National Affairs

SpaceX Catches Returning Starship at Texas Launchpad

NPR reported that SpaceX caught its Starship spacecraft as it returned to a launchpad in Texas, with two metal arms on the launch tower securing it.

The Continental Gazette standing plate
From the pages of The Continental Gazette.

NPR reported that SpaceX successfully caught its Starship spacecraft as the vehicle returned to the company's launchpad in Texas, an event the outlet's headline described as making history. The account appears in an NPR report on the Starship catch that is credited to The Associated Press.

According to NPR's summary, the spacecraft returned to the Texas launchpad in what the outlet called "dramatic fashion." NPR reported that the spacecraft carefully lowered itself until two metal arms attached to the launch tower could secure it.

The summary available for this report does not describe the altitude, speed, or timing of the descent, and it does not say how long the arms took to secure the spacecraft. It also does not include a statement from SpaceX or any other official, so those points are not confirmed here.

NPR's summary identifies the company as SpaceX and the vehicle as Starship, and it places the launchpad in Texas without naming a city. The headline's phrase "makes history" is presented here as NPR's own characterization, and the summary does not explain which earlier flights or catches, if any, it compares the event with. No second source in this file reports on the event, so no conflicting accounts are noted.

The Continental Gazette has reviewed only the headline, summary, outlet name, and attribution for this report and has not independently verified the account. Further details would need to come from NPR's full text or from other reporting, which is not included here.

Sources: NPR: SpaceX successfully catches Starship and makes history.

The Continental Gazette • Printed for the Publick

Front Page ✦ More from National Affairs