Starship has flown seven times to date, most recently on Jan. 16. That mission was a mixed bag; SpaceX caught Super Heavy with the "chopstick" arms of Starbase's launch tower about seven minutes after liftoff as planned, but Ship suffered a serious problem and ended up detonating over the Atlantic Ocean.

The Federal Aviation Administration said Friday it has cleared the SpaceX Starship vehicle to return to flight operations while an investigation into the Jan. 16 Starship Flight 7 mishap remains open.

The FAA has authorized the SpaceX Starship Flight 8 launch while probing the Flight 7 incident. The mission involves a Super Heavy booster return to the launch site and a Starship water landing. Earlier,

Elon Musk's SpaceX is preparing for the next test flight of its Starship megarocket on Friday, following a dramatic mid-air explosion over the Caribbean during its last trial.It will mark the eighth test flight of Starship, the largest and most powerful rocket ever built, with SpaceX broadcasting the launch live via webcast.

SpaceX is about to send its mighty Starship rocket to space again. Get in the mood for the spectacular mission by reliving the last one.The Latest Tech News, Delivered to Your Inbox

SpaceX is planning to launch the eighth flight test of Starship in Texas as early as Friday, the first launch since the Super Heavy upper-stage booster exploded after launch last month.