Elon Musk has hailed the success of his latest rocket launch after SpaceX’s Starship Flight 9 failed shortly after liftoff.
In a post on X, Musk noted that the launch was a “big improvement over the last flight.”
The rocket launched on Tuesday from the company’s Starbase facility in Texas.
However, it ended in failure when the Starship suffered booster loss shortly after liftoff.
The mission aimed to deploy eight Starlink simulator satellites.
SpaceX also sought to test the vehicle’s reentry system with 100 removed heat-shield tiles.
Despite a successful launch and initial ascent, the spacecraft began spinning uncontrollably due to a fuel system leak, rendering the heat-shield test unfeasible.
Following the flight test, Musk, SpaceX’s CEO, posted on X, writing:
“Starship made it to the scheduled ship engine cutoff, so big improvement over last flight!
“Also, no significant loss of heat shield tiles during ascent.”
Starship made it to the scheduled ship engine cutoff, so big improvement over last flight! Also, no significant loss of heat shield tiles during ascent.
Leaks caused loss of main tank pressure during the coast and re-entry phase. Lot of good data to review.
Launch cadence for…
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 28, 2025
Shortly after reaching space, the booster stage, critical for the spacecraft’s reentry, was lost during its return to the atmosphere.
Additionally, the payload door failed to open during the flight.
The remaining parts of the ship, which do not disintegrate from the heat of reentry, are expected to land in the Indian Ocean, according to the company.
This marks another setback for SpaceX’s Starship program.
Starship has faced challenges in previous tests.
SpaceX has previously experienced issues with the Starship system, including an aborted flight in April of this year.
Following the incident, SpaceX shared a statement on X.
SpaceX acknowledged the failure and emphasized the importance of learning from each test.
“With a test like this, success comes from what we learn, and today’s test will help us improve Starship’s reliability as SpaceX seeks to make life multiplanetary,” the company said.
As if the flight test was not exciting enough, Starship experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly. Teams will continue to review data and work toward our next flight test.
With a test like this, success comes from what we learn, and today’s test will help us improve Starship’s…
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) May 28, 2025
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has been notified of the incident.
The FAA is expected to investigate to determine the cause of the failure and assess any potential impact on future launches.
In a statement, the FAA wrote:
“The FAA is aware that an anomaly occurred during the SpaceX Starship Flight 9 mission that launched on Tuesday, May 27, from Starbase, Texas, and is actively working with SpaceX on the event.
“There are no reports of public injury or damage to public property at this time.”
SpaceX has not yet announced a timeline for its next test flight.
However, the company has indicated that it will continue to refine the Starship system based on the data collected from this mission.
“Developmental testing by definition is unpredictable,” SpaceX stated on its website.
“But by putting hardware in a flight environment as frequently as possible, we’re able to quickly learn and execute design changes as we seek to bring Starship online as a fully and rapidly reusable vehicle.”
