Announcements & Press Releases

Flight 5

1. SpaceX planning to launch the fifth flight test of Starship as early as Sunday, October 13
   1. SpaceX website with mission details: https://www.spacex.com/launches/mission/?missionId=starship-flight-5
   2. Cameron County closures: https://www.cameroncountytx.gov/spacex/
2. Access to space is a critical and growing need for US national security, leadership in science, the country’s exploration goals, including NASA’s Artemis program, and for the growth of the economy.
3. The most important advancement to make this happen is full and rapid reusability of the entire launch system, operating Starship like an airplane which is fully and rapidly reusable after each flight.
4. Starship’s upper stage and the Super Heavy booster are designed to be capable of returning to the launch site.
5. Flight 5 will be SpaceX’s first attempt to return and catch the Super Heavy booster. There will be no compromises when it comes to ensuring the safety of the public and SpaceX team members, and the return will only be attempted if conditions are right.

Sonic Booms

1. Vehicles returning to the pad at Starbase will slow down from supersonic speeds, resulting in audible sonic booms in the area around the return location (including South Padre, Port Isabel, possibly Brownsville.)
   1. SpaceX website with details on sonic booms: https://www.spacex.com/updates/#starship-sonic-boom
   2. Video with sonic boom examples: https://x.com/SpaceX/status/1818030059422367857
2. Generally, the only impact to those in the surrounding area is the noise. The sonic boom does not pose any risk of injury to those in the surrounding areas, including wildlife.
3. Weather conditions and distance from the return site at Starbase will determine the volume of noise individuals experience.
4. The strongest effects of the sonic boom’s pressure change are localized to the area directly beneath the vehicle, concentrated under the rocket’s flight path and the landing site which is cleared well in advance of launch and has been rigorously designed to withstand the environments of launching and returning the most powerful rocket ever flown.
5. Sonic booms in spaceflight have typically only been experienced by observers on Earth when encountering vehicles designed to be reused, such as SpaceX’s Falcon family of rockets.