SpaceX Just Broke the Internet with Starship S37&B16 Smashed Multiple Records. Here's What Happened

SpaceX has once again made history with Starship Flight 10, delivering its most successful and record-breaking mission to date. After multiple delays, technical setbacks, and intense anticipation, Starship S37 and Super Heavy booster B16 demonstrated remarkable improvements in performance and reliability.

This blog post takes you through the critical moments of this mission, highlighting why Flight 10 is a significant milestone in the race to revolutionize space travel. Whether you’re a space enthusiast, industry professional, or just curious, here’s everything you need to know about SpaceX’s groundbreaking Starship launch.

The Road to Success: Overcoming Challenges and Delays

For months, SpaceX fans and experts eagerly awaited a smooth Starship flight after the previous setbacks and scrubs. This time, all pre-launch procedures — including fuel loading, engine chill, and water deluge system activation — went perfectly, marking a significant advancement from past missions.

Notably, no hold commands were triggered during the pre-flight sequence, strongly indicating that previous problems like oxygen leaks in the SQD system have been fully resolved. This preparation paved the way for a flawless launch sequence.

SpaceX Just Broke the Internet with Starship S37&B16 Smashed Multiple Records

Powerful Liftoff: The 33 Raptor Engines Roar

At liftoff, Starship unleashed the combined thrust of 33 Raptor engines, generating over 7,000 tons of thrust — the most powerful rocket engine cluster in the world. Despite the failure of one middle ring engine at T+1 minute 33 seconds, the flight trajectory remained stable, showcasing the rocket’s resilience and design robustness.

This thrust power reaffirms SpaceX’s ability to sustain controlled, heavy-lift rocket flights, crucial for future deep space missions.

Smooth Stage Separation and Booster Maneuvers

The hot staging mechanism allowed the upper stage to ignite while still attached, enabling a seamless transition during stage separation at T+2 minutes 50 seconds.

Super Heavy booster B16 performed an active flip maneuver, enhancing fuel efficiency for the return journey. Although the previously damaged engine failed to reignite for the boost back burn, B16 stabilized with three operational engines.

At T+4 minutes 45 seconds, the booster descended into the transonic regime at a higher angle than prior flights, preparing for its landing attempt.

Booster Splashdown: Controlled Test Despite Explosion

During the landing burn, 13 engines were expected to fire, but the damaged engine again failed to ignite. To maintain thrust balance, one middle ring engine stayed active to compensate.

The booster successfully splashed down in the ocean but exploded on impact — an expected outcome since ocean splashdowns are controlled test scenarios. The near-perfect execution before splashdown marks a huge success for booster recovery testing.

SpaceX Just Broke the Internet with Starship S37&B16

Starship S37’s Historic Orbital Payload Deployment

Starship S37’s ascent was smooth and free from prior mission issues, such as engine vibrations and fuel leaks.

A major breakthrough occurred at T+17 minutes when Starship opened its payload bay doors flawlessly. At T+19 minutes 11 seconds, Starship deployed eight simulated Starlink satellites into orbit, marking the first successful orbital payload deployment in Starship history.

This milestone validates Starship as a credible orbital launch vehicle, ready to support satellite constellations and commercial missions.

Successful In-Orbit Engine Restart Test

An essential capability for future missions is the ability to restart engines in space. At T+37 minutes 51 seconds, one of three extended sea-level Raptor engines ignited briefly, confirming SpaceX’s success in restarting engines in orbit.

This test is critical for enabling future refueling operations and deep-space exploration, reinforcing Starship’s versatility and mission readiness.

Re-Entry and Ocean Splashdown: Starship’s Robust Heat Shield

Despite damage to the aft flap during re-entry, Starship’s upgraded heat shield protected the vehicle, maintaining structural integrity throughout its descent.

At T+1 hour 6 minutes 20 seconds, Starship executed a flip maneuver and ignited three Raptors to slow down before splashdown. The vehicle landed vertically on the ocean surface before toppling and exploding, a controlled end mirroring the booster’s fate.

This successful re-entry marks a major step forward in thermal protection and spacecraft durability.

Industry Praise: NASA and SpaceX Leaders Celebrate Milestone

NASA acting administrator Shawn Duffy praised the flight’s success as a critical step towards the Artemis 3 mission, which aims to return American astronauts to the Moon using Starship’s human landing system.

Jared Isaacman, leading the Polaris program and a close SpaceX ally, called Flight 10 “energizing” and emphasized Starship’s role as the foundation for interplanetary travel to Mars and beyond.

What’s Next for SpaceX? Upcoming Flights and Ambitious Goals

With hardware already in place, Flight 11 is anticipated as early as September. SpaceX is also expected to test two-stage catch technology, potentially revolutionizing booster recovery.

These future plans reinforce SpaceX’s goal of making Starship the backbone of reusable, affordable space transportation.

Rocket Lab’s Growing Impact on the Space Industry

While SpaceX leads heavy-lift launches, Rocket Lab continues to expand its footprint in small satellite launches. On August 23rd, Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket launched five satellites in the mission named “Live, Laugh, Launch.”

