Space travel: SpaceX captures launch stage for the first time after rocket launch

The private space company SpaceX has succeeded in recovering a rocket stage for the first time. The unmanned rocket called Starship had previously taken off from the SpaceX spaceport in the US state of Texas for a test flight lasting around an hour, as live images show.

A few minutes later, the 71-meter-long launch stage landed back on the ramp, where it was captured by huge metal arms. “This is a day for the engineering history books,” said Kate Tice at SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne.

Starship explodes during initial tests

During a first test in April 2023, the entire rocket system exploded after just a few minutes. During a second test in November 2023, the two rocket stages separated and the upper one continued to fly, but shortly afterwards both exploded separately.

During a third test in March, the Starship reached space for the first time, but was also unable to complete the flight as hoped. During a fourth test flight in June, the Starship made a controlled landing for the first time, but it didn’t go quite as hoped. Now everything seems to have worked on the fifth test run. The capsule, which was separated from the launch stage, landed in a controlled manner in the Indian Ocean around an hour later as planned.

Reusable rocket system

With a total height of around 120 meters, the Starship is the largest rocket system ever built in space history and is even larger than the Statue of Liberty in New York. It consists of two parts: the approximately 70 meter long lower booster called Super Heavy and the approximately 50 meter long upper stage, also called Starship. The system is designed so that parts of it can be reused after returning to Earth.

SpaceX intends to use it to transport people and supplies to the Moon and ultimately to Mars. The US space agency NASA has ordered two models to send astronauts to the moon this decade. SpaceX is a private space company founded by tech billionaire Elon Musk.