Starship reaches orbit for the first time ever but returns home early

UPDATE: Sep. 28, 2026, 11:46 a.m. EDT Starship splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Hawaii at about 11 a.m. CT on Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. SpaceX officials have not yet said why controllers decided to bring the ship home early after a successful orbital insertion maneuver, a first for Starship. The test was supposed to last about 10 hours to see the ship complete six full orbits around Earth. Instead, the mission ran just three hours.SpaceX's Starship reached orbit for the first t