SpaceX catches top of Starship rocket on return to Earth for first time
US company SpaceX has for the first time caught the upper part of its huge Starship rocket, known as the Ship, with mechanical arms as it returned to Earth. An attempt to catch the rocket's booster the previous day was aborted.
SpaceX, the US space company, on Saturday successfully caught the top part of its huge Starship rocket for the first time as it came back to Earth. Large crowds at the launch site in Texas cheered, and one commentator remarked: "Can you believe it?"
Starship is a two-stage rocket developed by SpaceX. The company had hoped to use mechanical arms on its launch tower, nicknamed chopsticks, to catch both the lower stage and the upper section. The approach means the rocket's parts return directly to the launch site.
Booster attempt aborted
The first attempt, to catch the rocket's booster, was called off a few minutes after launch on Friday. The booster was diverted to the ocean and burst into flames just above the sea.
Ship caught
The upper part, known as the Ship, returned to Earth a few minutes behind schedule, at around 15:27 local time (21:27 GMT) on Saturday. It was successfully caught.
The source does not give details of any further planned tests or flights.
