SpaceX had its most successful Starship flight yet last week, achieving a list of objectives including controlled landings for both the first-stage Super Heavy booster and the upper-stage Starship spacecraft in the ocean in different parts of the world.
In test flights 5, 7, and 8, SpaceX achieved the impressive feat of bringing the 71-meter-tall booster back to the launchpad at Starbase in southern Texas, using giant mechanical arms on the launch tower to secure the vehicle just above the ground.
But for its most recent flights, including the 10th one last week, SpaceX elected to send the booster into the sea as it wanted to test a more hazardous landing procedure that was steeper but more fuel efficient. Sea landings therefore reduce the risk of causing damage to the launch site should the landing go awry.
As for the upper-stage Starship spacecraft, the plan has always been to bring the vehicle back to base in the same way as the Super Heavy booster, but up until now the landings have taken place in the ocean (when it hasn’t blown up before reaching there, that is).
With many Starship fans curious about when SpaceX will attempt the first landing of the upper stage at Starbase, SpaceX boss Elon Musk recently revealed that the first attempt will “probably” take place in flight 13, 14, or 15, depending on how well the flights go with the next version — version 3 — of the Starship vehicle.
The next flight, which some reports have suggested could take place in October, will be the final one for version 2 of the most powerful rocket ever built. While the total height of version 2 stands at 123.1 meters, version three will be 124.4 meters tall and even more powerful.
Musk has said that he’s hoping to see the first version 3 rocket launch (flight 12) before the end of this year. That means the first Starship spacecraft landing could take place as early as January, or at least in the first half of 2026. And although Musk does have a tendency to be over-optimistic with his forecasts, if the upcoming Starship flights go smoothly, that first Starship landing back at Starbase could be just around the corner.
Achieving successful landings of both the Super Heavy and Starship would truly put SpaceX on the road to full reusability of the Starship rocket, with both parts of the vehicle immediately ready for refurbishment and refueling at the Starbase facility.
Once fully operational, the Starship will be used for crew and cargo missions to the moon and possibly even Mars, too.
