SpaceX conducted its boldest test flight yet on Sunday, October 13. The massive Starship rocket was successfully launched and returned to its launch pad in Texas, marking its fifth test flight.
For the first time, the booster was landed using giant metal arms, a new engineering feat that represents a major step forward in SpaceX’s mission to explore the moon and Mars.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) granted the launch license for Starship on Saturday after weeks of debate with SpaceX over licensing procedures and penalties related to the Falcon-9 rocket.
Reuters reported that the first-stage booster lifted off at sunrise from southern Texas, near the Mexico border, sending the second-stage Starship toward space.
At an altitude of approximately 70 kilometers, the booster and Starship separated, and the booster began its return to Earth.
During the final stages of descent, three of the booster’s 33 engines reignited, facilitating a controlled landing back on the launch tower it had taken off from just seven minutes earlier.
The 71-meter booster was guided toward the 121-meter tower using small rods below its forward fins and secured in place.
Elon Musk first introduced Starship in 2017. Earlier prototypes either crashed after launch or during their return, but the last flight in mid-June was the most successful, ending without an explosion.
Musk raised the stakes this time, successfully landing the booster back on the launch pad. Engineers and SpaceX executives described the day as a historic moment in space engineering.
Following the successful operation, Musk wrote on social media platform X, “The tower caught the rocket!”
SpaceX emphasized that the booster and launch tower must be completely stable and ready. Otherwise, like previous flights, the booster would have landed in the Gulf of Mexico. However, everything was set for a successful landing.
After separating from the booster, the sleek steel spacecraft on top continued its journey around Earth, targeting a controlled splashdown in the Indian Ocean.
SpaceX has significantly updated its software and redesigned the heat shield on Starship since the mid-June flight, where parts of the spacecraft separated, preventing a fully successful mission. These updates aim to improve the rocket’s performance for future missions.
NASA has already ordered two Starship rockets for lunar landings later this decade, and SpaceX plans to use Starship to transport people and equipment to the moon and eventually Mars, advancing humanity’s exploration of space.
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