SpaceX showed bright high-quality footage of the fifth flight of Starship

SpaceX on social network X (formerly Twitter) shared fresh high-quality images of the first stage of Super Heavy and Starship during their fifth test flight, which took place on October 13, 2024. The flight was truly historic. On the first attempt, the first stage was picked up by the mechanisms of the service truss, and the ship splashed down gently in the ocean. The provided footage shows several moments of this flight.

The very first frame shows the process of separation of the Starship from the first stage of Super Heavy. The ship has already started its engines (the rocket separates “hot” – with the engines already running) and has begun the separation process. On the body of the Super Heavy, a pin is clearly visible, by which the service truss will later pick up the first stage (there is a similar pin on the other side of the stage), as well as lattice flaps that will help the stage to glide towards the truss.

The next frame shows the ship entering the atmosphere, which leads to its shell heating up to thousands of degrees.

In the third frame, the Earth is visible against the background of the ship’s flap. During the previous unsuccessful fourth test flight for the ship, this element of the rocket was severely burned and destroyed. For this flight, the company made sure that it had the opportunity to monitor this element throughout all portions of the flight.

The fourth frame shows the tail of the ship against the backdrop of the Earth and the Sun. The ship will later enter the atmosphere and successfully launch into the Indian Ocean.

Another hero of the event standing in the shadows is the SpaceX Starlink satellite Internet communication network. Without the constant high-speed communication channel provided by the Starlink network, all the footage associated with the ship’s flight might not appear at all. Data from Starship’s cameras and sensors was constantly transmitted to Earth via the Starlink network. Bright and colorful shots of the first stage and the ship in motion are also the merit of SpaceX in building the Starlink constellation.