SpaceX Catches Returning Starship With Launch Tower Robotic Arm in First-Ever Recovery

At a glance

SpaceX's Starship spacecraft came back from orbit and was caught in midair by a giant robotic arm on the launch tower. It is the first time a returning Starship has been caught this way. The spacecraft completed 14 orbits after launching about 22 hours earlier.

Key points

• SpaceX caught the returning Starship spacecraft with a large mechanical arm at the Starbase launch site in Texas.
• This was the 15th Starship test flight since 2023 and the second time it reached Earth orbit.
• The spacecraft released 26 Starlink satellites and orbited Earth 14 times.
• The Super Heavy booster failed to return, so it was steered into the Gulf of Mexico and destroyed.

Why it matters

Catching a spacecraft from orbit at the launch tower is a major step toward fully reusable rockets, which could lower launch costs.

Other coverage

• Ars Technica · With Starship catch, SpaceX still shows it can dazzle the world
• SBS 뉴스 · 지구 14바퀴 돌고 로봇 팔로…NASA 국장도 "거의 마법"
• 프리진경제 · 스페이스X, 대형 우주선 ‘스타십’ 로봇 팔 포획 사상 첫 성공…완전 재사용 로켓 시대 성큼

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