Full Breakdown
SpaceX’s Starship 40 Completes Suborbital Test, Begins Multi-Month Return to Texas
9/9/2026, 5:47:42 PM
Launch and Splashdown
On July 24, SpaceX launched Starship 40 from its Starbase facility in southern Texas. The 171-foot vehicle completed a roughly 65-minute suborbital flight, deploying 20 Starlink V3 satellites before the payloads re-entered and burned up as planned. Unlike earlier Starship upper stages, Starship 40 survived its splashdown in the Indian Ocean, remaining intact for recovery.
Recovery Operations
After splashdown, a large boat towed the vehicle to calmer waters, where it was hoisted onto a transit ship. The hoisting process took 24 days, according to GovTech. SpaceX has described the subsequent sea voyage as a “several-month journey.” The transit vessel anticipates delivering Starship 40 to the port of Brownsville, Texas, in early October.
Technical Significance
The flight was intended to test Starship’s payload-deployment system, a key step toward the company’s goal of a fully reusable launch system. Although the recovered stage is not expected to be flight-ready, engineers will examine the intact hardware to refine future designs and operational procedures.
Official Statements & Responses
SpaceX has indicated that the remaining leg of the return trip will span several months, emphasizing that the primary value of the mission lies in the data gathered from the intact stage rather than immediate reuse. The company also notes that the successful splashdown provides a rare opportunity to study the vehicle’s structural performance after ocean exposure.
Data Summary
- Launch date: July 24 (Starbase, Texas)
- Flight duration: ~65 minutes (suborbital)
- Satellites deployed: 20 Starlink V3 units (burned up after deployment)
- Vehicle length: 171 feet
- Recovery hoist time: 24 days
- Expected arrival: early October in Brownsville, Texas
These details illustrate the progress and challenges of SpaceX’s effort to achieve rapid, reusable access to space.
