SpaceX's Starship Nails Its Softest-Ever Splashdown, Caught on Camera by New Starlink Satellite
Flight 13 delivers the smoothest landing yet
SpaceX's giant Starship rocket completed its 13th test flight on July 24, achieving what the company describes as its softest ocean splashdown to date. After separating from its Super Heavy booster, the upper-stage vehicle descended gently into the ocean, with the moment captured by drones and a specialized floating "buoy cam" positioned near the splashdown site.
A view from orbit
The same test flight also carried a batch of next-generation Starlink V3 satellites into orbit. One of those newly deployed satellites managed to capture footage of Starship itself while it was still in space, offering a rare orbital-eye view of the vehicle that ground-based cameras can't provide.
Why it matters
Starship is central to SpaceX's plans for future crewed missions to the Moon and Mars, and the vehicle has struggled in the past with breakups and rough landings during testing. A markedly smoother splashdown suggests real progress toward making the rocket reliably reusable, a key requirement for cutting the cost of spaceflight.
Starship's Softest Splashdown Yet, Filmed by a Satellite in Space
SpaceX's giant rocket Starship made its smoothest ocean landing ever, and a satellite caught it on camera.
💡 The gist
- Starship, a huge rocket, landed gently in the ocean on July 24
- It was the smoothest splashdown of any Starship flight so far
- A new satellite called Starlink V3 filmed Starship while it was still in space
Starship is built to carry people to the Moon and Mars one day, and SpaceX wants to use it again and again instead of throwing it away. On this test flight, the rocket's booster separated first, and then the upper part of Starship slowly came down and landed in the ocean. Drones and a special camera floating nearby captured the whole thing.
Why does a soft landing matter so much? If a rocket splashes down gently instead of crashing or breaking apart, it's much easier and cheaper to reuse. That's the whole point of building a reusable rocket in the first place.
During the same flight, SpaceX also launched several next-generation Starlink satellites, which beam internet down to Earth. One of those satellites turned its camera around and filmed Starship flying through space, giving people on the ground a view they'd never had before: Starship, seen from orbit.
A big rocket landed so softly
A big rocket named Starship landed softly in the ocean.
Starship is a very big rocket. Starship can fly to space. On July 24, it came down to the sea. It landed the softest it ever has. A drone took its picture. A floating camera watched too. A new satellite flew up that day. Its name is Starlink V3. The satellite took a photo of Starship. Now we can see Starship in space.