— SpaceX (@SpaceX) November 19, 2024 SpaceX officials stated during the livefeed that they were not 100% sure if the spacecraft would be recovered after its splashdown in the Indian Ocean. It will be awhile until SpaceX will release the data of this more than an hour flight and what changes will be made for Starhip's seventh test. The date for that is unknown but it is expected to happen in 2025. What to expect for the sixth-test flight SpaceX explained that its sixth-test flight would build on the previous launches and push the envelope. “The next Starship flight test aims to expand the envelope on ship and booster capabilities and get closer to bringing reuse of the entire system online. Objectives include the booster once again returning to the launch site for catch, reigniting a ship Raptor engine while in space, and testing a suite of heatshield experiments and maneuvering changes for ship reentry and descent over the Indian Ocean,” SpaceX stated. SpaceX asserted that while the very first catch of the ship’s rocket booster was a success, it provided important data that has been used to improve the craft’s software and hardware. “Hardware upgrades for this flight add additional redundancy to booster propulsion systems, increase structural strength at key areas, and shorten the timeline to offload propellants from the booster following a successful catch. Mission designers also updated software controls and commit criteria for the booster’s launch and return,” according to the company. SpaceX also stated that this Starship has a new heat shield for the sixth flight with new thermal material added for additional projection of the ship. Learning about Starship Starship is designed to send humans back to the moon and, eventually, take them to the planet Mars. Once SpaceX is given government clearance to launch Starship, it will be used for a Polaris Dawn civilian mission and NASA’s Artemis III human-moon mission. Both the Super Heavy rocket, with its 33 Raptor engines fueled by thousands of tons of sub-cooled liquid oxygen and liquid methane, and the Starship are constructed to be reusable. Starship will eventually carry 100 people and cargo to low-Earth orbit, the moon and the red planet, according to the ship’s user guide. “The crew configuration of Starship includes private cabins, large common areas, centralized storage, solar storm shelters and a viewing gallery,” the six-page guide said. Starship’s flight history With each flight test, SpaceX has seen a measured success for Starship. So far, it has lived up to the old adage: If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. The first launch attempt of Starship happened in April 2023, and saw a series of failures that caused the rocket to explode. The FAA issued a string of conditions before the California-based company could try again, which included 63 corrective actions.