Space 26 August 2025 - 2 September 2025

Starship’s First Orbital Success: SpaceX’s Starship finally broke its streak of test failures in spectacular fashion. On Aug. 26, the 403-foot reusable rocket system completed its tenth test flight and achieved several firsts. After launching from Starbase, Texas, the Starship upper stage reached space and successfully deployed payloads – ejecting 8 dummy Starlink satellites about 30 minutes into flight from its innovative internal dispenser reuters.com. This marked the first-ever satellite deployment by Starship, turning the page on a series of early-flight mishaps that had plagued the program. The mission then put Starship’s redesigned heat shield through a trial-by-fire: the vehicle endured a blazing reentry over the Indian Ocean, testing new hexagonal thermal tiles needed for full reusability reuters.com. Finally, the Starship executed a controlled engine-guided descent into the ocean west of Australia, touching down vertically on the water’s surface reuters.com reuters.com. As expected, the 171-foot ship toppled over and was destroyed after splashdown, but by that point it had met all major objectives reuters.com. This mission demonstrated crucial capabilities – orbital staging, payload deployment, and high-speed reentry – that SpaceX needs to eventually recover Starships intact. SpaceX founder Elon Musk emphasized that developing a robust, rapidly reusable heat shield remains