Starship captured by launch pad arms after orbital flight

SpaceX’s Starship spacecraft was caught in midair by mechanical arms on the launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Saturday. The retrieval marked the first time a Starship has been captured after returning from orbit. The spacecraft had lifted off from Texas 22 hours earlier.

The mission concluded with a partial success for the company. While the upper-stage spacecraft returned intact, the first-stage booster exploded shortly after Friday’s liftoff. SpaceX officials said the booster’s engines stopped firing too soon on the way back down. The guidance system detected the incorrect position and triggered an automatic descent into the Gulf of Mexico.

Kate Tice, a SpaceX representative, confirmed the booster failed to achieve the desired double catch. Wreckage from the booster remains in the Gulf, marked by buoys. Engineers are currently investigating the cause of the engine failure.

Despite the booster issue, the Starship upper stage performed as planned. The vehicle separated from its booster before the malfunction occurred. It reached an altitude of 165 miles and completed 14 laps around Earth. This exceeds the one to two laps achieved in the previous mission.

During its orbital pass, the Starship released 26 advanced Starlink satellites. Live video streams from the spacecraft showed views of Earth. SpaceX reported that the heat shield and other vital systems on the spacecraft functioned correctly.

The capture took place at SpaceX’s base near the U.S.-Mexican border, where the rocket launched on Friday. The 407-foot vehicle is the world’s largest and most powerful rocket. As it lowered itself upright at the launch pad, cameras tracked its movement. The spacecraft hung high above the ground, supported by the arms of the launch tower.

SpaceX commentator Dan Huot described the moment via audio feed. “Can you believe it?” Huot shouted. “Look at her! Baby, she’s back!” Elon Musk later climbed the launch tower to film the spacecraft with his phone. He posted a video on X, stating, “Looks great.”

NASA welcomed the successful retrieval of the upper stage. The space agency is funding Starship to land Artemis astronauts on the moon later this decade. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman posted on X that the event was “almost magic.” He added that the mission brings the agency “one step closer” to its lunar goals.

SpaceX plans to begin launching Starships from Kennedy Space Center in Florida within the next few months. This site will serve as the starting point for NASA’s next Artemis mission. That mission will skip the moon and remain in Earth orbit to practice docking procedures.

Artemis III astronauts will attempt to dock their capsule with both Starship and Blue Origin’s Blue Moon. The two companies will alternate delivering crews to the lunar surface. NASA targets 2028 for Artemis IV, which would be the first moon landing since the Apollo era.