This will be the third major Starship test since December, as Elon Musk makes good on his promise to make development of the rocket SpaceX’s top priority.

The tech billionaire made the pledge last year after growing frustrated with its progress, fearing that he may never achieve his ambition of travelling to Mars in his lifetime.

The ultimate goal is to use a fleet of up to 1,000 Starships to transport people and cargo around the solar system and establish a permanent human colony on the red planet.

Musk is known for his ambitious timelines but Starship’s schedule is surely the most supercharged yet, with the first crewed missions planned for as early as 2024.

Before any of that can happen, SpaceX first needs to work out how to stick the landing. Here’s a reminder of how the last Starship test ended.

This was the confirmation from Elon Musk on Tuesday that the test will be going ahead today.

We’re just a couple of hours away from the window opening.

Hello and welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of SpaceX’s Starship SN10 flight test.

It is the third major high-altitude jaunt for the Mars-bound craft, with both previous attempts ending in a fiery explosion.

There have been numerous delays to the latest launch but now the weather is clear, local roads are closed, FAA clearance has been sought, and even Elon Musk himself has confirmed that today is the day. We hope.