Video footage showing a robot dog inspecting the SpaceX wreckage after its explosive launch earlier this week has been freaking people out 'big time', with some saying it reminds them of Black Mirror.
The mechanical creature is a Boston Dynamics 'Spot' robot dog, which the folks at SpaceX have renamed Zeus.
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He'd been tasked with inspecting the wreckage of the SpaceX starship, which had successfully launched and landed on Wednesday (3 March) - only to erupt into a ball of flames just minutes later.
Footage showed Zeus traipsing around the site, reminding many people of Charlie Brooker's dystopian sci-fi series Black Mirror, which also features a similar robot dog in the episode called 'Metalhead'.
Commenting on Twitter, one person wrote: "Black Mirror! Run!"
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Someone else said: "Straight out of a Black Mirror episode."
A third added: "That f'ing thing creeps me out big time."
Others said it was 'so creepy', while another said: "The robots are taking over."
The prototype Starship had carried out a high-altitude test flight in Texas on Wednesday (3 March).
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At first, it seemed as though everything had gone according to plan - with the spacecraft doing a few fancy maneuvers in the air before it came down and landed safely on the pad.
However, around eight minutes later the ship - called SN10 - burst into flames.
In a clip of the test flight, people can be heard cheering as the prototype seemingly manages to make a safe landing.
But their celebrations were ultimately short-lived, as it ended up exploding just minutes later.
SpaceX boss Elon Musk had been keeping a close eye on things on the ground, tweeting about the progress of the test flight.
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Initially pleased with the test, he posted on Twitter to say: "Starship SN10 landed in one piece!"
But soon after he followed this with: "RIP SN10, honorable discharge."
While it may not seem like the whole thing was a success, SpaceX is sure to be pretty happy with the result as the two prototypes before this, the SN8 and SN9 both exploded on landing in December 2020 and February 2021 repsectively.
This week's attempt actually marks the first time one of the Starship prototypes has successfully carried out its in-flight manoeuvres and managed to make a decent landing - well, at least to begin with.
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So, despite the little setback, Musk heaped praise on the team who got it off the ground, writing: "SpaceX team is doing great work!
"One day, the true measure of success will be that Starship flights are commonplace."
Featured Image Credit: Twitter/@SpacePadreIsleTopics: black mirror, News, SpaceX, Technology