SpaceX Achieved What NASA and China Couldn't for Decades! 2026 even Crazier…

[music] Hey everyone, it's Kevin and this is Great SpaceX. The year 2025 was both relentless and remarkable for SpaceX. Amid constant pressure and unprecedented operational demands, the team delivered a stream of achievements that in some areas rival what entire national space programs may take decades to accomplish. Each success built upon the last, reinforcing SpaceX's position at the forefront of the global space industry. Now all eyes turn to 2026. Major milestones are approaching and the groundwork laid in 2025 has set the stage for progress on an even larger scale. In this episode, we look back at everything SpaceX accomplished throughout 2025 and examine the bold objectives that will define the road ahead. For clarity and ease of understanding, I will divide these achievements by SpaceX system. Throughout the year, milestones have been set continuously, which makes presenting them strictly along a timeline difficult to follow and even harder to remember. After watching this episode, be sure to let me know which achievement impressed you the most and what you are most excited to see from SpaceX next year. With that said, let's begin with Starship. First, we need to talk about the numbers. In 2025, despite facing a wide range of technical, operational, and regulatory challenges, SpaceX successfully launched five Starship test flights. This represents a clear improvement over the two flights conducted in 2023 and the four flights completed in 2024. Achieving this cadence required more than simply clearing regulatory hurdles or streamlining procedures. It also depended on continuous improvements in flight performance, data collection, and post-flight analysis. With this upward trend firmly established, SpaceX is positioning itself for a higher launch frequency in the coming years. This capability will be essential in 2026, a year in which the company must accomplish several critical objectives tied to both commercial and national priorities. Let's now examine these developments in greater detail. Following the successful catch of the Superheavy booster during flight 5 in 2024 and the subsequent miss during flight 6, it was clear that SpaceX was determined to demonstrate that this capability was repeatable. The company understood that catching the booster with the launch tower arms was not a novelty. It was a requirement for rapid reuse and long-term operational viability. That determination paid off. In 2025, SpaceX transitioned Starship flights to the V2 configuration, while the Superheavy booster remained largely based on the V1 design. As a result, the challenge of booster recovery was more manageable than the challenges faced by the ship itself. Even so, execution still mattered. During two consecutive missions, Flight 7 and 8, both Superheavy boosters were successfully caught by the Mechazilla arms. This occurred despite persistent issues with the ship during both flights. More importantly, these booster recoveries showed a marked improvement over flight 5. The boosters returned in visibly better condition and sustained no major structural damage. This demonstrated a high level of precision control and system maturity. These successful recoveries form a critical foundation for future goals, including the far more complex objective of catching the ship itself. As mentioned earlier, the first V2 flights were not kind to the ship. Across three consecutive missions, the ship experienced serious issues that led to loss of control and early termination of flight. These setbacks raised legitimate concerns about whether the upgrades introduced with V2 were delivering the expected improvements. However, SpaceX did what it has always done in such moments. The team analyzed the failures, implemented continuous upgrades, and returned to flight with revised hardware and software. Those efforts eventually produced results. In the final two Starship flights of the year, the ship successfully overcame many of the earlier challenges. It completed controlled atmospheric entry and returned to splashdown in the ocean. While problems remained, including heat shield oxidation. These flights were widely considered a strong foundation for the future V3 design and the eventual goal of ship recovery. Beyond simple survival, these flights demonstrated meaningful progress. On the Superheavy side, SpaceX demonstrated partial engine reuse, most notably with Raptor Pi 314. This marked an important step toward true booster reusability. Additional demonstrations included active flip maneuvers, landings conducted at higher angles of attack, and landings performed with fewer engines firing. Each of these tests expanded the operational envelope, and provided valuable data for future missions. For the ship, SpaceX continued aggressive stress testing of the heat shield by intentionally removing tiles. A new metallic material was also tested as part of the thermal protection system. However, due to oxidation issues, this approach is unlikely to be pursued further. At the same time, the company began applying the so-called crunch wrap technique, which improves tile attachment and durability during re-entry. When discussing the ship, it's also essential to highlight one of the most important accomplishments of these later flights. During both missions, Starship successfully deployed simulated payloads while in space. This occurred twice in a row, conclusively demonstrating the vehicle's ability to carry and deploy payloads in orbit. This capability is fundamental to Starship's role as a launch vehicle and will serve as the basis for deploying real payloads beginning next year. In addition, SpaceX successfully demonstrated inspace engine relight capability. This achievement is a critical prerequisite for future objectives, including orbital insertion, return to Starbase, onorbit refueling, and deep space missions. Progress was not limited to flight operations alone. Ground infrastructure and production systems also saw remarkable achievements throughout the year. One of the most notable examples was SpaceX's recovery from the S36 and B18 incidents. The damage sustained at the Massie