This marked Rocket Lab’s 70th Electron launch, showcasing consistent reliability and rapid growth.

The Future: Rocket Lab’s Neutron and Market Competition

Rocket Lab’s upcoming Neutron rocket aims to compete with Falcon 9 and Starship. This reusable heavy-lift vehicle could redefine commercial launch services and increase competition in the space industry.

Conclusion: A New Dawn in Space Exploration

SpaceX’s Flight 10 has proven Starship’s capabilities in payload deployment, engine restarts, and re-entry durability. Alongside Rocket Lab’s momentum, the space industry is poised for exciting advancements.

With each success, humanity steps closer to sustainable lunar, Martian, and deep-space exploration.

FAQs

1. What is SpaceX Starship Flight 10?

Flight 10 refers to the tenth integrated flight test of SpaceX’s Starship launch system, which includes the Super Heavy booster (B16) and Starship upper stage (S37). It was the most successful Starship mission to date, completing multiple objectives.

2. What made Starship Flight 10 successful?

Flight 10 achieved major milestones: flawless liftoff, successful stage separation, orbital payload deployment, an in-orbit engine restart, and controlled splashdowns of both stages.

3. What is Starship S37?

Starship S37 is the upper stage of the Starship launch system that reached orbit, deployed simulated Starlink satellites, and successfully re-entered Earth’s atmosphere during Flight 10.

4. What is Super Heavy B16?

B16 is the Super Heavy booster used in Flight 10. It lifted Starship into the sky, performed a boost-back maneuver, and executed a controlled splashdown, although it exploded on impact — as expected.

5. Did Starship deploy real satellites during Flight 10?

No, the eight deployed payloads were simulated Starlink satellites used to test Starship’s orbital deployment capabilities.

6. Was this SpaceX’s first successful Starship payload deployment?

Yes. Flight 10 marked the first time SpaceX deployed payloads from Starship into orbit, a critical milestone toward operational missions.

7. Did the booster B16 land successfully?

B16 executed a controlled descent and splashdown, but it exploded upon ocean impact — which was expected for this test flight. The goal was not full recovery but to test descent systems.

8. Why did Starship explode after splashdown?

The Starship S37 was not designed to survive ocean landing. The explosion was part of the controlled test scenario to gather re-entry data.

9. What was tested during Starship Flight 10?

Full-stack launch
Stage separation
Payload deployment
Engine restart in orbit
Re-entry and controlled splashdown

10. Did SpaceX test in-orbit engine relight?

Yes, one sea-level Raptor engine restarted successfully in orbit, confirming that Starship can perform orbital maneuvers like future refueling.

11. What is hot staging in Starship?

Hot staging involves igniting the upper stage engines before complete stage separation, improving efficiency. This technique was successfully used in Flight 10.

12. Was there any damage to Starship during the flight?

Yes, the aft flap sustained damage during re-entry, but the upgraded heat shield and structure maintained integrity throughout descent.

13. What were the major improvements from previous flights?

No pre-launch scrubs or holds
Clean engine chill and fueling
First successful payload deployment
Stable re-entry
Engine relight in orbit

14. What does this success mean for NASA’s Artemis program?

It confirms that Starship is progressing toward becoming the Human Landing System for Artemis 3, which will return astronauts to the Moon.

15. Who praised SpaceX after the flight?

NASA Acting Administrator Shawn Duffy and Polaris program leader Jared Isaacman both congratulated SpaceX, emphasizing the mission’s significance.

16. What are the implications for Mars missions?

Starship’s demonstrated capabilities in orbital deployment, engine relight, and re-entry are key technologies for future Mars missions.

17. When is the next Starship flight?

Flight 11 is expected in late 2025, possibly as early as September, pending FAA approval and hardware readiness.

18. What is the two-stage catch test everyone is talking about?

It’s a planned future maneuver where both stages are caught using mechanical arms (Mechazilla) instead of landing in the ocean — a key step toward rapid reusability.

19. Did SpaceX fix the issues from Flight 9?

Yes. Issues like engine reliability, separation anomalies, and vibrations were resolved in Flight 10, showing strong iteration and improvement.

20. What role does Rocket Lab play in the space industry now?

Rocket Lab is a major player in small satellite launches and is developing the Neutron rocket to compete with SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and Starship.

21. How many launches has Rocket Lab completed?

As of August 2025, Rocket Lab has launched the Electron rocket 70 times, making it one of the most active commercial launch vehicles after Falcon 9.

22. What’s special about Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket?

Electron is designed for small satellite payloads, with a strong track record of success and cost efficiency.

23. What is Rocket Lab’s Neutron rocket?

Neutron is Rocket Lab’s upcoming reusable heavy-lift launch vehicle, aiming to challenge the dominance of Falcon 9, Vulcan, and New Glenn.

24. How does Starship compare to other rockets?

Starship is the largest and most powerful rocket ever built, designed for reusability, deep space travel, and large payload missions including Moon and Mars transport.

SpaceX Just Broke the Internet with Starship S37&B16 Smashed Multiple Records. Here’s What Happened