SpaceX's Starship 40 rocket has left Christmas Island after being retrieved from waters off Western Australia's northern coast, where it spent 24 days at sea before being towed to the island. The rocket is headed for the US on a journey that will take several weeks, covering approximately 20,000 kilometers. According to Professor Stefan Williams of the University of Sydney, the cost of the retrieval operation could be substantial, with daily costs ranging from $50,000 to $100,000. Local residents on Christmas Island have been fascinated by the rocket's presence and are welcoming its departure as it returns home to the Starbase development facility in Texas.
Written by the local model on 2026-08-28,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
SpaceX's Starship 40 rocket, which splashed down in the Indian Ocean on July 24, has completed its journey to Christmas Island after spending 24 days at sea. The rocket was then towed by the heavy-duty transport vessel Forte, arriving on the island last Sunday night, and is now being transported back to the US, specifically to the Starbase rocket development facility in Texas. This journey of approximately 20,000 kilometers will take several weeks to complete. According to University of Sydney Professor Stefan Williams, the cost of retrieving the rocket could add up quickly, potentially ranging from $50,000 to $100,000 per day. The retrieval operation is expected to provide valuable information for future launches, as SpaceX teams will analyse Starship 40 upon its return.
Written for “SpaceX Rocket Recovery Efforts” on 2026-08-31,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
This article does not take a side on a contested political
question, so it has no leaning score. That is an
answer rather than a gap: a match report or a rescue can be warmly
or critically written without being left or right, and scoring it
anyway is how approval of a subject gets recorded as a political
position.
No political leaning scored for article 3141 · logged 2026-08-28
In short:
SpaceX's Starship 40 has left Christmas Island and is heading for the US.
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Starship → leave → US
The rocket spent 24 days at sea before being towed to the remote territory.
What's next?
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What → spend → territory
SpaceX teams will analyse Starship 40 and hope to gain valuable information to inform future launches.
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teams → analyse → launches
SpaceX's Starship 40 rocket has begun the long journey home after being retrieved from waters off Christmas Island.
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rocket → begin → Island
Carrying the precious cargo, heavy duty transport vessel Forte departed the island on Friday afternoon, headed for the United States.
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Forte → carry → States
The rocket splashed down in the Indian Ocean on July 24, and spent just over three weeks at sea before being towed to Christmas Island, about 1,500 kilometres off Western Australia's northern coast.
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rocket → splash → coast
The Forte arrived in Flying Fish Cove last Sunday night, with the delicate operation to retrieve the rocket getting underway on Tuesday.
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operation → arrive → Tuesday
The vessel's ballast tank was filled with water to change the buoyancy of the ship, lowering its deck below the surface.
Local stevedores assisted in the operation to position the rocket over the Forte before the vessel refloated, lifting the SpaceX cargo out of the water for the first time in more than a month.
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vessel → fill → month
Locals farewell SpaceX rocket
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Locals → farewell → rocket
The Christmas Island community has been captivated by the rocket, which sheltered just off the coast.
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which → captivate → coast
Local school students followed the Starship's movements, and social media feeds were flooded with images of the rocket, with a local dive company offering 'rocket trips'.
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company → follow → trips
A local bar even named a cocktail Rocket Fuel in honour of the unexpected arrival, with crew members involved in the retrieval leaving a message on its wall.
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members → name → wall
Local tourism operator Lisa Preston has been hosting 30 birdwatchers for the island's annual Bird Week, who have been excited to witness the retrieval operation.
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who → host → operation
Ms Preston said it had been an amazing journey, and the Christmas Island community enjoyed being in the global spotlight.
"The decision being made to tow the rocket here when there's thousands of kilometres of coastline south of us, to be able to fulfil that role, to protect it whilst they did what they needed to do … it shows we've got alternate uses for positive things."
Expensive exercise
The journey of about 20,000 kilometres back to the Starbase rocket development facility in Texas is expected to take several weeks.
University of Sydney Professor of Marine Robotics Stefan Williams said the cost of the retrieval operation would add up quickly.
"We operate pretty regularly on research vessels which can cost $50,000 to $100,000 a day to operate, these are even bigger vessels," he said.
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he → say → 100,000
"There's a significant cost involved, both in rescue operations and also in the transport of the equipment from where it's been retrieved, in this case back to the home base in the US."
Professor Williams said semi-submersible vessels like the Forte were quite common, but using such a large ship was a heavy-duty operation.
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using → be → ship
"They're used extensively in the offshore industry in oil and gas and increasingly in offshore wind, anywhere you need large bits of equipment to be moved around," he said.
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he → use → equipment
The 52-metre-long rocket is the first SpaceX upper stage spacecraft to survive a space flight intact and could provide a wealth of information for engineers.
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rocket → survive → engineers
One of the goals for the space company is developing a rocket that can return safely to its launch site and be used again.
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that → develop → site
Astronomer Matt Woods says SpaceX's program is helping to make space exploration more affordable.
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exploration → say → ?
"Just off the back of the first stage of Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy [rockets], it's dropped the price down on rockets dramatically," he said.
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he → drop → rockets
"It's amazing what you can do and how cheap it is for companies and universities to put the satellites up there and continue doing their study of the universe."
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companies → do → universe