One of the most anticipated rocket launches happened Thursday morning. Here are the details on the SpaceX Starship launch and whats next.
What Happened: After being delayed previously, all systems were go for the launch of the Starship spacecraft from SpaceX, a company led by Elon Musk. A live webcast was available for people to watch.
The Starship successfully launched on its first flight at 9:33 am ET, five minutes after its launch window opened.
Starship is the largest spacecraft in the world, coming in at 393 feet, according to ABC.
Starship Rocket has a Successful Launch. It is the largest and most powerful rocket to have ever achieved a successful lifted off! SpaceX tweeted.
After the flight, the boosters failed to separate from the shuttle.
Starship experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly before stage separation, SpaceX tweeted.
SpaceX aborted the mission and blew up the rocket. The flight was originally scheduled to travel 150 miles and then splash down into the Pacific Ocean 90 minutes later.
The flight reached a peak altitude of 20 miles before it was blown up, according to Reuters.
Related Link:Elon Musk Says 'All Systems Green' As SpaceX Preps For Starship's 4/20 Launch: Will Second Time Be The Charm?
Whats Next: Starship is expected to play a big part in future space exploration and opportunities. The rocket is designed to carry 100 people on flights to space and planets like Mars.
Teams will continue to review data and work toward our next flight test, SpaceX tweeted. With a test like this, success comes from what we learn, and todays test will help us improve Starships reliability as SpaceX seeks to make life multi-planetary.
SpaceX said the launch will provide data and information that can be used in future attempts.
Congrats @SpaceX team on an exciting test launch of Starship! Learned a lot for next test launch in a few months, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk tweeted.
pic.twitter.com/vX3M7B3J1G Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 20, 2023
Based on comments from SpaceX after the flight and during the live stream, the launch is considered a success, despite the boosters not separating.
The next launch will be highly anticipated and could play a large role in the future of space.
Read Next:Elon Musk Channels Johnny Cash, SpaceX Creates 'A Burning Thing' To Sear Your Steak This Summer
Nominees and celebrity guests hit the red carpet in style at this year’s Grammy Awards.
With a focus on supporting relief efforts following the devastating Los Angeles-area wildfires the tone was a little more muted, but the fashion as exciting as ever.
Here are some of the looks from the Grammys red carpet.
Sir Keir Starmer will urge European countries to commit more in defence spending as he heads to Brussels for security talks.
The prime minister will call on Europe to “step up and shoulder more of the burden” to fend off the threat posed by Vladimir Putin’s Russia.
Sir Keir, the first prime minister to meet all the leaders of the 27 EU nations in Brussels since Brexit, will argue the bloc needs to capitalise on the weak state of the Russian economy by continuing with its sanctions regime.
The prime minister will meet NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Monday afternoon before travelling to meet with the leaders of the 27 EU member states at an informal meeting of the European Council.
Sir Keir is expected to say: “We need to see all allies stepping up – particularly in Europe.
“President Trump has threatened more sanctions on Russia and it’s clear that’s got Putin rattled. We know that he’s worried about the state of the Russian economy.
“I’m here to work with our European partners on keeping up the pressure, targeting the energy revenues and the companies supplying his missile factories to crush Putin’s war machine.
“Because ultimately, alongside our military support, that is what will bring peace closer.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
The UK says it currently spends around 2.3% of GDP [gross domestic product] on defence.
Last year EU member states spent an average of 1.9% of EU GDP on defence, according to the European Defence Agency, a 30% increase compared with 2021.
Earlier this week European Council President Antonio Costa said the 23 EU members who belong to NATO are likely to agree to raise the defence spending target above the current 2% of national output at the next NATO summit in June.
However, Donald Trump has repeatedly criticised NATO – the military alliance consisting of 30 European countries and the US and Canada – arguing that his country is contributing too much to the alliance’s budget while Europeans contribute too little.
During the US election campaign, President Trump said America would only help defend NATO members from a future attack by Russia if they met their spending obligations.
The session of the Informal European Council comes as the government seeks to reset its relationship with the EU and boost areas of cooperation, including on defence and tackling illegal migration.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
1:03
Starmer hosts German chancellor
On Sunday the prime minister hosted German Chancellor Olaf Scholz at his country residence Chequers, where the two leaders agreed on the “importance of scaling up and coordinating defence production across Europe”, Downing Street said.
However, the government has repeatedly said that a closer relationship with the EU will only be sought within its red lines – meaning there will be no return to freedom of movement and rejoining the customs union or single market.
Sir Keir Starmer will urge European countries to commit more in defence spending as he heads to Brussels for security talks.
The prime minister will call on Europe to “step up and shoulder more of the burden” to fend off the threat posed by Vladimir Putin’s Russia.
Sir Keir, the first prime minister to meet all the leaders of the 27 EU nations in Brussels since Brexit, will argue the bloc needs to capitalise on the weak state of the Russian economy by continuing with its sanctions regime.
The prime minister will meet NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Monday afternoon before travelling to meet with the leaders of the 27 EU member states at an informal meeting of the European Council.
Sir Keir is expected to say: “We need to see all allies stepping up – particularly in Europe.
“President Trump has threatened more sanctions on Russia and it’s clear that’s got Putin rattled. We know that he’s worried about the state of the Russian economy.
“I’m here to work with our European partners on keeping up the pressure, targeting the energy revenues and the companies supplying his missile factories to crush Putin’s war machine.
“Because ultimately, alongside our military support, that is what will bring peace closer.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
The UK says it currently spends around 2.3% of GDP [gross domestic product] on defence.
Last year EU member states spent an average of 1.9% of EU GDP on defence, according to the European Defence Agency, a 30% increase compared with 2021.
Earlier this week European Council President Antonio Costa said the 23 EU members who belong to NATO are likely to agree to raise the defence spending target above the current 2% of national output at the next NATO summit in June.
However, Donald Trump has repeatedly criticised NATO – the military alliance consisting of 30 European countries and the US and Canada – arguing that his country is contributing too much to the alliance’s budget while Europeans contribute too little.
During the US election campaign, President Trump said America would only help defend NATO members from a future attack by Russia if they met their spending obligations.
The session of the Informal European Council comes as the government seeks to reset its relationship with the EU and boost areas of cooperation, including on defence and tackling illegal migration.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
1:03
Starmer hosts German chancellor
On Sunday the prime minister hosted German Chancellor Olaf Scholz at his country residence Chequers, where the two leaders agreed on the “importance of scaling up and coordinating defence production across Europe”, Downing Street said.
However, the government has repeatedly said that a closer relationship with the EU will only be sought within its red lines – meaning there will be no return to freedom of movement and rejoining the customs union or single market.