Musk gifts PM SpaceX tile that flew to space

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk on Friday (IST) presented a special gift to Prime Minister Narendra Modi—a heat shield tile that flew on SpaceX’s Starship test flight 5 in October last year.

The tile was engraved with the words: “Starship flight test 5, October 13, 2024.” PM Modi met billionaire Musk yesterday at the Blair House in Washington. Musk was accompanied by his three children and partner Shivon Zilis.

The Starship’s tile was reportedly designed to protect the spacecraft from extreme heat encountered during atmospheric re-entry as it made its way back to Earth.

The Starship vehicle was launched from South Texas. This mission is particularly notable for successfully capturing its Super Heavy booster at the launch site, marking a significant achievement in aerospace technology.

At the meeting, PM Modi also gifted Musk’s children three Indian classic books—‘The Crescent Moon’ by Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore, ‘The Great RK Narayan Collection’ and Pandit Vishnu Sharma’s ‘Panchatantra’.

“Had a very good meeting with Elon Musk in Washington DC. We discussed various issues, including those he is passionate about such as space, mobility, technology and innovation. I talked about India’s efforts towards reform and furthering ‘minimum government, maximum governance,” the PM posted on X.

Modi had earlier met Musk in 2015 when he visited the Tesla facility in San Jose and was given a personal tour by the company CEO.