SpaceX shares insane video of Starship’s first intact splashdown | Watch

From the first looks of it, it may appear to be a scene from a Star Wars film. A megarocket returns to earth, makes a soft splashdown in the vast expanses of water and then floats. Only that it’s not a film but visuals of a SpaceX Starship rocket, back after launching Starlink satellites in Flight13 test on July 24.

With a video posted to X, SpaceX wrote: “Landing burn and splashdown of Starship on Flight 13.” Captured on a drone, the rocket returns, steadying itself, spewing fire from its base, before landing into the Indian Ocean.

Landing

burn and splashdown of Starship on Flight 13 pic.twitter.com/I1BWnGKpPo

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 28, 2026

In real time, SpaceX spokesperson Dan Huot said: “This is a first,” adding,
“That is the softest splashdown we have ever had with Starship.”
"Starship is intact, floating in the ocean and transmitting telemetry!" SpaceX CEO Elon Musk wrote on X.

Starship is intact, floating in the ocean and transmitting telemetry! pic.twitter.com/hLVXJqkHSA

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 25, 2026

According to a report in space.com, this was only the second flight for the company's V3, known as the new Starship Version 3 design. During its previous test in May, the Super Heavy first-stage Booster suffered engine problems after stage separation and crashed. It was to splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico.

This came after SpaceX attempted the launch of flight 13 on July 16 but the engine issues forced the rocket to abort the operation. After replacing the first-stage Raptor engines, the company prepared for another attempt on July 24 but held off due to weather concerns. It was finally launched successfully on Friday, July 24.

Speaking about the scale and importance of this event, SpaceX spokesperson Dan Huot said: "This is just the first time we've put a Starship into the water," adding, "This is a dream scenario for this team that's trying to get this heat shield data."