SpaceX's Starship test launch from Boca Chica, Texas, was more successful than previous attempts, but communication with the spacecraft was lost before splashdown in the Indian Ocean.
SpaceX's massive Starship took off from the company's Starbase launch facility in Boca Chica, Texas, at 9:25AM ET on Thursday morning. This test launch was more successful than its two predecessors, having completed several planned maneuvers and remained in one piece until contact with the Starship spacecraft was lost shortly before its anticipated splashdown in the Indian Ocean .
It completed the hot-staging separation from its Super Heavy booster and opened a payload door intended to demonstrate how it could be used for missions like delivering Starlink satellites into orbit. The Starship skipped a planned attempt to relight its Raptor engines in space and was scheduled to splash down in the Indian Ocean about an hour after takeoff. Before the broadcast ended, commentators said, 'We may have lost Starship,' after losing communication with the spacecraft. 'We haven't heard from the ship up until this point and so the team has made the call that Ship has been lost. So, no splashdown today,' said SpaceX spokesperson Dan Huo
Spacex Starship Test Launch Communication Loss Splashdown Indian Ocean
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