Watch SpaceX set a new record with its trusty Falcon 9 rocket

By Trevor Mogg Published December 8, 2025

A SpaceX Falcon 9 has launched and landed a record 32 times following a successful mission on Monday night.

The Falcon 9 first-stage booster — listed as B1067 — lifted off at 5:26 p.m. ET from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Shortly after deploying 29 Starlink internet satellites to low-Earth orbit, the Falcon 9’s first stage returned to Earth, making a perfect landing on the Just Read the Instructions droneship stationed in the Atlantic Ocean just off the coast of Florida.

Here’s some footage of the rocket making its record 32nd launch and landing.

The workhorse booster made its maiden flight in June 2021 and last flew on October 19, 2025.

It previously launched CRS-22, Crew-3, Turksat 5B, Crew-4, CRS-25, Eutelsat HOTBIRD 13G, SES O3B mPOWER-A, PSN SATRIA, Telkomsat Merah Putih 2, Galileo L13, Koreasat-6A, and 20 Starlink missions.

SpaceX has a growing number of boosters making multiple flights. The reusability system is at the heart of the spaceflight company’s strategy, enabling it to drastically cut the cost of launches compared to traditional rockets that can only be used once.

Taking what it’s learned from the Falcon 9 landings, SpaceX has also managed to land the first stage of its much larger and more powerful Starship rocket, though in that case a pair of giant mechanical arms secure the booster just above the ground.

Only Blue Origin has replicated SpaceX’s feat in landing an orbital-class rocket upright minutes after launch. The U.S. company started by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos just last month successfully landed the first stage of its New Glenn rocket following a failed attempt at the start of the year.

Others want to join the elite club, but nailing the technology is a challenge. Chinese firm LandSpace, for example, recently attempted to land the first stage of its reusable Zhuque‑3 rocket but the booster exploded upon its return instead of touching down safely.