SpaceX's next version of Starship, the world's largest rocket, will be even bigger and more advanced than any iteration of the spacecraft that has already launched 11 times from Texas.

At least, that's according to promises and visions that SpaceX billionaire founder Elon Musk and other company officials have stated before retiring the vehicle's second-ever design.

Starship's Version 2 managed to complete its comeback story during its final test flight from SpaceX's Starbase headquarters near the U.S-Mexico border. The spacecraft's fifth test of the year was its second successful in a row following a string of three explosive failures earlier in 2025.

Now? Get ready for Version 3.

SpaceX teased the next-generation vehicle that could reach the moon and Mars during its live webcast of a Starship mission known as flight 11, which got off the ground Monday, Oct. 13.

Here's everything to know about the V3 Starship, SpaceX's next-generation iteration of the megarocket.

What is Starship? How big is megarocket?

Starship is regarded as the world's largest and most powerful launch vehicle ever developed, a record previously held by NASA's retired 363-foot-tall Saturn V that powered the iconic Apollo lunar program.

The second design of Starship, known as Version 2, stands at 403 feet tall when fully stacked. The fully integrated launch system is composed of a 232-foot Super Heavy rocket and the 171-foot upper stage Starship, the spacecraft where crew and cargo would ride.

SpaceX is developing Starship to be a fully reusable transportation system, meaning the rocket and vehicle can return to the ground for additional missions.

In the years ahead, Starship is set to serve a pivotal role in U.S. spaceflight.

Starship is the centerpiece of Musk's vision of sending the first humans to Mars, with plans for the first uncrewed Starship to head to the Red Planet as early as 2026.

A configuration of the vehicle is also critical in NASA's plans to return astronauts to the moon's surface. The U.S. space agency has designs on using Starship to ferry Artemis III astronauts from an Orion capsule in orbit to the lunar surface as early as 2027.

SpaceX builds multiple V3 Starship vehicles, Super Heavy boosters

The next iteration of Starship spacecraft, already under production in Texas, may be even bigger.

Musk, in delivering public updates in May in front of employees at Starbase – SpaceX's headquarters and company town in South Texas – indicated that Version 3 could be around 408 feet tall when fully stacked.

And that's not all. During SpaceX's live webcast of flight 11, Dan Huot, SpaceX's communications manager, briefly described some "really significant changes" coming for Version 3 of Starship.

That includes an overhaul under the hood to Starship's upper stage, which otherwise bears a similar sleek aesthetic to what has already flown. Super Heavy is also getting a redesign, including a new fuel transfer tube that channel fuels to its engines, Huot said.

SpaceX has previously unveiled in a post on X that the next Super Heavy booster will feature three grid fins to help it land instead of four, which the company said will improve "vehicle control while enabling the booster to descend at higher angles of attack." The fins are 50% larger and "higher strength" than previous versions, according to SpaceX.

"This is building on everything we've learned from all these flight tests to make a vehicle that we're looking to mass produce," Huot said during the livestream.

Starship Version 3 could be the one to reach orbit, refuel midflight

SpaceX said on its website that the next generation Starship could be the first to reach orbit.

So far across 11 tests, Starship has flown at a much lower subortibal trajectory beyond Earth's atmosphere.

Future iterations of Starship will also need to demonstrate the ability for the upper stage to refuel in orbit, which is necessary for it to reach distant destinations. The process is a complex one requiring two Starships equipped with docking adapters to meet up in orbit to transfer hundreds of tons of super-cooled propellant, according to SpaceX.

Additionally, SpaceX intends for Starship Version 3 to be the one with an upper stage capable of returning and landing at the launch site.

If that sounds familiar, it's because SpaceX has already proven during three tests that it's capable of catching a returning Super Heavy booster at the company's colossal "mechazilla" tower equipped with massive robotic arms – nicknamed "chopsticks."

In fact, the previous two Starship launches have tested mid-flight upper stage maneuvers necessary to pull off the feat.

Next-gen Starship will launch bigger Starlink satellites

In the past two Starship flight tests, SpaceX has succeeded in having the vehicle deploy eight mock Starlink satellites above Earth's atmosphere, where they eventually burned up.

For years, SpaceX's workhorse Falcon 9, a two-stage 230-foot rocket, has been the sole rocket capable of launching and deploying Starlink satellites into a rapdily growing constellation essential to the company's lucrative internet business.

Now, SpaceX says Version 3 of Starship will be crucial in launching heavier Starlink satellites that wil expand connectivity to its customers.

When is the next Starship launch date? What to know about flight 12

Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceX president and COO, said at a conference in Paris last month that she expected the next iteration of Starship to fly by year's end or early next year, Reuters reported.

SpaceX has also indicated its desire to launch Starship from Florida potentially before the end of 2025, but has not provided an update on that plan since March.

While no official target launch date has been set for the Sunshine State, plans to expand Starship operations to Florida have continued. SpaceX is in the process of getting approval for Starship launches from both the Kennedy Space Center, where it is developing more infrastructure, as well as the Cape Canaveral Space Force Base.

Contributing: Reuters

Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at elagatta@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: When is the next Starship launch? SpaceX working on Version 3 that could reach orbit

Reporting by Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect