SpaceX’s Starship returns from orbit and is captured by launch pad arms in a dramatic first

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. | SpaceX’s Starship made a triumphant return to Earth on Saturday, caught in midair by giant mechanical arms where its journey began 22 hours earlier. It was the grand finale that Elon Musk and his team hoped for — the first-ever capture of a Starship flying back from space. But with the first-stage booster exploding shortly after Friday’s liftoff from Texas, the company fell short of its desired double catch, still the goal for accelerating moon and Mars travel. Wreckage remained in the Gulf of Mexico, cordoned off by buoys, as the stainless steel, bullet-shaped spacecraft lowered itself upright at the launch pad. The dramatic, sci-fi-like capture helped blot out the booster’s messy miss. Cameras panned the spacecraft up and down as it hung high above the ground, supported by the arms of the launch tower. “Can you believe it?” SpaceX commentator Dan Huot shouted, dragging out each word. “Look at her!

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