


Elon Musk’s Starship reaches space successfully
Though it failed to return to Earth, it’s a step nearer to the stars
THE WORLD’s largest rocket has flown again, and its uncrewed test flight on March 14th, like the two previous ones, ended in “rapid unscheduled disassembly” (ie, catastrophic explosions). But the upper stage of Starship, built by SpaceX, Elon Musk’s rocket company, successfully completed its ascent into space. It travelled halfway around the Earth, carrying out various planned tests before being destroyed while re-entering the atmosphere. In a defiant post on X, the social network formerly known as Twitter, Mr Musk insisted that “Starship will make life multiplanetary.” Perhaps. This latest flight was at least another small step in that direction.
Explore more
This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline “Fireworks display”

Cancer vaccines are showing promise at last
Trials are under way against skin, brain and lung tumours

New firefighting tech is being trialled in Sardinia’s ancient forests
It could sniff out blazes long before they spread out of control

Can Jeff Bezos match Elon Musk in space?
After 25 years, Blue Origin finally heads to orbit, and hopes to become a contender in the private space race
Why some doctors are reassessing hypnosis
There is growing evidence that it can help with pain, depression and more
Academic writing is getting harder to read—the humanities most of all
We analyse two centuries of scholarly work
Giving children the wrong (or not enough) toys may doom a society
Survival is a case of child’s play