SpaceX Super Heavy rocket caught by ‘chopsticks’ arms

Lifting off from Boca Chica, Texas yesterday (October 13, 2024) Starship’s fifth flight test sought to land the mission’s Super Heavy first-stage rocket in the so-called chopstick arms of Mechazilla, the 400 ft (122m) launch and catch tower at Starbase. It also sought to test the new heat shield configuration of the Starship spacecraft that splashed down in the Indian Ocean.

SpaceX’s Starship – made up of the company’s Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy rocket - is designed ‘to carry crew and cargo to Earth orbit, the Moon, Mars and beyond’. Described as being the world’s most powerful launch vehicle, it can carry up to 150 metric tonnes fully reusable and 250 metric tonnes expendable.

Super Heavy is powered by 33 Raptor engines (13 in the centre and the remaining 20 around the perimeter of the booster’s aft end) using sub-cooled liquid methane (CH4) and liquid oxygen (LOX). According to SpaceX, Starship is powered by six engines, three Raptor engines, and three Raptor Vacuum (RVac) engines, which are designed for use in the vacuum of space.