The largest and most powerful rocket ever launched could blast off for its sixth test flight as early as Monday at 5 p.m. EST.

SpaceX will attempt to repeat the historic booster capture maneuver it performed during the previous Starship and Super Heavy test flight. Credit: SpaceX

SpaceX is targeting the sixth test flight of its Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy booster – which constitute the largest and most powerful rocket system ever built – starting Monday. Both rocket And amplifier were moved to the launch rack this week for stacking.

The mission, which, like previous Starship flights, will be broadcast live on the SpaceX platform. website And accountwill feature a second attempt to catch the booster above the launch pad using a pair of metal “wand” arms. SpaceX has successfully completed this unprecedented maneuver, a key step in making Starships and Super Heavys fully reusable, on the previous test flight.

Unless postponed due to weather or other factors, live coverage from SpaceX will begin 30 minutes before the launch window opens at 5 p.m. EST on Monday. After activating the flame deflector system and igniting the Super Heavy’s 33 Raptor engines, Starship will take off from the company’s Starbase launch pad at the southern tip of Texas.

Within minutes, Super Heavy will power down and separate from Starship, returning to Earth at supersonic speed. About seven minutes into the mission, SpaceX expects to recover the booster to Starbase after it slows to a hover.

Perfecting booster capture, accomplished using a pair of robotic arms attached to a tower the company calls “Mechazilla,” is key to increasing Starship’s launch cadence. SpaceX hopes to reduce the time between missions from months to days or even hours by quickly catching, offloading and returning Super Heavy – and eventually Starship itself – to the platform.

After the stages separate, the huge rocket will fly about halfway around the world. In orbit, SpaceX will re-fire one of Starship’s six Raptor engines to demonstrate its deorbit burn capability. The spacecraft will need to brake so it can refuel at an orbital propellant depot before heading to the Moon aboard NASA’s spacecraft. Artemis 3 assignment.

After about 45 minutes of flight, Starship will re-enter the atmosphere enveloped in luminous plasma. SpaceX will be watching closely: For Flight 6, the company removed some tiles from the rocket’s heat shield in places where Mechazilla’s rod arms might one day catch it. Engineers will evaluate the strength of the new configuration as the company prepares to catch Starship on a future mission.

After completing a turnaround and landing maneuver, the Starship will crash into the Indian Ocean around 6:05 p.m. EST, approximately an hour after takeoff.

Successful capture and reentry of the booster could pave the way for the launch of Flight 7 within weeks. Monday’s launch, if it happens, would come a little more than a month after the previous test flight. But any major mission changes would require the company to update its FAA launch license, which can be a problem. long process.

Editor’s note: This story first appeared on FLIGHT.