SpaceX manages to recover the propellant of its Starship megarocket in flight

Opportunity for success

“SpaceX engineers spent years preparing for the capture attempt,” the company wrote before the launch.

“Tens of thousands of hours” were dedicated to “installing the infrastructure necessary to maximize our chances of success,” it added.

For its part, Starship will continue its flight until landing in the Indian Ocean. The first time it successfully landed in the Indian Ocean was during a test flight four months ago.

Images transmitted live by the spacecraft’s cameras showed a layer of orange plasma upon its return from space, due to friction with the atmosphere. The pieces had come loose due to the pressure.

SpaceX has since stated that it conducted a “complete heat shield overhaul” of the ship, using “next-generation” tiles.

Controversies

SpaceX is developing the Starship at full speed, launching unloaded prototypes to quickly correct any problems that arise in real flight situations.

In recent weeks, the company openly complained about the slowness of the American aviation regulatory body (FAA), in charge of authorizing flights.

“It takes longer to complete the paperwork needed to obtain a license to launch a rocket than it does to design and build the hardware itself,” the company complained in an unusually lengthy press release in September.

Musk, who supports Republican Donald Trump in the November 5 presidential election in the United States, had called on the head of the FAA to resign.

SpaceX is also fighting accusations of environmental pollution, especially linked to the deluge of water that is poured during each Starship launch when the engines are turned on, in order to attenuate acoustic waves and thus limit vibrations.

This system was added after the first test flight, in April 2023, destroyed part of the launch pad under the force of takeoff, catapulting debris and a cloud of dust.

Several environmental associations have denounced the damage caused by SpaceX operations to animal species, since the space base is installed right next to a protected reserve.