SpaceX’s Starship Rocket Reached Record Heights before It Was Lost
SpaceX lost both the booster and vehicle in a test launch of its massive Starship rocket. But the third try was the charm for Starship, which smoothly separated in its most successful flight to date
The SpaceX Starship spacecraft lifts off from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, on March 14, 2024.
Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images
SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas — SpaceX’s Starship megarocket, the world’s largest and most powerful rocket, reached orbital speed for the first time Thursday in a historic third test flight from South Texas.
Hundreds of Spring Break spectators, rocket launch chasers and SpaceX fans gathered along the southern shores of South Padre Island and surrounding areas to witness the third test flight of the biggest rocket ever built. About 5 miles (8 kilometers) south of the crowds, SpaceX’s massive Starship vehicle lifted off this morning (March 14) at 9:25 a.m. EDT (1325 GMT) from the company’s manufacturing and test launch facilities near Boca Chica Beach.
“Starship reached orbital velocity,” SpaceX founder Elon Musk announced on X (formerly Twitter) after liftoff. “Congratulations SpaceX team!!” The launch occurred on the 22nd anniversary of SpaceX’s founding in 2002, the company said.
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Neither the Starship vehicle nor its Super Heavy booster survived all the way through to their intended splashdown, but SpaceX officials said the test flight achieved several of its key goals during the flight.
Cheers erupted from the South Padre crowd as the dim morning sky was illuminated by the ignition of Starship’s 33 first-stage Raptor engines, which quickly shrouded nearly the entire vehicle in…
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