SpaceX has pulled off the boldest test flight yet of its enormous Starship rocket. Elon Musk's company caught the returning booster back at the Texas launch pad with mechanical arms Sunday, shortly after liftoff.

SpaceX pulled off the boldest test flight yet of its enormous Starship rocket on Sunday, catching the returning booster back at the launch pad with mechanical arms.

SpaceX caught a rocket booster on its Texas launch pad as it returned to Earth on Sunday. The chopstick-like arms of the tower, called Mechazilla, grabbed the descending 232-foot booster after a seven-minute flight.

SpaceX has been recovering the first-stage boosters of its smaller Falcon 9 rockets for nine years, after delivering satellites and crews to orbit from Florida or California. But they land on floating ocean platforms or on concrete slabs several miles from their launch pads — not on them.

SpaceX pulled off its boldest test flight yet of the enormous Starship rocket on Sunday, catching the returning booster back at the launch pad using a tower dubbed "Mechazilla".

For a few moments, my viewing angle made it look like the rocket was coming right at me. BOCA CHICA BEACH, Texas—I've taken some time to process what happened on the mudflats of South Texas a little more than a week ago and relived the scene in my mind countless times.

The technological advancements of today are truly remarkable, and SpaceX stands among the top innovators. This awe-inspiring clip, shared by Francisco, captures the SpaceX Starship heavy booster returning to the launch pad.