--- title: "SpaceX Just Flew Its Starship Prototype Without a Tether" description: "SpaceX's Starhopper — a test rocket for its upcoming Starship rocket — just completed its first untethered test flight late last night." date: "2019-07-26" modified: "2019-07-26" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/spacex-first-untethered-starhopper-flight-successful" categories: - "Space" - "SpaceX" - "Starship" tags: - "elon musk" - "SpaceX" - "starhopper" - "Starship" - "the digest" --- # SpaceX Just Flew Its Starship Prototype Without a Tether ![SpaceX's Starhopper — a test rocket for its upcoming Starship rocket — just completed its first untethered test flight late last night.]() *\Image: SpaceX/Victor Tangermann\* ## Starship Hover SpaceX's Starhopper — a prototype version of its upcoming mega-rocket [Starship]() — just completed its first untethered test flight late last night at the space company's facility in Texas. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter to post two separate videos, showing the scaled-down but still enormous test vehicle hovering freely in the air for a few seconds before gently descending back to the ground. [*Teslarati* estimates]() that Starhopper reached a height of roughly 15 to 20 meters. "Starhopper flight successful," Musk tweeted. "Water towers \*can\* fly haha!!" https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1154629726914220032 If all goes according to plan, Starship could eventually send up to [100 passengers]() at a time to faraway destinations including the Moon and Mars. https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1154674872041103360 ## Fire Starter The test had to be delayed a few hours due to technical glitches and hardware issues. What was supposed to be the first test flight on Wednesday [was aborted]() due to flames shooting out of the top of the vehicle. But SpaceX's Starhopper is still an early prototype. The test vehicle is outfitted with only a single Raptor engine. A fully operational Starship that could bring up to 100 passengers to the Moon will need to accommodate six Raptor engines, [according to Musk](). **READ MORE:** [SpaceX’s new test rocket briefly hovers during first free flight]() \[*The Verge*\] **More on Starhopper:** [*SpaceX Aborts Starhopper's First Flight Test After Fiery Start*]() ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()