SpaceX struggles to recover Starship upper stage
Starship flight 13 launched July 24 from Starbase, Texas, and the Super Heavy V3 booster suffered a partial engine ignition failure that caused a hard splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico, while the upper stage, Ship 40, made a controlled splashdown in the Indian Ocean and remained intact and afloat. SpaceX sent vessels including the Norwegian tugboats Normand Ranger and Skimmer Tide to tow the 171-foot V3 upper stage toward western Australia, but teams face challenging conditions and rough seas and Elon Musk warned recovery is "not looking good." If abandoned, engineers will lose a first-ever post-flight inspection opportunity, though they obtained close-up photos of heat shield and engines.
First intact Starship upper stage may be lost before inspection
Context
Starship flight 13 recently completed launch and splashdown. The upper stage remained intact and floated. Teams may either recover Ship 40 or abandon it, which would end the inspection chance.
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