Sunday, October 13, 2024

SpaceX's Starship Super Heavy Booster Successfully Returned to Starbase on Its First Landing Attempt!

Booster 12 hangs from the first Orbital Launch Tower's mechazilla arms after the vehicle successfully flew back to Starbase following liftoff on Integrated Flight Test 5 seven minutes earlier...on October 13, 2024.
SpaceX

Early this morning, SpaceX began a new era of rocket reusability when its Starship Super Heavy vehicle—launching on Integrated Flight Test 5 (IFT-5)—successfully lifted off from Starbase in Texas...with Booster 12 flawlessly returning to Starbase's first Orbital Launch Tower and being grappled by the structure's mechazilla arms seven minutes later.

IFT-5 completely went off without a hitch following liftoff at 7:25 AM, Central Time (12:25 PM, UTC), with Booster 12 ready to be examined on the ground by engineers to see how its systems fared during the flight (and most likely get prepped for a second launch in the future). Ship 30 successfully reached its target landing zone in the Indian Ocean and splashed down over an hour after liftoff...before exploding minutes after impact. Ship 30 was never intended to be recovered by SpaceX after IFT-5.

With this fifth flight test triumphantly in the books, it remains to be seen when IFT-6 will occur. The Federal Aviation Administration granted SpaceX approval to conduct a sixth test whenever it wanted assuming that Ship 30 and Booster 12 performed as expected today. And performed as expected they did!

SpaceX's Starship Super Heavy rocket launches on Integrated Flight Test 5 from Starbase in Texas...on October 13, 2024.
SpaceX

SpaceX's Starship Super Heavy rocket launches on Integrated Flight Test 5 from Starbase in Texas...on October 13, 2024.
SpaceX

SpaceX's Starship Super Heavy rocket launches on Integrated Flight Test 5 from Starbase in Texas...on October 13, 2024.
SpaceX

SpaceX's Starship Super Heavy rocket launches on Integrated Flight Test 5 from Starbase in Texas...on October 13, 2024.
SpaceX

Booster 12 fires three of its Raptor 2 engines as it approaches Starbase's Orbital Launch Tower (not visible) for capture by the tower's mechazilla arms...on October 13, 2024.
SpaceX

Booster 12 fires three of its Raptor 2 engines as it approaches Starbase's Orbital Launch Tower for capture by the tower's mechazilla arms...on October 13, 2024.
SpaceX

Booster 12 fires three of its Raptor 2 engines as it approaches Starbase's first Orbital Launch Tower for capture by the tower's mechazilla arms...on October 13, 2024.
SpaceX

Posted by Richard Par at 5:35 PM
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