Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now nearly 1,000 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today – or scroll down further for the answers.

Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my Wordle today, NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles.

SpaceX has shared some dramatic close-up pictures of the 70-meter-tall Super Heavy booster at the start and finish of its historic test flight on Sunday, after which the rocket was brought safely back to Earth for the first time.

The photos show the Super Heavy’s Raptor engines lighted up during the launch at SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas, as the vehicle launched on its fifth test flight, and also as it came in to land — secured by giant mechanical arms on the launchpad — about seven minutes after launch.

Launching and returning the world's most powerful rocket pic.twitter.com/E8AWRc5TTZ

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) October 13, 2024

Super Heavy, powered by Raptor pic.twitter.com/Eg7dO4M64t

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) October 13, 2024

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SpaceX described the fifth test flight of the Starship — comprising the first-stage Super Heavy booster and the upper-stage Starship spacecraft — as its “most ambitious” to date “as we work to demonstrate techniques fundamental to Starship and Super Heavy’s fully and rapidly reusable design.”

Here’s a video of the remarkable moment when mechanical arms secured the enormous booster as it returned to Earth:

Thousands of distinct vehicle and pad criteria had to be met prior to catching the Super Heavy booster. Thanks to the tireless work of SpaceX engineers, we succeeded with catch on our first attempt. pic.twitter.com/6wa5v6xHI0

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) October 13, 2024

In a post on its website, SpaceX said: “Following a successful liftoff, ascent, stage separation, boostback burn, and coast, the Super Heavy booster performed its landing burn and was caught by the chopstick arms of the launch and catch tower at Starbase. Thousands of distinct vehicle and pad criteria had to be met prior to the catch attempt, and thanks to the tireless work of SpaceX engineers, we succeeded with catch on our first attempt.”

Earlier Starship test flights culminated in the booster either exploding in midair or being dumped in the sea.

While the booster got all the attention on Sunday due its astonishing homecoming, the Starship spacecraft enjoyed a successful flight, too, executing a hot-staging separation from the Super Heavy and igniting its six Raptor engines to carry it into orbit.

“It coasted along its planned trajectory to the other side of the planet before executing a controlled reentry, passing through the phases of peak heating and maximum aerodynamic pressure, before executing a flip, landing burn, and splashdown at its target area in the Indian Ocean,” SpaceX said, adding that the flight test concluded 1 hour and 5 minutes after launch when the spacecraft splashed down in the ocean.

“The entire SpaceX team should take pride in the engineering feat they just accomplished,” the Elon Musk-led spaceflight company said. “The world witnessed what the future will look like when Starship starts carrying crew and cargo to destinations on Earth, the moon, Mars, and beyond.”

In an earlier interview, Musk explained how SpaceX hoped to bring the Super Heavy booster home.

“This is a custom-built tower with arms that are designed to catch the largest flying and heaviest flying object ever made and pluck it outta the air,” the billionaire entrepreneur said. “So you got a couple hundred tons plummeting at more than half the speed of sound. So this thing is still coming in really fast. When the engines land … it’s gonna drop the velocity to basically zero and come in between the arms.”

“The arms will be wide, and as it’s coming in, the arms will close, go flush against the side of the vehicle, and the vehicle will be descending through the arms.”

Many observers thought that the first landing attempt would probably end in failure, so it was a very special moment as the booster settled in between the mechanical arms on the very first try.

Apple TV Plus is a streaming platform with a lot of potential. While the content catalog isn’t as large as some of the others, it does feature plenty of award-winning and highly-rated titles. Now, Amazon Prime Video users will have direct access to Apple TV Plus content thanks to a new add-on.

Android getting native access to Apple TV Plus content through Amazon Prime Video

One of the main obstacles to Apple TV Plus’ growth is Apple’s own policies. Currently, the app is available for smart TV platforms outside of Apple, such as Roku and Google TV. However, the Cupertino giant left Android devices off the compatibility list. This includes phones, tablets, and even TV box devices whose OS uses Android AOSP builds instead of Android TV/Google TV. Additionally, the Google TV app has multiple performance issues, according to user reviews.

That said, the new Apple TV Plus add-on for Amazon Prime Video could help turn things around. For $9.99 a month, the add-on offers “native” access to Apple TV Plus content on Android through the Amazon Prime Video app. This solves the lack of support problem in one fell swoop. Another advantage is that the bill for both services will be bundled, making payment more convenient and simple. Plus, you won’t have to download two different apps to enjoy all the content since everything will be accessible from the Prime Video one.

Apple rethinks its strategy in the streaming segment

The move is a bit unexpected, as it seems to go against Apple’s initial vision. Steve Jobs always wanted the TV app on his devices to be the main entertainment hub for all Apple users. Its goal was that all content from the multiple streaming platforms was accessible through the TV app for a unified user experience. However, Apple found the stumbling block of Netflix’s staunch refusal to integrate its content.

Apple had already made deals with many streaming platforms, including Prime Video, so that users could search, organize, and pay for content from within the TV app. Sadly, Netflix’s position in the industry allowed it to decline any kind of deal and “spoil” Apple’s plans. Consequently, users of Apple devices must resort to the Netflix app if they want to watch content on the platform. So, failing to achieve the initial vision would have led Apple to rethink its strategy.

October’s PlayStation Plus Game Catalog lineup . There’s something for everyone, from zombie classics to narrative adventures and beyond. Let’s take a look.

The biggest draw here is likely Dead Island 2. For a while, we weren’t sure , but it did and it’s a blast to play. The action-heavy zombie slaying sim is set in Los Angeles and boasts six playable characters. There’s three-player co-op and, of course, more gore than you can shake a bloody baseball bat at. The game’s available for both PS4 and PS5.

Gris is a stylistic 2D platformer that was a bona-fide hit when it was released several years back. We said it “might be the prettiest game” ever made, so the with this one. It’s a relaxing mixture of puzzles, exploration and platform jumping. The dev team has another game on the way, called Neva, that also looks quite pretty.

It took 13 years, but we finally Monkey Island franchise. Return to Monkey Island continues the comedic adventures of Guybrush Threepwood, as first seen in several iconic Lucasfilm titles from the 1990s. , with many players calling it a true return to form. As a warning, this is an old-school adventure with roots in the point-and-click genre.

Those are the big three, but this month’s drop also includes Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed, Overpass 2, Tour de France 2023 and The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil in Me, among others. PlayStation Premium members are also getting some games, including The Last Clockwinder for PS VR2 and Dino Crisis.

Strands is the NYT’s latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it’s great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.

Want more word-based fun? Then check out my Wordle today, NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX has successfully completed a world first test, landing part of their Starship back onto its launch pad.

This means the company’s plan to develop a fully reusable and quickly deployable rocket a lot closer.

The BBC’s science correspondent, Pallab Ghosh, explores why this “incredibly difficult” operation is a big deal for future exploration and what environmental concerns people may have about it.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) , the US government body that approves all flights, had previously said there would be no launch before November as it reviewed the company’s permits.

Since last month the agency and Elon Musk have been in a public spat after the FAA said it was seeking to fine his company, SpaceX, $633,000 for allegedly failing to follow its license conditions and not getting permits for previous flights.

Before issuing a license, the FAA reviews the impact of the flight, in particular the effect on the environment.

In response to the fine, Musk threatened to sue the agency and SpaceX put out a public blog post, external hitting back against “false reporting” that part of the rocket was polluting the environment.

Filmed and edited by Beatrice Guzzardi.

Produced by Ian Casey.