A spacecraft successfully separated from its booster rocket during its 8:50 AM ET launch from Texas. As scheduled, the Super Heavy booster executed a landing burn and descended into the Gulf of Mexico.
The Starship returned to Earth following its prearranged route. Live footage showed a damaged flap igniting and starting to fall apart. Despite this, the spacecraft held together long enough for the engines to restart and perform a “soft landing” in the sea. “Starship made it to a safe landing in the ocean despite the loss of many tiles and a damaged flap,” tweeted Elon Musk.
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The two-stage, 394-foot system, consisting of the Super Heavy rocket and Starship spacecraft, is the most powerful launch vehicle ever created. Designed to be fully reusable, Starship is intended to carry up to 100 passengers, heavy loads of goods, and satellites while reducing the cost of space travel.
This launch builds on Starship’s three earlier test flights. The previous attempt in March was lost before it was supposed to splash down in the Indian Ocean, despite a successful launch. Although the craft broke apart upon reentry, it succeeded in several crucial maneuvers. Explosions occurred soon after launch in the first and second flight tests conducted last year, which were less successful.
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To enhance future launches, data from these tests have been used by SpaceX. Starship is scheduled to transport NASA astronauts to the Moon as part of the Artemis III mission.
