SpaceX’s Starship Completes Historic Flight 10 with Successful Splashdown

SpaceX’s Starship successfully completed its historic Flight 10 with a controlled splashdown in the Indian Ocean on August 26, 2025. This test marked a significant milestone for the 397-foot-tall (121-meter) megarocket, which is being developed to facilitate human settlement on Mars. The mission, which lifted off from SpaceX’s Starbase facility in South Texas, showcased the rocket’s capabilities while also revealing the challenges it faced during reentry.

Both the Super Heavy booster and the Ship upper stage met their primary mission objectives, achieving controlled splashdowns in the Gulf of Mexico and the Indian Ocean, respectively. Despite the successful outcome, newly released footage reveals that Ship sustained some damage during its journey. The imagery, shared by SpaceX on social media platforms, shows the vehicle’s belly scorched from the heat of reentry, resembling a golden-brown toast. Additionally, several chunks are missing from its base, resembling a dog with battle scars.

SpaceX anticipated these blemishes as part of its testing strategy. The company aimed to push Ship to its limits during Flight 10, which involved intentionally removing some heat shield tiles and stressing its flaps during reentry. SpaceX noted, “Starship made it through reentry with intentionally missing tiles, completed maneuvers to intentionally stress its flaps, had visible damage to its aft skirt and flaps, and still executed a flip and landing burn that placed it approximately 3 meters from its targeted splashdown point.”

The controlled landing was a remarkable achievement, especially considering that Ship had previously broken apart during three test flights earlier this year. Flight 10 marked its first successful splashdown of 2025, showcasing improvements made since earlier attempts.

In addition to the splashdown success, Flight 10 achieved other crucial milestones. Ship successfully re-ignited one of its Raptor engines in space, a feat that had only been accomplished in one prior Starship flight. Furthermore, it deployed a payload of eight dummy versions of SpaceX’s Starlink satellites, marking the first time a Ship upper stage had managed this task.

Looking ahead, SpaceX aims to further develop Starship for more ambitious missions. According to founder and CEO Elon Musk, the company hopes to launch its first trial missions to Mars as early as next year, contingent upon the continued success of flight testing. As SpaceX progresses with its ambitious plans, the advancements made during Flight 10 could play a pivotal role in humanity’s exploration of the Red Planet.