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yesterday

SpaceX Works to Recover Floating Starship After Soft Ocean Splashdown

The at-sea salvage could give engineers direct heat‑shield data that will shape whether regulators clear a late‑August orbital flight to deploy Starlink V3s.

A satellite image taken on August 2 shows Skimmer Tide floating near SpaceX's Starship after it landed in the Indian Ocean.
Image
Starship floats in the Indian Ocean after its July 24 test flight from Starbase. Previous Starships have exploded before or upon splashdown, leaving SpaceX with a new challenge to recover the craft. 
A satellite image taken on August 3 shows the Normand Ranger and SpaceX's Starship rocket. Attached to the nose of Starship is a long line.

Overview

  • The upper stage Ship 40 survived reentry and made an unusually gentle splashdown on July 24, remaining airtight and afloat instead of sinking as prior prototypes did.
  • Satellite imagery and vessel trackers from Aug. 2–3 show SpaceX’s recovery ship Go Australis alongside Norwegian tugs Normand Ranger and Skimmer Tide and apparent tow lines attached to the floating Ship 40.
  • Initial visual inspections indicate the ceramic heat‑shield tiles largely survived reentry but show localized damage in the aft section and a damaged bottom rim that engineers want to examine up close.
  • The Super Heavy booster that launched on Flight 13 failed a relight and crashed into the Gulf of Mexico, leaving an engine‑restart reliability problem that SpaceX and regulators must address before routine reuse.
  • SpaceX is preparing Ship 41 and Booster 21 for testing and is targeting Flight 14 by the end of August to place operational Starlink V3 satellites into orbit and, pending regulatory approval and data review, attempt the first tower 'catch' of the Ship.