – 23:17 UTC [17:17 CST]:
The road is open.
[Static fire] January 13 – 22:07 UTC [16:07 CST]:
SN9 is detanking. Testing is over with for today.
[Static fire] January 13 – 21:38 UTC [15:38 CST]:
SN9 has static fired for a third time today.
[Static fire] January 13 – 21:25 UTC [15:25 CST]:
Engine chill has begun.
[Static fire] January 13 – 21:21 UTC [15:21 CST]:
The methane tank is venting, indicating fueling has begun.
[Static fire] January 13 – 21:03 UTC [15:05 CST]:
The methane recondenser is on ahead of a third static fire.
[Static fire] January 13 – 20:23 UTC [14:23 CST]:
SN9 has static fired for a second time today. A third static fire is possible.
[Static fire] January 13 – 20:11 UTC [14:11 CST]:
Engine chill has begun. The ten minute siren has sounded.
[Static fire] January 13 – 20:07 UTC [14:07 CST]:
SN9’s methane tank is venting and there is condensation under the skirt. Fueling is underway.
[Static fire] January 13 – 19:49 UTC [13:49 CST]:
The methane recondenser is on and tank farm activity is picking up.
[Static fire] January 13 – 19:04 UTC [13:04 CST]:
SN9 is venting.
[Static fire] January 13 – 19:02 UTC [13:02 CST]:
SN9 is still fueled and there is still tank farm activity. Another static fire is planned for today.
[Static fire] January 13 – 18:28 UTC [12:28 CST]:
SN9 has static fired.
[Static fire] January 13 – 18:12 UTC [12:12 CST]:
SN9 is venting and engine chill has begun.
[Static fire] January 13 – 18:00 UTC [12:00 CST]:
Tank farm activity has started.
[Static fire] January 13 – 17:00 UTC [11:00 CST]:
The road is closed and the pad is clear.
[Static fire] January 13 – 4:41 UTC [January 12 – 22:41 CST]:
The static fire is now scheduled for tomorrow [January 13].
[Static fire] January 13 – 2:06 UTC [January 12 – 20:06 CST]:
Large sustained double depress vent; this is an abort. Testing is done for today.
[Static fire] January 13 – 1:53 UTC [January 12 – 19:53 CST]:
Engine chill has begun. This usually happens at around T-12 minutes.
[Static fire] January 13 – 1:21 UTC [January 12 – 19:21 CST]:
Sustained double vent from liquid oxygen tank; likely an abort. There is still a chance of a static fire occurring today.
[Static fire] January 13 – 1:06 UTC [January 12 – 19:06 CST]:
Condensation is coming from under SN9’s skirt, indicating fueling has begun.
[Live stream]:
Everyday Astronaut is live ahead of SN9’s three engine static fire.
[Static fire] January 13 – 00:30 UTC [January 12 – 18:30 CST]:
Tank farm activity is picking up, indicating fueling activities have begun.
[Static fire] January 12 – 23:30 UTC [17:30 CST]:
The pad is clear.
[Static fire] January 12 – 22:30 UTC [16:30 CST]:
The road closures have been extended until 20:00 local. The road is closed and pad is being cleared.
[Static fire] January 12 – 18:47 UTC [12:50 CST]:
Static fire preparations are allowed to continue. Road closure ends at 17:00 local, but this can be extended.
[Static fire] January 12 – 17:47 UTC [11:47 CST]:
All static fire preparations have been halted due to high winds. Static fire still possible later in the window, but vehicle is not currently ready.
[Static fire] January 11 – 00:59 UTC [18:59 CST]:
A notice has been given to Boca Chica residents indicating a static fire is scheduled for tomorrow [January 12].
[Static fire] January 10 – 22:09 UTC [16:09 CST]:
A notice has been given out to Boca Chica residents. This indicates a static fire is scheduled for tomorrow [January 11]. The static fire is later scrubbed due to bad weather.
[Static fire] January 8 – 23:58 UTC [17:58 CST]:
Vehicles have returned to the pad and the road has reopened. Testing is over for today.
[Static fire] January 8 – ~23:30 UTC [17:30 CST]:
The pad is clear again.
[Static fire] January 8 – 22:40 UTC [16:40 CST]:
SpaceX vehicles have returned to the pad.
[Static fire] January 8 – 22:00 UTC [16:00 CST]:
Sustained vents from liquid oxygen and methane tanks. This is likely an abort.
[Static fire] January 8 – 21:25 UTC [15:25 CST]:
Propellent loading has begun.
[Static fire] January 8 – 21:00 UTC [15:00 CST]:
Tank farm venting begins.
[Static fire] January 8 – 16:32 UTC [10:32 CST]:
The road is closed and the pad is clear ahead of a static fire attempt.
January 8 – 00:57 UTC [January 7 – 18:57 CST]:
Temporary flight restrictions (TFRs) for tomorrow [January 8] and Saturday [January 9] have been removed from the FAA’s site and new TFRs were added for Monday [January 11] and Tuesday [January 12]. This means the flight will occur NET January 10th.
January 8 – 00:09 UTC [January 7 – 18:09 CST]:
Boca Chica residents received a notice indicating a static fire is scheduled for tomorrow [January 8].
January 7 – 22:48 UTC [14:57 CST]:
Today’s road closure was cancelled, meaning there will not be any sort of testing today [January 7].
January 7 – 17:57 UTC [15:57 CST]:
The static fire that was planned for today is likely delayed until tomorrow [January 8].
January 7 – ~15:00 UTC [13:00 CST]:
A new road closure was published, possibly for a second static fire. The closure begins at 17:00 CST and ends at 20:00 CST.
January 7 – 00:01-00:33 UTC [January 6, 18:07-18:33 CST]:
The Starship prototype recycles for what may have been a wet dress rehearsal. A few minutes later we see a large depress vent from SN9, indicating the end of the wet dress rehearsal.
January 6 – 22:07 UTC [16:07 CST]:
SN9 performed a short three engine static fire. Whether or not it was successful is unknown.
Hi, from Madeira island, Portugal, I’m looking forward to see Starship on Space. 🤗
Nice to see there are other Portuguese excited! I’m in Lisbon and can’t wait for it!
what happened jan29 for no launch?
Sry to say…but it should be in space not on space…ok?
2 days no updates?
The update on the 10th says indicatea instead of indicates. Thanks for keeping us up to date!
SN-8 was so awesome I can’t wait to see SN-9 fly!
Hey – can you make this website more generic.
‘The next starship launch’ instead of the next SN9 launch? Then we can add it as a favorite and not need to update for the next rev
Always 2 days away. Oh well. As long as it takes, it is better that it flies successfully.
Great page – once suggestion is to not change the URL – I had bookmarked and been checking the previous URL (http://everydayastronaut.com/sn9-12-5-km-flight-live-updates/) and now that it changed to -10-km- I had to locate and re-bookmark. Thanks for all you do!