A Historic Day in Aerospace Engineering: SpaceX’s Giant Leap Towards Interplanetary Travel
On October 13, 2024, at 14:25 Italian time, SpaceX made a monumental stride in the future of interplanetary travel. The massive stack, comprising the Starship spacecraft, launched from the Starbase in Texas, achieving a series of objectives that once seemed like science fiction.
The highlight of the mission, dubbed “Flight 5,” was the return of the Super Heavy first stage. For the first time in the history of astronautics, a rocket of this size was captured directly on the launch platform.
As the rocket began its re-entry sequence, many held their breath as the kilometers to the surface rapidly decreased until only one remained. Super Heavy unleashed the full power of its boosters, countering gravity and slowing down the 70-meter-tall structure as it approached its target. At that moment, the enormous metal arms of the launch tower “Mechazilla,” nicknamed “chopsticks,” grabbed the booster amidst flames, with millimeter precision, under the incredulous eyes of the onlookers, performing a maneuver many deemed impossible.