SpaceX Starship Reaches Orbit in Major Test Flight

SpaceX's Starship rocket has reached orbit for the first time, marking a major milestone in the development of the company's next-generation launch system.

The uncrewed spacecraft achieved orbit during its latest test flight after lifting off from SpaceX's Starbase facility in southern Texas. Mission control confirmed the achievement during a livestream, prompting cheers from the team watching the flight.

The milestone came after an early setback when one of Starship's engines shut down prematurely. With the remaining engines continuing to perform as expected, flight controllers determined the spacecraft could safely continue with the planned mission.

Starship, measuring 124 metres (407 feet) tall, carried 26 of SpaceX's latest Starlink satellites into orbit. The satellites are intended to join a constellation of more than 11,000 spacecraft already providing internet services around the world.

The flight was Starship's 14th full-scale launch from Texas over a three-year period. Earlier test flights had travelled as far as the Indian Ocean before ending, with several missions breaking apart or exploding during or after flight.

For this mission, SpaceX planned a much more ambitious flight profile. Starship was intended to circle the Earth six times from an altitude of about 275 kilometres (170 miles), with the mission lasting almost 10 hours before a controlled splashdown in the Pacific Ocean near Chile.

The first-stage booster was also not scheduled to return to the Starbase launch facility. Instead, it was expected to fall into the Gulf of Mexico shortly after liftoff.

SpaceX has said it wants to demonstrate that Starship can operate reliably before attempting to return the spacecraft to the launch site. The company has also emphasised the importance of avoiding uncontrolled debris falling over populated areas.

The next major objective is to attempt a return to Starbase, where SpaceX plans to use large mechanical arms to catch the hovering spacecraft as it descends toward the launch tower. If successful, the system could allow Starship to be rapidly inspected, refuelled and flown again.

The rocket was designed to be fully reusable, with the aim of significantly reducing the cost of space launches. SpaceX also recently recovered a Starship from the Indian Ocean, allowing engineers to inspect the spacecraft directly and make changes to the newly launched vehicle's heat shield.

The orbital milestone is particularly important as SpaceX works to make Starship capable of supporting NASA's future lunar missions as well as the company's longer-term ambitions for Mars.

NASA's Artemis programme is expected to rely on commercial lunar landers, including SpaceX's Starship and Blue Origin's Blue Moon, for future astronaut missions to the Moon.

Artemis III is scheduled for as soon as next summer and is expected to involve a series of launches and an orbital rendezvous between an Orion spacecraft carrying astronauts and commercial lunar-landing systems.

Artemis IV, currently planned for no earlier than 2028, is expected to include an astronaut lunar landing using one of the competing commercial landers, depending on which system is ready.

SpaceX founder Elon Musk originally developed Starship with Mars missions in mind, envisioning fleets of spacecraft carrying settlers to the planet. In the nearer term, however, the company is concentrating on lunar exploration and using Starship to deploy large numbers of satellites into orbit.

SpaceX is also developing additional Starship launch infrastructure, including a second launch site at Florida's Kennedy Space Center, while another site is planned in Louisiana.

The successful orbital flight represents a significant step in SpaceX's effort to turn Starship from an experimental vehicle into a reusable system capable of carrying people, spacecraft and large payloads beyond Earth.