Elon Musk shares stunning video of SpaceX starship's rare vertical water landing

Elon Musk has once again captivated space enthusiasts by sharing a breathtaking video on X (formerly Twitter) of SpaceX's Starship upper stage completing a rare vertical water landing. This footage showcases a critical step in the spacecraft’s journey toward achieving reusability.

This is a real video of a past @SpaceX Starship water landing.

Trying again tomorrow.

We need to perfect ship reentry at extreme temperatures before attempting to catch the ship with the tower arms, like the booster.

pic.twitter.com/tss9Lb4fWr

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 2, 2025

In his post, Musk emphasized the importance of perfecting reentry before advancing to more complex recovery techniques. "We need to perfect ship reentry at extreme temperatures," he wrote, noting that this must be done before attempting the innovative tower-arm catch. Currently, the Super Heavy booster employs this technique for landings.

Looking Ahead: Starship’s Next Test Flight

The upcoming test flight, set to take place just six weeks after the Starship's previous mission ended in a mid-air explosion over the Atlantic, comes with several enhancements. SpaceX has implemented hardware and operational upgrades to improve the rocket’s performance and reliability.

This flight will mark multiple milestones for Starship, including its first payload deployment and reentry experiments. Moreover, SpaceX plans to attempt the groundbreaking maneuver of catching the returning Super Heavy booster using the launch tower’s “chopsticks,” a method that could revolutionize reusable rocket technology.

Key Upgrades and Enhancements to Starship

After investigating the previous mission’s failure, SpaceX has made significant improvements to the Starship’s design and operational procedures. The enhancements include:

Redesigned forward flaps to improve heat resistance and mechanical functionality.

A 25% increase in propellant capacity, allowing for longer missions.

An upgraded avionics system designed to support advanced tasks such as in-orbit refueling and precise landings.

SpaceX is fully aware of the risks associated with test flights but stresses that each mission provides invaluable data to speed up Starship’s development. "Frequent testing enables us to learn quickly and make improvements, bringing Starship closer to becoming a fully operational, rapidly reusable spacecraft," the company stated.

As SpaceX continues refining its spacecraft, the next test flight could provide crucial insights into the future of space travel and reusable rocket technology.