A SpaceX Starship rocket undergoing testing in Texas exploded late Wednesday night, creating a massive fireball that lit up the sky. The incident occurred around 11 p.m. at SpaceX’s Starbase facility, located at the southern tip of Texas.
According to the company, the rocket “experienced a major anomaly” while on the test stand as preparations were underway for its tenth flight test. Fortunately, safety measures were in place. “A safety clear area around the site was maintained throughout the operation and all personnel are safe and accounted for,” SpaceX confirmed in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
This marks yet another setback in a series of high-profile issues involving the Starship program. Back on January 16, a Starship rocket disintegrated in what was described as a “rapid unscheduled disassembly,” scattering flaming debris near the Caribbean. A second incident occurred on March 6 when contact was lost with another Starship during a test flight. That vehicle also broke apart, and pieces of wreckage were spotted over Florida.
Then, on March 27, another 403-foot Starship launched but quickly spiraled out of control and disintegrated. SpaceX had intended to deploy a batch of mock satellites, but a malfunctioning door prevented deployment. The vehicle began to spin and ultimately crashed into the Indian Ocean.
Despite the setbacks, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk called that March 27 launch “a big improvement” over earlier tests and committed to ramping up the testing frequency, aiming for a Starship launch every three to four weeks over the next few trials.
As for Wednesday’s explosion, SpaceX stated that there was no threat to nearby communities and urged the public not to approach the test site. The company also mentioned that it is coordinating with local authorities to address the incident and assess the damage.
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