At his event at Madison Square Garden a week before the election, Donald Trump got into a lengthy debate about Elon Musk's famous “chopsticks” Space X maneuver.
In describing his astonishment at witnessing this feat — the first stage of the spacecraft's rocket returning to the launch tower upon its return to Earth — Trump spoke for all of us.
The various videos of the operation posted online by witnesses never get old.
And it's not just the technical achievement, the joyful awe of the viewers is in itself a wonderful thing.
A few days ago, President-elect Trump took time off from setting up his new administration to travel to South Texas with Musk to observe another Starship test launch, and why not?
Rockets are an enduring object of human fascination, and Space
Modern rocketry is the product of two centuries of human thought and ingenuity, from the 13th century when the Chinese used “flying arrows of fire” to fight the Mongols, to Newton’s 16th century works on the laws of motion, to experiments. Robert Goddard in the early twentieth century, to the advances led by World War II and the Cold War.
The rocket launch is absolutely amazing. It is a feast for the eyes and an assault for the ears, as a long, thin projectile, after a controlled explosion, is propelled upward onto a column of blazing fire.
The iconic 1969 launch of Apollo 11 on a sleek, instantly recognizable Saturn V rocket bearing the words “USA” in red letters remains a thing of beauty, a symbol of 20th century technological achievement.
The rocket is otherworldly in more than one sense.
A car can be likened to a horse. An airplane can be likened to a bird. The rocket is unlike anything in nature.
It promises to transport us to worlds beyond our own, whether outer space, the moon, or Mars, if Musk can achieve his ambitions.
There is an inherent risk to the organization, which makes it even more urgent.
The mission control countdown always brings a certain drama, and the announcement of “liftoff”! It always carries a tone of justified triumph.
The process of using chopsticks at Space
The rocket's reentry stage looked like a Roman candle flying in reverse, and it made a visible — and then audible — sonic boom as it descended.
It represented a new frontier in human achievement, as nothing like it had ever been done before.
As he hovered above the tower, the success of the test remained in doubt until he settled into the metal arms.
Geometrically, it was like watching a skater land on a quad axel.
When Musk was with Trump and demonstrated how the latest spacecraft test would work with a model in hand, he looked every bit a boy enamored of rocket adventure and eager to share his enthusiasm.
This, by and large, is Musk, but one should not mistake the seriousness of his achievements.
Although rockets are symbols of the future, there was a long period of stagnation in launch costs until Musk came along and revolutionized the business with his entrepreneurial mindset.
Now, launch costs have radically diminished, and Musk alone operates 10 times more satellites than any other country or company, according to Ars Technica.
The tests of Starship, the world's largest and most powerful rocket, are the latest iteration of Musk's approach of rapid innovation toward the goal of sending men to the moon again, and then Mars.
It is an expression of the basic human instinct for exploration and adventure, and the rocket is its symbol and means of transportation.
Twitter: @RichLowry
