Under the eyes of Donald Trump, SpaceX launched its Starship megarocket on Tuesday but had to give up trying to catch its first stage with mechanical arms, failing in this complex maneuver that it had nevertheless succeeded in last month.
The sixth test flight of this giant rocket took off at 4 p.m. local time at SpaceX’s Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas.
The president-elect arrived wearing his iconic red cap and Elon Musk said honoré
of his presence. The two billionaires thus displayed their new closeness and their interest in the conquest of space.
SpaceX aims to use Starship, the world’s largest and most powerful rocket, to colonize Mars. The development of the spacecraft is also closely monitored by NASA, which is counting on it to bring its astronauts back to the Moon.
The objectives of this new test flight were largely similar to the previous one, in October.
This rocket is made up of the Super Heavy first stage (70 meters high) and, above it, the Starship spacecraft (50 m), which by extension gives its name to the entire launcher.
After propelling the ship, Super Heavy detaches from it and begins its descent. In October, rather than ending his journey in the sea, he had succeeded in an unprecedented maneuver.
Slowed down using retrorockets, it returned to its launch pad and, just before hitting the ground, mechanical arms installed on the launch tower – nicknamed baguettes
– had closed in on him and immobilized him.
However, this time, SpaceX announced shortly after liftoff that the criteria were not met to attempt this operation, and Super Heavy ditched in the Gulf of Mexico, where it disintegrated.
For its part, the Starship continued its flight before landing in the Indian Ocean during the day, allowing precious images to be filmed for the first time.
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President-elect Donald Trump watches the sixth test flight of the Starship megarocket take off in Texas.
Photo : Getty Images / Brandon Bell
Fully reusable
This rocket must ultimately be fully reusable and that is why SpaceX is seeking to catch up on its first stage.
This strategy aims to be able to launch more machines more quickly and for much less money than if it was necessary to use new equipment each time.
During the October test, the rocket gained a new admirer in the person of Donald Trump. In his victory speech on presidential election night, he recounted watching the rocket being overtaken and thinking in a movie
.
I called Elon. I said, “Elon, was that you?” He told me yes. I said: “[…] Can Russia do it?” “No.” “Can China do it?” “No.” “Can the United States do it besides you?” “No”
the president-elect enthused.
I said, “That’s why I love you, Elon, it’s awesome.”
The SpaceX boss spent tens of millions of dollars to support the Republican’s campaign and landed an advisory position in exchange, ignoring potential conflicts of interest, SpaceX having numerous ongoing contracts with the US government.
Complaints from environmental associations
The development of Starship is being driven vigorously by the company, which is launching prototypes without cargo, in order to quickly correct the problems encountered in real flight situations.
SpaceX, however, revealed that it carried cargo on board for the first time on Tuesday: a banana.
Several of Starship’s first tests ended in explosions, leading to complaints from environmental groups. The Texas space base is in fact located near protected areas.
In a video posted in late October by Elon Musk that showed him playing a video game, a man in the background reporting on the fifth test talked about how SpaceX was at a second
to order the rocket to crash next to the launch tower.
But nothing seems to shake the boss’s confidence.
The first Starship flights to Mars will take off in two years
recently said Elon Musk, known for his very optimistic predictions. If these landings go well, the first crewed flights to Mars will take place in four years.
An objective shared by Donald Trump, who wants these missions to take place before the end of his mandate.
