Trump and Musk Witness Another Milestone for SpaceX's Starship
President-elect Donald Trump and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk witnessed the sixth test flight of SpaceX’s Starship rocket on November 19, 2024, at the company’s facility in Boca Chica, Texas. The flight showcased a mixture of advancements and setbacks for the ambitious spacecraft designed to support future missions to the Moon and Mars.
Although the Starship successfully launched and later splashed down in the Indian Ocean, SpaceX was unable to recover the Super Heavy booster using its innovative “Mechazilla” catch mechanism, which had succeeded in a previous test. Instead, the booster performed a controlled splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico after an automated health check triggered an abort of the catch attempt.
Despite the abort, the flight marked notable achievements, including the successful reignition of a Raptor engine while in space for the first time. The capsule managed to complete various maneuvers and safely return to Earth, reinforcing SpaceX’s goal of reducing the time and cost of space travel through rapid reuse of spacecraft.
The event further solidified the growing partnership between Trump and Musk, with Musk playing a key advisory role in Trump’s transition team through a new initiative called the “Department of Government Efficiency” (Doge). This connection raises potential concerns about conflicts of interest given SpaceX’s significant government contracts.
NASA, which has selected Starship as a crucial component of its Artemis program aimed at lunar landings by 2026, praised the progress made during the flight. The completion of the sixth test flight adds to the momentum of SpaceX’s ambitious development trajectory, even as the company continues to refine the Starship design in preparation for more complex missions ahead.
Donald Trump and Elon Musk watch SpaceX launch Starship rocket
The president-elect visited the launch site in Texas to watch the spacecraft's sixth test flight.
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SpaceX's Starship mega-rocket blasted off on its latest test flight on Tuesday, with US President-elect Donald Trump joining Elon Musk to witness
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President-elect Donald J. Trump joined Elon Musk, as his company’s prototype moon and Mars rocket carried out a sixth test flight that showed a mix of
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Donald Trump joins Elon Musk for SpaceX Starship rocket launch
The launch was Starship’s sixth experimental flight following first successful test in June
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SpaceX launched its sixth Starship test flight to date on Tuesday.
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SpaceX launches massive Starship on its sixth test flight | CNN
**Summary of SpaceX's Sixth Starship Test Flight**On November 19, 2024, SpaceX achieved a significant milestone with the launch of its Starship rocket
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The Falcon 9 rocket was carrying 20 Starlink satellites, which will be used to improve access to the internet.
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