SpaceX hit a major milestone as it caught the returning Starship booster with giant metallic arms, while the spacecraft made a targeted splashdown.
SpaceX has scripted history with the fifth test of its massive Starship rocket system. The giant rocket launched from the Starbase site in South Texas earlier today, and following a brief trip to space, the reusable spacecraft made a splashdown in the Indian Ocean.
But the more remarkable feat was the successful capture of the Super Heavy booster, a fully reusable first stage that stands at a towering 71 meters and draws power from 33 Raptor engines. Up till now, the boosters have splashed into the water (or got damaged), but this time, SpaceX managed to capture it using giant mechanical arms.
For the first time, the Elon Musk-led company captured the Starship booster by executing what it calls the “chopstick” maneuver. An astonishing feat in itself, the “mechazilla” system caught the hulking first-stage kit seven minutes after its launch as it slowly descended into the metallic arm’s embrace.
