BreakingWorld·World News Update
World News Update: SpaceX set to launch Starship Flight 15 from Starbase, Texas; U.S. denies Iran's Bahrain radar strike claim
SpaceX is targeting Starship Flight 15 this afternoon from Orbital Launch Pad 2 at Starbase, Texas, in a 75-minute window that opens at 4:45 p.m. CT, carrying 26 Starlink V3 satellites and planning the first attempt to catch both the Super Heavy booster and the Starship upper stage back at the launch site. Overseas, the U.S. military said it shot down two Iranian attack drones headed toward Bahrain and denied Iran's claim that it destroyed a U.S. early-warning radar there.
Launch: Starship Flight 15 / Starlink Group 31-2 (before liftoff)
- Rocket
- SpaceX Starship-Super Heavy, V3 (Starship Flight 15)
- Launch site
- Orbital Launch Pad 2, Starbase, Texas
- Time (CT)
- 75-minute window opens 4:45 p.m. CT Friday, Nov. 13 (5:45 p.m. ET / 2245 UTC). SpaceX says the schedule is dynamic and likely to change.
- Result
- Launched at 4:47 p.m. CT. The Super Heavy booster aborted its catch and splashed down offshore in the Gulf; Starship reached orbit. See the after-liftoff update.
- Cargo
- 26 Starlink Version 3 satellites (Starlink Group 31-2); SpaceX says each adds about 1 terabit of capacity, and three carry cameras to scan Starship's heat shield.
- Booster
- Super Heavy V3 booster. SpaceX plans launch, stage separation, boostback and a return to Starbase for a catch by the tower arms, the first catch attempt for a V3 booster.
Our view Another step toward Mars: SpaceX says this is planned as the first flight to return both Starship and Super Heavy to the launch site for catch, which would be the first full recovery of an orbital launch system and a big step toward a rapidly reusable rocket that can carry people to Mars.
SpaceX says the ship is expected to fly about 275 km above Earth for roughly 14 orbits over a flight of more than 22 hours, and will only try to return to Starbase if flight controllers confirm the systems needed for reentry and the tower approach are healthy.
World news since the Friday 6 AM brief
- U.S. says it shot down two Iranian attack drones bound for Bahrain, denies Iran's radar strike claim The U.S. military said Friday it shot down two Iranian one-way attack drones headed toward Bahrain with no injuries or damage, denying Iran's Revolutionary Guards' claim that they destroyed a U.S. early-warning radar there. Iran said the strike was retaliation for an air attack on a telecommunications tower in Sirik county, Hormozgan province, AP and Reuters reported. (AP, Reuters (via Investing.com))
- Bessent says he is optimistic on trade deals with Canada and Mexico after Trump's tariff threat Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC on Friday he is optimistic the U.S. will secure trade deals with Canada and Mexico, a day after President Trump threatened to double tariffs on Mexico if it does not stop more than 1,000 migrants walking north toward the United States, Reuters reported. (Reuters)
- UN says Ebola cases in Congo outbreak top 11,000 as insecurity hampers response UN health officials on Friday hailed progress in the Ebola response six months into the outbreak but warned the disease keeps spreading to remote and dangerous parts of Congo; confirmed cases have passed 11,000, the second-worst Ebola outbreak on record, according to a Reuters world news summary. (Reuters (via Devdiscourse))
Earlier: the full Friday 6 AM World Brief (Ukraine talks, Iran, Starship Flight 15 preview)
- SpaceXStarship Flight 15
- Launch Library 2Starship | Starlink Group 31-2 (Starship Flight 15)
- APUS military downs 2 Iranian attack drones as Iran claims a strike on a US radar in Bahrain
- ReutersUS Treasury's Bessent says he is optimistic on trade deals with Canada, Mexico