STARBASE, USA, Oct. 13, 2026 - SpaceX has asked the Federal Aviation Administration for permission to launch Starship as many as 456 times a year from its South Texas base,^[1] up from the 25 launches a year the site is approved for today.^[2][3] The FAA will prepare an environmental impact statement on the plan,^[4] which would be carried out in two phases.^[5] The first would allow up to 100 launches a year, and the second would reach 456 within several years.^[6][7] The review will weigh risks to air quality, wildlife and coastal resources,^[8] and written public comments are due by 30 November 2026.^[9] SpaceX already holds authorisation for up to 120 Starship launches a year across two Florida spaceports,^[10] and projects that Starship could one day fly 5,000 to 10,000 times a year from several sites.^[11] Impact Insight. Before US regulators license a large jump in launch activity, they study its effects on the surrounding land, air and water and invite public comment. For planetary defense the connection is indirect: cheaper, more frequent heavy-lift launches could make large telescopes and asteroid missions easier to fly, while also putting many more objects into near-Earth space that must be tracked.