SpaceX's New Launch Date for Starship Flight 12 Revealed after Massive WDR...
SpaceX's New Launch Date for Starship Flight 12 Revealed after Massive WDR...
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#techalpha
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0:00 Flight Rehearsal
0:27 Test Results
5:25 Mission Profile
10:30 Flight Path
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SpaceX's New Launch Date for Starship Flight 12 Revealed after Massive WDR...
Booster 19 and Ship 39 have just officially passed one of the most critical tests in the pre-flight process — and SpaceX just dropped the news on X, absolutely shaking the entire community!
And even better, the latest notices from the FAA and USCG have officially revealed the launch schedule for this flight.
So exactly how did this test go down? Why is it so important that it could literally decide the launch date for Flight 12? And what makes this mission so special?
Let’s dive in and find out!
SpaceX's New Launch Date for Starship Flight 12 Revealed after Massive WDR...
On May 11th, 2026, SpaceX just completed the very first full-stack Wet Dress Rehearsal for the Starship Version 3 configuration on Pad 2. In their official post on X, the company confirmed: “Launch rehearsal complete. During a flight-like countdown, more than 5,000 metric tonnes (11 million pounds) of propellant were loaded on the fully stacked Starship and Super Heavy V3 vehicles for the first time.”
This wasn’t just any ordinary test. This was the first time the entire V3 stack — Booster 19 with its 33 brand-new Raptor 3 engines and Ship 39 — was fully loaded with propellant in a real flight-like countdown.
The WDR kicked off around 7 AM with the chilldown phase. You could see the venting going nonstop as they cooled down all the pipes and tanks to handle the extreme cryogenic temperatures — LOX at -207°C and LCH4 at -162°C. Thanks to the massive upgrades at Pad 2, with higher-capacity pumps and optimized piping, they loaded over 5,000 tonnes of propellant into both stages in just around 30 minutes. That’s a huge improvement compared to the 45–60 minutes we’ve seen before.
SpaceX's New Launch Date for Starship Flight 12 Revealed after Massive WDR...
As the super-cold propellant began flooding into the vehicles, the entire 121-meter stack came alive with the classic cryogenic spectacle. Thick white frost rapidly blanketed Booster 19, while ice formed at the base of its LOX tank and steadily crept upward. On Ship 39, a striking white ring of ice formed around the methane tank. The whole structure even contracted slightly in height due to thermal shrinkage — a dramatic but completely normal phenomenon. These visuals were not just spectacular; they served as real-time confirmation that the tanks, insulation, and thermal management systems were performing exactly as engineered.The test then moved into the terminal countdown phase, where the vehicle shifted into full autonomous mode. At T-10 minutes, Ship 39’s massive flaps deployed and gimbaled through their full range, while the RCS thrusters under the flaps fired brief test pulses.
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