SpaceX achieved a world first by returning its Starship rocket booster to its launch site, a reminder that Elon Musk can prove the doubters wrong.

Elon Musk’s Starship rocket has completed a world first after part of it was captured on its return to the launch pad. The SpaceX vehicle's lower half manoeuvred back beside its launch tower where it was caught in a giant pair of mechanical arms, as part of its fifth test flight.

SpaceX’s Starship had its fifth test launch in 18 months on Sunday morning and successfully caught a component of the rocket with mechanical arms near where it was launched in Texas, multiple outlets reported, marking a major milestone for Elon Musk’s aerospace company.

At the flight director’s command, the first-stage booster flew back to the launch pad where it had blasted off seven minutes earlier. The launch tower’s monstrous metal arms, dubbed chopsticks, caught the descending 232-foot (71-meter) stainless steel booster and gripped it tightly, dangling it well above the ground.

SpaceX achieves historic milestone as Super Heavy booster is successfully caught by launch tower, marking progress towards fully reusable rocket system for NASA's moon missions.

T HE LAUNCH was remarkable: a booster rocket with twice the power of the Apollo programme’s Saturn V lancing into the early-morning sky on a tight, bright column of blue-tinged flame. But that wonder has been seen four times before. It was the landing of the booster stage of SpaceX ’s fifth Starship test flight which was truly extraordinary.

Starship is a two-stage vehicle. The “Ship” is the uppermost part, and that sits atop a booster called Super Heavy. Thirty-three engines at the base of this booster produce around 74 meganewtons of thrust.

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