Overview

• Lifting off from Starbase around 6:23 p.m. CDT, the Super Heavy booster splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico and the Starship upper stage later splashed down in the Indian Ocean.
• The Super Heavy tested a revised 13-to-5-to-3 engine landing-burn sequence; one booster engine did not reignite during boostback but resumed operation for the landing burn.
• Starship deployed eight Starlink-sized simulators and completed an in‑space Raptor relight to exercise on-orbit operations.
• SpaceX intentionally removed select heat-shield tiles to stress-test vulnerable areas during reentry, gathering data for durable, rapid reuse.
• The mission closes out Starship Version 2 for the year as SpaceX shifts to Version 3, new Pad B with a flame trench, and the next critical milestone of orbital propellant transfer under close NASA scrutiny.