The Starship program’s first flight in months will mark the much-anticipated debut of an upgraded version of the vehicle. But success is far from guaranteed.

SpaceX scrubbed the first launch of its third-generation Starship rocket system from its Starbase headquarters in Texas on Thursday, delaying a high-stakes test of Elon Musk's upgraded vehicle as the company moves toward a potentially record-setting public listing.

SpaceX’s newest and most powerful rocket is grounded. The Federal Aviation Administration has opened a formal mishap investigation into Starship Flight 12 after the upgraded Super Heavy booster lost engine power during its return sequence on May 22,

"If that can be fixed tonight, there will be another launch attempt tomorrow at 5:30 ⁠CT," Elon Musk said of the faulty arm. The fully reusable Starship, which SpaceX has spent more than $15 billion ​developing,

The new rocket features a host of upgrades intended to improve safety and performance of the world's most powerful rocket.

SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas (ValleyCentral) — After several launch window delays, SpaceX ultimately decided not to move forward with the 12th test launch of Starship Thursday evening leaving thousands gathered across the Rio Grande Valley disappointed — but still hopeful for the next launch.

What to expect from tomorrow's SpaceX launch in Texas

After SpaceX introduced this concept, it was eventually able to reduce the launch costs to US$67 million per mission for commercial contracts and $150 million for NASA and the US Department of Defense. That's an improvement over previous rates that could be as high as $1.5 billion per launch of the Space Shuttle.

A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket launches from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The mission carries a batch of 29 Amazon Leo internet satellites destined for low Earth orbit.