Starship launch as it happened: SpaceX aborts ‘chopstick’ catch of world’s biggest rocket
Watch a live stream of today’s SpaceX launch in Texas at the top of the blog below
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Your support makes all the difference.SpaceX aborted an attempt to catch its Starship rocket on Tuesday in a blow to Elon Musk’s Mars ambitions.
The sixth Starship flight test saw SpaceX once again attempt to catch the rocket’s Super Heavy booster using “chopstick” arms at the launch tower at the company’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas.
Measuring 120-metres-tall, Starship is the biggest rocket ever built, capable of carrying up to 100 people. SpaceX hopes to use it to ferry crew and cargo across the solar system, aiming to establish a permanent human colony on Mars by 2050.
Tuesday’s launch was uncrewed, with the failed catch of the booster followed by a successful splashdown of the upper stage Starship rocket in the Indian Ocean. Other objectives for the mission were also completed, including a first in-space burn using a single Raptor engine.
The 30-minute launch window opened at 4pm local time (10pm GMT), with a live stream broadcast beginning 40 minutes before lift-off.
SpaceX says all systems and weather look good for launch
SpaceX has shared some photos of Starship on the launchpad at its Starbase facility in Texas. In a post on X, the firm said that everything is looking good for today’s flight test.
One image shows the world’s biggest rocket silhouetted against the Moon, where it could be heading as early as 2026. SpaceX has a multi-billion dollar contract with Nasa to deliver crew and cargo to the lunar surface as part of its Artemis program. If successful, it will be the first time astronauts have stepped foot on the Moon in more than 50 years.
All systems and weather are looking good for today's flight test of Starship.
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) November 19, 2024
The live launch webcast on @X will go live ~40 minutes before liftoff, which is targeted for 4:00 p.m. CT → https://t.co/1xyLhQKE2N pic.twitter.com/lqy2CsL4vz
Hello and welcome...
to The Independent’s live coverage of SpaceX’s latest attempt to launch and land the biggest rocket ever built.
The Starship rocket is currently stacked atop its Super Heavy booster at SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas.
A 30-minute launch window will open at 4pm local time (10pm GMT), with all systems and weather forecasts looking good for lift off.
We’ll have all the latest news and updates right here.
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