Proposed Tower Catch of Super Heavy Booster and Starship
SpaceX’s tower catch method is a unique recovery system designed to capture the Starship system’s vehicles in mid-air, allowing for rapid reuse without the need for traditional landing hardware. While the concept was initially just a proposal, it is now an active reality for the booster and is slated to be tested on the upper stage soon. How the Tower Catch Works Instead of using landing legs like the Falcon 9, the Starship system relies on the launch structure—known as the launch and catch tower (or "Mechazilla")—at Starbase. The "Chopsticks": The tower is equipped with a pair of massive, hydraulically actuated mechanical arms. Precision Hover: As the vehicle (booster or ship) completes its flight, it reignites a subset of its Raptor engines to slow down and performs a precision hover right next to the tower. The Catch: The chopstick arms close around the vehicle and catch it just beneath specialized, load-bearing hardpoints. On the Super Heavy booster, t...