SpaceX's fourth Starship test flight successfully completes re-entry, splashdown

June 6 (UPI) -- SpaceX's massive Starship made it through re-entry and the ship's first landing burn, taking another step in its fourth test flight.

The spacecraft splashed down in the Indian Ocean after taking off from Texas about an hour earlier.

It appeared to surpass the third test run, where the Starship broke up during re-entry. NASA is counting on SpaceX to use the Starship for future Moon and Mars trips.

After splashdown, It was unclear how much of the ship survived the fiery re-entry. One camera SpaceX was monitoring cracked and became partially covered with debris as the Starship returned to Earth, to applauds from the SpaceX headquarters.

SpaceX will need some time to gather data collected from the flight but it appeared to be a clear advancement in the evolution of the Starship.

"Despite the loss of many titles and a damaged flap, Starship made it all the way to a soft landing in the ocean," SpaceX founder Elon Musk said on X. "Congratulations SpaceX team on an epic achievement."

Starship launched at the SpaceX Starbase near Boca Chica Beach in Texas on Thursday morning, where all the test flights have taken off from. The first two test flights, using a new Super Heavy rocket booster with 33 Raptor engines ended with the rocket failing.

The first launch was criticized because it caused significant damage to the launch pad, with debris left outside the testing area.

The Federal Aviation Administration grounded Starship and demanded SpaceX conduct 63 corrective actions that included a redesign of hardware to prevent leaks and fires, fortifying the launch pad, testing safety systems, and applying other charge-control practices.