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SpaceX returned its Starship rocket on Saturday—but there's a catch

Ars Technica · By Eric Berger ·

SpaceX returned its Starship rocket on Saturday—but there's a catch

The Brief · written from 5 sources

  • SpaceX's Starship Flight 15 launched Friday evening, Nov. 13, 2026, from Starbase in South Texas.
  • The booster missed its first planned landing catch after an automatic abort, fell into the Gulf of Mexico and exploded; SpaceX said a guidance issue was the likely cause.
  • The Starship upper stage reached orbit and was reported healthy, and returned on Saturday, Nov. 14, for a planned first-ever 'chopsticks' catch at the launch site.

Why it matters

Catching the full stack and reusing the upper stage are key steps toward reusable heavy-lift rockets, which would change the cost and frequency of launches for science missions.

Who’s affected

  • space engineers and launch providers
  • astronomers and researchers who depend on launch schedules and payload access

STARBASE, Texas —The black and silver ship fell out of the sky, emerging from the cloud deck near the very end of its flight. Incongruously, the rocket flew horizontal until the last moment when three Raptor rocket engines ignited and it swooped into a vertical position. Slowly…

Read the full story at arstechnica.com ↗

Timeline

  1. Starship Flight 15 launches from Starbase, South Texas; booster aborts its landing catch and is destroyed in the Gulf of Mexico

  2. Starship upper stage, reported healthy in orbit, is set to return to Starbase for a planned chopsticks catch

  3. Space News - Space, Astronomy, Space Exploration

    SpaceX's Starship soars into orbit after booster explosion prevents an unprecedented double catch

  4. Space News - Space, Astronomy, Space Exploration

    SpaceX's Starship set for return to Earth after booster catch aborted

  5. Latest from Space.com

    SpaceX will try historic 'chopsticks' catch of Starship upper stage today: Watch it live

  6. Latest from Space.com

    SpaceX says Starship Flight 15 booster aborted 'chopsticks' landing catch after launch due to guidance issue (video)

  7. Space - Ars Technica

    SpaceX returned its Starship rocket on Saturday—but there's a catch

Full coverage · 5 sources

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    SpaceX returned its Starship rocket on Saturday—but there's a catch – The Morning Science