The first Starship to return to its launch site, Ship 40's journey took it across air, space, and sea. Now that it is vertical alongside three other Starships in a Megabay at Starbase, it will provide first-of-its-kind data on a flown Starship heatshield, Raptor engines, avionics, and more.
Oct 13, 2026 · 9:52 PM UTC
884
2,782
23,296
2,602,559
@SpaceX Am I the only one who thought of this?
😬🚨
😬🚨
9
5
160
8,065
@SpaceX Go SpaceX!!!! I love you!!!! Such an amazing achievement!!!! ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️🚀🚀🚀♥️♥️
1
0
8
1,582
@SpaceX Welcome home, Ship 40. The engineers must have a long reading list now.
0
0
3
437
We just raised $5.7M for @polarbrowser, the AI browser that beats Anthropic and OpenAI on every major web agent benchmark.
- 4,500,000+ actions taken for users, automating sales, recruiting, and ops
- One company cancelled Clay and saves 25+ hrs/wk per person
- Team is from MIT, Street, Perplexity, Modal, and Apple
100 hours of work. From 30 seconds of typing.
Download the world's most powerful AI browser: polarbrowser.com
- 4,500,000+ actions taken for users, automating sales, recruiting, and ops
- One company cancelled Clay and saves 25+ hrs/wk per person
- Team is from MIT, Street, Perplexity, Modal, and Apple
100 hours of work. From 30 seconds of typing.
Download the world's most powerful AI browser: polarbrowser.com
1,137
1,081
14,776
16,547,519
@SpaceX Longest return to launch site of a starship
I don't think that record will be broken for a while
I don't think that record will be broken for a while
3
6
201
13,023
@SpaceX History. S40 is one tough Superstructure. Camera's functional after splash down.
Starship destiny is to be fully reusable.
The thermodynamics of its design is to not land on water.. S40 did.
First to return.
Starship destiny is to be fully reusable.
The thermodynamics of its design is to not land on water.. S40 did.
First to return.
1
2
92
5,923
@SpaceX What a view! I just had to add it to this string commemorating the return of Starship S40. x.com/ARealRocketMan…
Starship Ship 40 (S40) has officially arrived back home at Starbase in Texas.
SpaceX's Ship 40 (S40) made history on July 24, 2026, by completing a successful controlled splashdown during Flight Test 13 and becoming the first Starship upper stage recovered largely intact from the ocean.
▶️ Flight 13
Launched atop Booster 20 from Starbase, Texas.
▶️ Payload
Successfully deployed Starlink V3 satellites.
▶️ Landing
Executed a vertical flip and soft splashdown in the Indian Ocean.
▶️ Survival
Remained mostly afloat and intact instead of exploding like past prototypes.
▶️ Drift
Spent 24 days drifting and under tow by marine salvage vessels like the Norman Ranger and Go Australis due to rough seas.
▶️ Christmas Island
Towed to Christmas Island after missing the Australian mainland.
▶️ Loaded on FORTE
Lifted out of the water by the semi-submersible ship FORTE on August 26, 2026, for transport back to Starbase, Texas.
x.com/LunarCitizens/…
0
4
48
4,581
@SpaceX exactly. every other flown ship is gone. this one splashed down intact on flight 13, floated 75 days, sailed home on a deck, and now stands in the megabay next to 3 other starships. a flown heatshield you can touch beats telemetry every time.
3
6
45
4,158
@SpaceX Congratulations , bet you are feeling like proud Starship Man, Fucking Outstanding
You make me proud, Frugal Man
You make me proud, Frugal Man
5
1
38
4,170
@SpaceX S40 in the megabay is probably like “guys you’ll never guess what happened out there”
1
1
20
810
@SpaceX Can you reveal any long-term plans for her? 🙏🙏🙏
0
0
19
2,325
@SpaceX wait this is the first heatshield they get to take apart after a real reentry. 75 days of brine in porous tiles tho
1
0
11
2,043
@SpaceX Starship is the ultimate Space Marine's vehicle - by land, sea, air, and space!
0
0
13
821
