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SpaceX achieves orbit with Starship Flight 14 before cutting test mission short

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FOX Local
Texas
Updated September 28, 2026 7:17 AM CDT Published September 28, 2026 5:00 AM CDT
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BOCA CHICA BEACH, TEXAS - SEPTEMBER 28: SpaceX Starship Flight 14 launches from its launch pad at Boca Chica Beach on September 28, 2026 in Boca Chica Beach, Texas. The first-ever orbital launch attempt's objective for Flight 14 is to deliver Starlin

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The Brief

    • SpaceX's Starship reached orbit for the first time on Monday and successfully deployed 26 next-generation Starlink satellites.
    • Flight controllers ended the test early after an engine prematurely shut down during ascent, opting for a splashdown near Hawaii after three hours instead of six full orbits.
    • The specific reason for cutting the flight short remains under review as SpaceX evaluates data for NASA's Artemis lunar program.

BOCA CHICA, Texas - SpaceX successfully launched its massive Starship into orbit for the first time Monday, deploying advanced Starlink satellites before flight controllers opted to cut the test flight short.

SpaceX launch

Instead of a planned 10-hour, six-lap mission, the 407-foot (124-meter) rocket was redirected for an earlier reentry and Pacific splashdown north of Hawaii, roughly three hours after liftoff from Texas, though no specific reason was immediately provided. 

The first-stage booster successfully dropped into the Gulf of Mexico minutes after liftoff, as planned.

Dig deeper:

The launch marked Starship's 14th full-scale test flight from SpaceX's facility at the southern tip of Texas over the past three years. Unlike previous flights that ventured only as far as the Indian Ocean, this mission was designed to circle the globe six times from an altitude of 170 miles (275 kilometers) over a span of nearly 10 hours, concluding with a planned splashdown in the Pacific Ocean near Chile.

The backstory:

SpaceX has been pressing hard to certify Starship for orbital flight as a vital step toward future moon and Mars travel. NASA's Artemis III mission is slated as soon as next summer, featuring a complex orbital docking exercise between an Orion capsule and lunar landers from both SpaceX and Jeff Bezos' Blue Moon. Subsequent missions, including Artemis IV currently targeted for no sooner than 2028, will see astronauts land on the moon using whichever billionaire's lander is ready first.

Musk originally developed Starship to eventually carry settlers to Mars, but near-term plans focus on utilizing the fully reusable, 407-foot (124-meter) vehicle to haul massive payloads of satellites into orbit, eventually phasing out the company's Falcon 9 rockets.

The Source: Information in this article is from SpaceX.

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