For the first time, SpaceX’s Starship makes a ‘soft landing’ in the Indian Ocean | Watch

The most powerful rocket ever launched from the company’s Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, at 7:50 a.m. (1250 GMT). It then entered orbit and flew halfway around the world. The journey lasted about an hour and five minutes.

The rocket re-entered Earth’s atmosphere and landed successfully in the Indian Ocean as planned during its fourth test mission after launching from South Texas.

SpaceX posted on Thursday, “Splashdown is confirmed! Congratulations to the entire SpaceX team on Starship’s exciting fourth flight test!” Meanwhile, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk posted, “Despite the loss of several tiles and a damaged flap, Starship made a soft landing in the ocean!”

“If Starship succeeds in re-entering, we will collect valuable data on the vehicle as it travels at hypersonic speeds, or more than 5 times the speed of sound,” the company previously said.

Thursday’s flight was a significant milestone for SpaceX’s Starship, as it was destroyed in fire on three previous attempts. It was the fourth launch of the world’s largest and most powerful rocket, standing nearly 400 feet (121 meters) tall.

“This time the rocket and spacecraft achieved a controlled descent, making the one-hour flight the longest and most successful ever,” the Associated Press news agency reported.

SpaceX had previously said that in its fourth test, the Starship would fly on the same trajectory as the previous flight test, with the ship’s targeted splashdown in the Indian Ocean. “The goal of Starship’s fourth flight will be to bring us closer to the increasingly reusable future on the horizon,” it said.

Dramatic video captured by one of the spacecraft’s cameras showed sparks and debris flying as it landed over the Indian Ocean, northwest of Australia, although it succeeded in its goal of re-entering the atmosphere, news agency AFP reported.

During the last test in March, the spacecraft managed to fly for 49 minutes before it was lost as it entered the atmosphere at a speed of about 27,000 kilometers per hour (about 17,000 miles per hour). SpaceX has made several software and hardware upgrades since then.

On Thursday, it also successfully performed the first soft splashdown for a first-stage booster called Super Heavy in the Gulf of Mexico, which was greeted with loud applause from engineers in the mission control room in Hawthorne, California.

“Congratulations to SpaceX on the successful test flight of Starship this morning!” NASA chief Bill Nelson wrote on X. “We are another step closer to returning humanity to the Moon through #Artemis – then moving on to Mars.”

About Starship and Super Heavy boosters

Designed to eventually be fully reusable, Starship stands 397 feet (121 meters) tall with both stages combined — 90 feet taller than the Statue of Liberty. Its Super Heavy booster generates 16.7 million pounds (74.3 meganewtons) of thrust, about twice as powerful as the Saturn V rocket used during the Apollo missions — though later versions must be more powerful still.

(with inputs from agencies)

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Published: June 06, 2024, 09:36 PM IST