USA TODAY After weeks of preparation, SpaceX is now preparing for the seventh flight test of the Starship vehicle on Monday afternoon. In a first, the Starship will attempt a Starlink payload deployment test – a key capability for the vehicle in the future. SpaceX plans to once again attempt to return and catch the rocket booster at the launch pad, which would cause sonic booms in the area around the landing zone. Update: SpaceX is now targeting Wednesday, Jan. 15 for its seventh test flight of Starship, according to an X post. Dozens of NASA space missions could be axed under Trump's budget: Here's a look at 6 SpaceX plans to once again attempt to return and catch the rocket booster at the launch pad, which would cause sonic booms in the area around the landing zone. The maneuver, which has only been pulled off once during the October demonstration, was called off in the most recent test in November, which President-elect Donald Trump attended. This time around, the catch tower has been upgraded with new hardware intended to make a booster catch more feasible. That includes protections to the sensors on the tower's mechanical arms, nicknamed chopsticks, that SpaceX said were damaged during the Nov. 19 launch, resulting in mission operators diverting the booster for a landing off the Gulf of Mexico. The Super Heavy rocket booster will also be outfitted with a Raptor engine from the booster that launched and returned on Starship’s fifth flight test in October, marking the first time flight-proven hardware is being reused, SpaceX said. The company also plans to once again reignite its Raptor engines in space to attempt an orbital burn – a crucial maneuver to one day bring a vehicle back to the ground. SpaceX looks to increase Starship launches in 2025 SpaceX launched just two Starship flight tests in 2023 before increasing the demos to four in 2024, with the final one of the year taking place in November. But that's nothing compared to what Musk hopes to accomplish in 2025.