SpaceX's 13th Starship flight test launches with next-generation Starlink satellites
SpaceX successfully launched its 13th Starship test flight, which for the first time carried next-generation V3 Starlink satellites capable of delivering up to 1 Tbps download speeds — ten times more than previous models.
After multiple delays due to unfavorable weather, SpaceX has launched its 13th Starship test flight, marking the first time the vehicle has carried the company's next-generation V3 Starlink satellites.
These satellites are designed to significantly boost Starlink's performance. They can support up to 1 Tbps of downlink, 10 times more than V2 satellites, and 160 Gbps of uplink, a 22-fold increase over the previous generation. Although 20 satellites were deployed on this flight, Starlink customers won't see improvements yet, as this is a test mission. The satellites will extend their solar arrays and antennas to check connectivity with the rest of the Starlink constellation using high-capacity lasers.
The satellites will remain in suborbital space at the same altitude and trajectory as Starship, and are expected to re-enter the atmosphere and burn up just 20 minutes after deployment. Since Starship itself is still under testing, SpaceX modified two of the Starlink satellites, equipping them with cameras to scan Starship's heat shield and transmit images to the ground for analysis. This is part of the company's efforts to ensure Starship is ready for future flights.
This is the second flight for the V3 Starship model, which debuted during the 12th test flight in May. The mission's goals are similar to the previous one — to collect data for SpaceX to continue iterating toward a fully and rapidly reusable design.
