news.today
Hello · Register today | LoginHello · My Account[—] [33]
Tech

SpaceX catches Starship upper stage from orbit for first time

Summarised from 16 outlets · 29 reports · Updated 15 Nov, 07:26 · Archive

SpaceX successfully caught the upper stage of its Starship rocket with mechanical arms on Saturday after it returned from orbit, though the booster exploded over the Gulf of Mexico on Friday.

SpaceX launched its Starship rocket on its 15th test flight from its facility in South Texas on Friday, aiming to achieve a historic double catch of both the booster and upper stage using mechanical arms nicknamed 'chopsticks'. The plan was the most ambitious to date for the company's efforts to develop a fully reusable rocket system.

Minutes after lift-off, SpaceX detected a problem with the Super Heavy booster's guidance, navigation and control system. The booster was not in the correct position to proceed with the catch. SpaceX aborted the recovery and diverted the booster to an offshore splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico, where it exploded before hitting the water. SpaceX commentator Kate Tice said the booster's engines stopped firing too soon. Engineers have not yet determined the root cause of the failure.

Despite the setback with the booster, the upper stage continued its trajectory into orbit. Shortly after reaching space, it deployed 26 of SpaceX's newest Starlink v3 satellites, adding to the company's constellation of over 11,000 satellites in low Earth orbit. The spacecraft then orbited Earth 14 times at an altitude of approximately 170 miles at speeds exceeding 17,000 miles per hour.

After more than 22 hours in space, the Starship upper stage made its return to Earth on Saturday. The spacecraft descended through the clouds, flipped to a vertical position by igniting three of its Raptor engines, and slowly lowered itself onto the mechanical arms of the launch tower at Starbase. The catch was executed with narrow margins, as only small nubs on either side of the rocket provided purchase on the arms. SpaceX commentator Dan Huot shouted 'Can you believe it?' as crowds at the launch site cheered.

The successful capture marks a major milestone in SpaceX's decadelong effort to develop a fully reusable rocket system. SpaceX has previously caught booster rockets three times, but this was the first recovery of the upper stage, or Starship itself, from orbit. The feat demonstrates the technical feasibility of recovering the most critical part of the vehicle for reuse.

NASA welcomed the achievement. The US space agency is paying billions of dollars for Starship to land Artemis astronauts on the Moon later this decade and help build a permanent lunar base. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman called the catch 'almost magic'. Elon Musk, SpaceX's founder and chief executive, also praised the team on social media.

SpaceX says the successful catch demonstrates Starship's full reusability, which is crucial for achieving the rapid, low-cost launch rates necessary for the company's ambitions to support its Starlink satellite internet service, carry cargo and crew to the Moon, and eventually enable human missions to Mars. Chief executive Musk has previously said SpaceX plans to increase test flight cadence to weekly, then twice-weekly schedules.

SpaceX catches Starship upper stage from orbit for first time
Image: The Mirror

Comments (0)

How it is being reported

In this story: SpaceX · Elon Musk · Starbase · Texas · Gulf of Mexico · NASA · Starlink · Moon

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem · Corrections log