SpaceX released a new video Friday evening showing Starship from an angle captured by its own Starlink satellites, watching the rocket drift away in orbit.
What Happened
The 65-second clip, posted on X, stitches together footage from four cameras mounted on a single Starlink V3 satellite. It opens with a close view of Starship’s 171-foot upper stage still catching sunlight, then pulls back as the two spacecraft separate.
The footage comes from Starship’s 13th flight test, which launched July 24 from Starbase after a scrubbed attempt and an abort caused by an engine issue the week before. When Flight 13 finally flew, it carried the first batch of functional Starlink V3 satellites Starship has ever deployed — twenty of them, with six equipped with cameras meant to scan the ship’s heat shield during reentry.
Flight 13 checked most of its boxes. Starship deployed all 20 satellites, relit a Raptor engine in space, and splashed down softly in the Indian Ocean off Western Australia.
Why It Matters
The footage marks the first time SpaceX’s own cargo has filmed a Starship upper stage in orbit, offering a new vantage point for inspecting vehicle health. The mission also demonstrated the V3 satellite deployment capability that underpins Musk’s longer-term plan: a Starlink V3 constellation of 100,000 satellites, according to a recent FCC filing, with Starship as the only vehicle capable of launching them at the required volume.
Each Starship flight is designed to carry up to 60 V3 satellites once the vehicle reaches routine service, well beyond what Falcon 9 can deliver in a single mission. That capacity positions Starship as central to SpaceX’s satellite expansion plans.
The Bottom Line
Starship Flight 13 successfully deployed its first functional Starlink V3 batch and captured unprecedented self-filmed orbital footage. Next, the vehicle is expected to attempt catching the ship itself with the launch tower’s mechanical arms — a maneuver SpaceX has so far reserved for the Super Heavy booster.