SpaceX’s Starship rocket survived reentry through Earth’s atmosphere on Thursday and splashed down in the Indian Ocean during its fourth test mission.
The two-stage spacecraft, consisting of the Starship cruise vessel mounted atop its towering Super Heavy rocket booster, broke apart during its last attempt in March to survive a blazingly hot reentry through Earth’s atmosphere.
But the craft survived its reentry on Thursday, as shown in a SpaceX livestream.
But the craft survived its reentry on Thursday, as shown in a SpaceX livestream.
The starship blasted off Thursday morning from the company’s Starbase launch site near Boca Chica Village on the Gulf Coast of Texas. It is the latest trial mission in the “test-to-failure” rocket development campaign of Elon Musk’s company.Watch Starship’s fourth flight test → https://t.co/bJFjLCiTbK https://t.co/SjpjscHoUB
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) June 6, 2024
Splashdown confirmed! Congratulations to the entire SpaceX team on an exciting fourth flight test of Starship!
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) June 6, 2024
The rocket system’s first stage, called Super Heavy, detached from the Starship upper stage three minutes into flight, dozens of miles above ground, sending the Starship on its way toward space.
Super Heavy headed back toward land and appeared to achieve a soft landing in the Gulf of Mexico. Starship, meanwhile, blasted its own engines to begin its trek around the globe toward the Indian Ocean, a roughly 70-minute trip.
Then, it began its return to Earth where it endured the intense heat of atmospheric reentry – the crucial point at which it failed in March.
Designed to be cheaper and more powerful than SpaceX’s workhorse Falcon 9 rocket, Starship – standing nearly 400 feet (122 meters) tall – is intended as the future of the company’s space transportation and exploration.
Super Heavy headed back toward land and appeared to achieve a soft landing in the Gulf of Mexico. Starship, meanwhile, blasted its own engines to begin its trek around the globe toward the Indian Ocean, a roughly 70-minute trip.
Then, it began its return to Earth where it endured the intense heat of atmospheric reentry – the crucial point at which it failed in March.
Designed to be cheaper and more powerful than SpaceX’s workhorse Falcon 9 rocket, Starship – standing nearly 400 feet (122 meters) tall – is intended as the future of the company’s space transportation and exploration.
Source: Reuters, TVP World
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