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Starship and Super Heavy V3 changes
On May 12, 2026, SpaceX listed Starship V3 and Super Heavy V3 changes, including three larger grid fins, Raptor 3 thrust figures, and a first flight from Starbase Pad 2 on Flight 12.
Topics: space-civilization starship
This page is an original Muskularity summary. It does not republish SpaceX’s full post. Figures are the company’s statements on the cited date unless another primary link is named.
Summary
SpaceX published a change list for the third generation of Starship and Super Heavy, which it said is powered by Raptor 3 and will use a new pad. The booster changes are mostly about catch, heat, and engine start. Grid fins drop from four to three, each described as 50 percent larger, with a new catch point, and they sit lower to cut heat from the ship’s engines during hot-staging. The fin shaft, actuator, and structure move inside the main fuel tank. A single-use interstage is replaced by an integrated hot stage: the booster’s forward dome is exposed to the ship’s engines at separation, protected by tank pressure and a non-structural steel layer.
The fuel transfer tube is redesigned and compared in size to a Falcon 9 first stage, so all 33 engines can start together. Engine shrouds and the carbon-dioxide fire suppression system go away. The booster gets two separated quick-disconnects instead of one.
On the ship, SpaceX described a new propulsion layout, a single aft-flap actuator with three motors instead of two actuators, a faster Starlink dispenser, header-tank jacketing, and four docking drogues plus propellant connections for ship-to-ship transfer. Avionics are summarized as about 60 custom units able to deliver roughly 9 megawatts of peak power, propellant-level radio sensors for transfer, and about 50 camera views over 480 Mbps of Starlink connectivity.
Raptor 3 sea-level thrust is stated as 250 metric tons-force (551,000 lbf), up from 230 tf (507,000 lbf). Vacuum engines are 275 tf (606,000 lbf), up from 258 tf (568,000 lbf). Sea-level engine mass is 1,525 kg, down from 1,630 kg, with about a ton of vehicle-level savings per engine claimed.
Flight 12 is named as the first launch from Starbase Pad 2. Pad changes include a larger propellant farm, shorter electromechanical chopsticks, a redesigned mount and flame diverter meant to avoid refurbishment, and separated methane and oxygen quick-disconnects.
Key facts
| Fact | Label |
|---|---|
| Grid fins: four to three, each 50 percent larger | Company design description |
| Raptor 3 sea level 250 tf; vacuum 275 tf | Company engine figures |
| Sea-level Raptor mass 1,525 kg, from 1,630 kg | Company engine figure |
| About 60 avionics units and about 9 MW peak power | Company vehicle description |
| Flight 12 named as first launch from Pad 2 | Company plan |
Why it matters
Earlier mishap posts in this archive blame leaks, diffusers, and attic fires on the generation then flying. V3 is SpaceX’s list of the hardware meant to retire those problems and to make docking and propellant transfer part of the vehicle. The thrust and mass numbers are company specifications. Starbase Pad 2 is the ground half of the same claim.
On this site
Sources
- SpaceX update, May 12, 2026 — Grade A, company post
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