SpaceX completes 15th Starship flight test, spacecraft caught by launch tower for 1st time

详细摘要

LOS ANGELES -- SpaceX's Starship spacecraft returned to its launch site on Saturday and was caught by the launch tower's mechanical arms, completing Starship's 15th flight test.…

LOS ANGELES -- SpaceX's Starship spacecraft returned to its launch site on Saturday and was caught by the launch tower's mechanical arms, completing Starship's 15th flight test.

It marked the first time a Starship spacecraft had been caught by the launch tower's mechanical arms upon returning to the launch site.

The giant rocket lifted off from SpaceX's Starbase facility in the US state of Texas on Friday afternoon. After about 22 and a half hours, the spacecraft returned to the launch site at about 3:20 pm Central Time.

The mission was designed to attempt the first-ever catch of both the Super Heavy booster and the Starship spacecraft by the launch tower's mechanical arms during a single flight.

However, after stage separation, the booster was diverted from its planned return to the launch site and made an offshore splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico.

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