Elon Musk’s gift to PM Narendra Modi: A piece of the world’s most powerful rocket Starship

Speculations arise over Musk’s unique gift to the Indian prime minister

Billionaire Elon Musk presented a special gift to Prime Minister Narendra Modi during their meeting at Blair House in the United States. Speculation has been growing over what exactly the gift was, and according to reports, the Indian leader received a piece of the world’s largest and most powerful rocket—Starship.

A ‘space relic’ from Starship Flight Test 5

A picture circulating online shows the gift—a heat shield tile engraved with the words:

“Starship Flight Test 5. October 13, 2024.”

The tile was reportedly part of the Starship rocket used in SpaceX’s fifth flight test in October 2024. The heat shield is a critical component of SpaceX’s rocket technology, designed to protect spacecraft from intense heat during re-entry.

Netizens react: ‘A space relic’

Social media quickly reacted to the gift, with several users on X (formerly Twitter) calling it a ‘space relic’.

One user joked:

“When many people are burning with jealousy, you need a heat shield.”

Another wrote:

“Giving space relics should become mainstream gifting culture now.”

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🚨 #BREAKING :

Tesla & SpaceX CEO Elon Musk gifts PM Narendra Modi a 'heat shield tile' 🛡️ that flew on the 5th test flight of Starship 🎯 pic.twitter.com/NxVUVHmGcc

— Megh Updates 🚨™ (@MeghUpdates) February 14, 2025

PM Modi’s gift to Musk’s family

During the meeting, PM Modi also gifted books to Musk and his family. These included:

• Rabindranath Tagore’s The Crescent Moon
• The Great R.K. Narayan Collection
• Pandit Vishnu Sharma’s Panchatantra

Starship flight test 5: A breakthrough for SpaceX

The fifth flight test of Starship marked a major milestone for SpaceX. For the first time, the space tech company successfully caught a massive 232-foot rocket booster mid-air using chopstick-like robotic arms known as ‘Mechazilla’.

This was the first attempt of its kind in space history, showcasing that a rocket can be reused and relaunched into space within 30–60 minutes of its previous launch.

The test concluded with Starship’s successful splashdown in the Indian Ocean, after testing key reusability technologies. SpaceX has been conducting multiple flight tests of Starship as part of preparations for the world’s first manned Mars mission.

According to Musk, this marks the first step in humanity’s journey to inhabit Mars.