Prime Highlights:

SpaceX’s ninth Starship test flight failed after the spacecraft disintegrated on reentry when it lost control.

Even though it was a failure, valuable information were collected to improve future test flights of the reusable launch system.

Key Facts:

The 403-foot Starship launched from Starbase in Texas atop a previously flown Super Heavy booster.

The spacecraft lost control and spun out of control because of a fuel leak before it disintegrated over the Indian Ocean.

Key Background :

On May 27, 2025, SpaceX conducted its ninth test flight of the Starship-Super Heavy system, the biggest rocket ever built. The flight took place at the company’s Boca Chica, Texas-based Starbase factory. The flight involved the first use of a re-flown Super Heavy booster, an important milestone toward SpaceX’s ultimate goal of having fully reusable spacecraft.

The flight was as seamless as expected, with graceful liftoff and departure of the Starship upper stage from the Super Heavy booster. The booster landed safely in the Gulf of Mexico as planned. The Starship spacecraft continued and completed the ascent and coast phase, objectives that involved opening a payload door, simulating satellite deployment, and checking heat shield integrity via atmospheric reentry.

But a technical glitch marred the mission. The pay-load door did not open fully, and towards the later part of the mission, a fuel leak was discovered. This caused loss of attitude control of the spacecraft and triggered an uncontrollable spinning of the spacecraft. About 30 minutes after flight, the vehicle broke up over the Indian Ocean during re-entry—a debacle SpaceX has described as a “rapid unscheduled disassembly.”

While the mission was not a complete success, not being a total failure, SpaceX engineers obtained valuable flight data, particularly on engine shutdown modes and thermal shielding performance. Elon Musk reported the improvement of ascent behavior and heat shield tile life.

The test is part of a recurring iterative process to prepare Starship for crewed missions to the Moon under NASA’s Artemis program. SpaceX intends to make increasing numbers of test flights—ideally every three or four weeks—to accelerate development and hone systems through rapid prototyping and real-world testing ahead of a human lunar landing in 2027.