test site was unexpected and severe. Many observers believed these setbacks would delay Starship operations for months. Instead, SpaceX executed a rapid and decisive recovery. Following the mid-year incident, the company replaced the affected ship and proceeded to launch Flight 7 in August. That mission was not only timely, but also successful. After the B-18 incident, SpaceX demonstrated extraordinary resilience by producing B19 at an unprecedented pace, securing the schedule for flight 12. This production performance deserves special emphasis. After the B18 failure, many analysts, including us at Great SpaceX, expected a lengthy delay. Instead, SpaceX completed the turnaround in just 28 days. 28 days. That is a record pace for Superheavy production and for the Starship program as a whole. This achievement resolved one of the most critical bottlenecks SpaceX faced during its most challenging period of the year. Looking forward, the production system is set to expand even further. The Gigabay facility is under construction and Starfactory is expected to ramp up output significantly. These additions will enable SpaceX to produce a large number of prototypes to support the ambitious test cadence planned for next year. Beyond Starship itself, progress is also evident across supporting systems. At the Massie test site, damage from earlier incidents prompted upgrades that will help support more robust V3 testing. At the launch site, pad 2 is nearing operational readiness while pad 1 is undergoing significant conversions. In Florida, SpaceX continues working on modifying launch complex 39A. In addition, the company has acquired launch complex 37 and Starship operations there have received official approval from the Air Force. This represents a major expansion of Starship's operational footprint. Taken together, these accomplishments represent a year of meaningful progress for Starship. They provide SpaceX with confidence and momentum as it continues to push forward even in the face of extraordinary technical challenges. Do you believe this has been a successful year for the world's most powerful rocket? Let me know with a yes or a no in the comment section down below. Then don't forget to like the video and subscribe to continue following SpaceX's development journey. Now, let's move on to SpaceX's longstanding workhorse, the Falcon rocket family. The most notable disappointment for this system in 2025 was the absence of Falcon Heavy launches. Still, with several high-profile missions scheduled in the coming years, there's no indication that Falcon Heavy is approaching retirement. In its absence, Falcon 9 once again carried the weight of SpaceX's launch operations. After completing 132 missions the previous year, Falcon 9 shattered its own record in 2025 with more than 165 launches. While the ambitious target of 170 flights was narrowly missed, the results will exceed the performance of every other launch vehicle worldwide. Falcon 9 has now claimed the title of most launched rocket in the year for multiple consecutive years. This record reflects the relentless operational tempo maintained by SpaceX. Three active launchpads supported an almost continuous launch cadence while overall system reliability improved compared to 2024. Fewer anomalies were recorded and each issue that did arise was quickly analyzed and folded back into system refinements, reinforcing SpaceX's culture of rapid iteration and continuous improvement. Reuse milestones advanced significantly as well. Booster B1067 led the way, completing its 32nd launch and landing, including eight flights in 2025 alone. At this pace, the once unthinkable 40 flight milestone now appears achievable next year. Other boosters also set new reuse records, driving down costs and more importantly reducing turnaround time to support an even higher launch rate. While not every internal objective was met, Falcon 9 delivered an unequivocally successful year and remains positioned for even greater achievements ahead. That being said, in 2025, Dragon's greatest achievement was reliability. While crew and cargo programs worldwide struggled with delays and technical failures, Dragon delivered seven flawless missions. Five crude, including FRAM 2, an Axiom mission, and three NASA rotations, and two cargo resupply flights. This consistency kept ISS operations uninterrupted at a time when alternatives faltered. Starlininer remained delayed. Dreamchaser slipped toward late 2026. Signis faced mid-year issues. Russia dealt with pad constraints and China's Shenzha program encountered debris related disruptions. Against this backdrop, Dragon became a critical stabilizing force for NASA with indications that its flight rate may increase to offset delays elsewhere. Starlink also advanced rapidly, enabled by a higher Falcon 9 launch cadence. SpaceX surpassed 10,000 Starlink launches with over 9,000 satellites operational. Expanded coverage reached remote and underserved regions while the system continued to prove its value during disasters and emergencies. Subscriber growth followed, passing 8 million and then 9 million by year's end. SpaceX is now targeting 12,000 satellites in orbit next year with Starlink V3 expected to enter service as Starship begins supporting deployments. Beyond connectivity, Starlink remains essential to SpaceX's financial strength. Its revenue allows the company to fund multiple largecale programs simultaneously and reinvest aggressively, particularly in Starship development. Across all systems, SpaceX achieved in 2025 what many organizations struggled to accomplish over decades. These results underscore the company's growing lead and operational maturity. With Starship at the center of its ambitions and major competitive phases approaching in 2027, 2026 stands as a pivotal year of acceleration. SpaceX is moving into it at full speed. And with that, folks, this has been Kevin with Great SpaceX. Don't forget to like the video and subscribe if you haven't already to stay up to date with yours truly on the latest milestones in SpaceX's journey. Thank you so much for watching and always remember, curiosity, imagination, and inspiration will follow you so long as you keep looking up.