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2h ago

SpaceX Launches Starship on 10th Test Flight After Two Scrubs

The data-focused mission is designed to probe heat-shield reentry, an in‑space engine relight and payload deployments under FAA-cleared return‑to‑flight conditions.

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Preparations continue to launch a SpaceX Starship spacecraft at sunrise as it sits atop a super heavy booster at the company's complex in Starbase, Texas, U.S., August 26, 2025. REUTERS/Steve Nesius
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Overview

  • Liftoff occurred from Starbase, Texas, at 7:30 p.m. ET Tuesday following a ground‑system liquid oxygen leak on Sunday and a weather scrub on Monday.
  • Super Heavy is planned to execute flip and boostback maneuvers and make a controlled splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico, with no tower catch attempted.
  • The upper stage aims to deploy Starlink simulator payloads, test heat‑shield tile performance and attempt a Raptor engine relight before a targeted Indian Ocean splashdown.
  • The FAA closed its Flight 9 investigation and authorized this launch after a year marked by three upper‑stage failures and a June ground‑test explosion.
  • Immediate post‑launch results were not confirmed at press time, as SpaceX prioritizes gathering data to advance reusability central to NASA’s 2027 lunar lander schedule and Musk’s Mars goals.