SpaceX aborts ‘chopstick’ catch of Starship rocket as Musk and Trump watch on
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Your support makes all the difference.SpaceX has aborted an attempt to catch its Starship rocket using a “chopsticks” system.
With SpaceX boss Elon Musk and President-elect Donald Trump watching on, Starship’s Super Heavy booster was instead forced to splash down in the Gulf of Mexico.
The failed attempt is a blow to Musk’s ambition to make Starship rapidly reusable in order to send crew and cargo to the Moon and Mars.
The unusual landing manoeuvre was successful once before on the previous Starship flight test in October, with SpaceX citing safety concerns for the decision to abort on Tuesday.
All other aspects of the latest Starship test flight have so far gone to plan, with a splash down atempt for the main craft in the Indian Ocean set to take place roughly 50 minutes after it lifted off from SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas.
More to follow.
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