Elon Musk has announced that SpaceX is targeting late July for the fifth test flight of its Starship megarocket, which could be its most impressive yet. This upcoming flight aims to achieve a groundbreaking maneuver: catching the first-stage Super Heavy booster for the first time. This innovative approach would enable the booster to be reused for multiple missions, significantly reducing the costs of Starship missions.

Musk disclosed the target date for July in response to a post featuring an animation illustrating how the catch maneuver might be executed. “Aiming to try this in late July!” Musk commented.

In the animation, robotic arms on the launch tower are shown grasping the returning booster shortly after the upper-stage Starship spacecraft reaches orbit.

SpaceX has already demonstrated successful landings of the first stage of its smaller Falcon 9 rocket, which lands vertically without robotic arm assistance.

“Catching the booster decreases the launch vehicle’s weight, simplifies hardware onboard, and allows for swift reusability of the rocket,” SpaceX explained in an online document.

After liftoff and separation of the two stages in flight, the Super Heavy booster will return to the launch site, reignite its engines to slow down, and the launch tower’s arms will catch the booster, preparing it for its next flight by stacking it back onto the orbital launch mount.

Starship, known as the world’s most powerful rocket, has conducted four flights since its maiden launch in April 2023. Its latest flight earlier this month marked a significant success, with both the Super Heavy booster and Starship completing successful landing maneuvers in the ocean.

Once fully tested and certified, Starship is intended for crewed and cargo missions to the Moon and potentially Mars. While SpaceX aims for its first lunar mission by the end of this decade, crewed flights to Mars remain in the future plans.