The film appears to capture the debris in the sky after SpaceX's Starship rocket experienced an “unplanned rapid separation” during its January 16 test flight. (Credit: Greg Monk/TMX)
SpaceX was launched The Starship rocket launched itself on its final test flight on Thursday, but the spacecraft was destroyed after an exciting booster on the pad.
Elon Musk The company said the Starship broke up — what it called an “unplanned rapid breakup.” The spacecraft's six engines appeared to shut down one by one during ascent, and contact was lost just 8 1/2 minutes into takeoff.
The spacecraft — a new, upgraded model that debuted — was scheduled to fly across the Gulf of Mexico from Texas in a close loop around the globe similar to previous test flights. SpaceX had filled it with 10 dummy satellites to practice launching them.
SpaceX's Starship Large rocket launches for a test flight from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Eric Gay) (AP Photo/Eric Gay/Associated Press)
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A minute before missing, SpaceX used the launch tower's giant mechanical arms to grab the return booster, a feat accomplished only once before. The descent booster hovered on the launch pad before being picked up by a pair of arms called chopsticks.
The excitement of the catch quickly turned to disappointment not only for the company, but for the crowd that had gathered along the southern tip of Texas.
“It was great to see a booster coming down, but obviously we're upset about the ship,” SpaceX spokesman Don Huth said. He emphasized: “This is a flight test. This is an experimental vehicle.”
The latest data received from the spacecraft indicates an altitude of 90 miles (146 km) and a speed of 13,245 mph (21,317 km/h).
The Starship booster of SpaceX's large rocket returns to the launch pad during a test flight from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Eric Gay) (AP Photo/Eric Gay/Associated Press)
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Preliminary analysis suggests that a fuel leak may have created pressure in the cavity above the engine's firewall, Musk said. He said through X that firefighting will be added to the area with increased ventilation and double checking for leaks.
The 400-foot (123-meter) missile was launched off the coast of Boca Chica near the Mexican border in the late afternoon. The final hour ensured the arrival of daylight halfway around the world in the Indian Ocean. But the shiny old-looking spacecraft never made it this far.
For the latest demo, SpaceX has improved the spacecraft and added a fleet of satellite models. The experimental satellites were the same size Starlink SpaceX Internet satellites, like spacecraft, were supposed to be destroyed on arrival.
Musk plans to launch actual Starlinks on Starships before moving on to other satellites and eventually crews.
The Starship booster of SpaceX's large rocket returns to the launch pad during a test flight from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Eric Gay) (AP Photo/Eric Gay/Associated Press)
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This was the seventh test flight for the world's largest and most powerful rocket. NASA has reserved a pair of starships to land astronauts on the moon later this decade. The purpose of the mask is Mars.
Hours earlier in Florida, the rocket company of another billionaire – Jeff Bezos Blue origin – Launched the newest large rocket, New Glenn. The rocket reached orbit on its first flight and successfully placed a test satellite thousands of miles above Earth. But the first stage booster was destroyed and missed its intended landing on a floating platform in the Atlantic Ocean.