TEXAS, United States – A SpaceX Starship rocket broke up in space minutes after launching from Texas on Thursday, forcing airline flights over the Gulf of Mexico to alter course to avoid falling debris and setting back Elon Musk’s flagship rocket program.
SpaceX launched its Starship rocket on its latest test flight Thursday, but the spacecraft was destroyed following a thrilling booster catch back at the pad.
Elon Musk’s company said Starship broke apart — what it called a “rapid unscheduled disassembly.” The spacecraft’s six engines appeared to shut down one by one during ascent, with contact lost just 8 1/2 minutes into the flight.
The spacecraft — a new and upgraded model making its debut — was supposed to soar across the Gulf of Mexico from Texas on a near loop around the world similar to previous test flights. SpaceX had packed it with 10 dummy satellites for practice at releasing them.
A minute before the loss, SpaceX used the launch tower’s giant mechanical arms to catch the returning booster, a feat achieved only once before. The descending booster hovered over the launch pad before being gripped by the pair of arms dubbed chopsticks.
The thrill of the catch quickly turned into disappointment for not only the company, but the crowds gathered along the southern tip of Texas.
“It was great to see a booster come down, but we are obviously bummed out about ship,” said SpaceX spokesman Dan Huot, adding it would take time to analyse the data and figure out what happened. “It’s a flight test. It’s an experimental vehicle.”
The FlightAware tracker showed several planes in the Atlantic altering course near the Turks and Caicos Islands, while users on X shared dramatic footage capturing the spaceship breaking apart in a fiery cascade during atmospheric re-entry.- AP
