SpaceX plans Starship tower catch for next test flight, Elon Musk announces
Musk said the move would test reusability and faster turnaround times after the booster completed a new deorbit routine on the last flight.
- On Friday, July 24, SpaceX launched its 13th Starship test flight from Starbase, Texas. The 407-foot-tall rocket, the world's largest, supports NASA's Artemis missions to the moon and Mars.
- During the mission, the craft deployed 20 upgraded Starlink V3 satellites into suborbital space, with engineers verifying telemetry from all units before they re-entered Earth's atmosphere.
- Starship reached the Indian Ocean intact after one hour, five minutes and 21 seconds, providing SpaceX "critical views of an intact heatshield for the first time." This data validates thermal protection for future reusable operations.
- The Super Heavy v3 ship completed its high-thrust boostback burn but encountered difficulties during landing, with only a subset of engines igniting "before experiencing a hard splashdown in the Gulf," SpaceX said.
- SpaceX CEO Elon Musk hopes the next test flight will see the Super Heavy ship caught by robot arms at Starbase, a move designed to reduce turnaround times and accelerate reusability for the launch system.
13 Articles
13 Articles
Starship flight 13 worked. Next up: catching the ship.
The headline number from Starship’s 13th flight is not 20 satellites. It is one word in SpaceX’s own flight report: intact. Starship lifted off from Starbase in Texas at 5:51pm on Friday, after delays and engine replacements pushed the attempt back. It was the second flight of the V3 vehicles. It was also the first […] This story continues at The Next Web
NEWS HEADLINES: SpaceX launches powerful Starship rocket, kicking off first flight test since IPO – One America News Network
SpaceX Cape Canaveral, Florida. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) OAN Staff Lillian Mann5:44 PM – Sunday, July 26, 2026 World-leading commercial space launch company SpaceX has successfully launched its massive Starship rocket from Starbase, Texas—marking the company’s first flight test since its record-breaking IPO last month. SpaceX achieved two major milestones Friday evening, by flying its upgraded Starship and Super Heavy V3 vehicles for t…
SpaceX launches its 13th Starship test
WASHINGTON — SpaceX's Starship rocket lifted off from Texas and briefly put its first 20 upgraded Starlink internet satellites into suborbital space Friday, the company's 13th test mission as it aims to begin routine service by the end of the…
SpaceX just about nails Starship test flight 13
The 13th flight of SpaceX’s Starship made it off the launchpad on Friday and ticked off just about everything on the company’s to-do list. After delays and engine replacements, Elon Musk’s colosso-launcher took to the skies at beer-o’clock on Friday evening – 5:51PM Texas time. One hour, five minutes and 21 seconds later, Starship made a controlled splashdown in the Indian Ocean, where it floated after landing. SpaceX says it was able to gather …
SpaceX plans Starship tower catch for next test flight, Elon Musk announces
HARLINGEN, Texas (ValleyCentral) — SpaceX CEO Elon Musk announces SpaceX will attempt to catch Starship with the tower on the next scheduled test flight. Following the anticipated thirteenth Starship test flight, Musk posted on X that, "unless [SpaceX] discover problems after mission data review," they are attempting to catch the Starship back at the tower. During [...]
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