The footage appears to capture debris in the sky after SpaceX’s Starship rocket suffered a ‘rapid unplanned disassembly’ during a January 16 flight test. [Credit: Greg Munch /TMX]
SpaceX launched its Starship rocket on its final test flight on Thursday, but the spacecraft was destroyed after a thrilling grab by the booster on the board.
Elon Musk the company said the Starship fell apart – in what it called a “rapid unplanned dismantling”. The spacecraft’s six engines appeared to shut down one by one during ascent, and contact was lost after just 8 1/2 minutes of flight.
The spacecraft — a new and upgraded model making its debut — was scheduled to fly across the Gulf of Mexico from Texas in a near-loop around the world similar to previous test flights. SpaceX packed it with 10 dummy satellites to practice launching them.
SpaceX’s Starship mega rocket launches on 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 the loss, SpaceX used the launch tower’s giant mechanical arms to grab the returning booster, a feat that had only been accomplished once before. The descending booster hovered above the launch pad before being caught by a pair of arms called chopsticks.
The excitement of the catch quickly turned to disappointment not only for the company, but for the crowds gathered along the southern tip of Texas.
“It was great to see the booster come down, but obviously we’re mad at the ship,” SpaceX spokesman Dan Huot said. “It’s a test flight. It’s an experimental vehicle,” he emphasized.
The last data received from the spacecraft indicated an altitude of 90 miles (146 kilometers) and a speed of 13,245 mph (21,317 km/h).
SpaceX’s Starship booster mega 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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Musk said preliminary analysis suggests the fuel leak may have created pressure in a cavity above the engine’s firewall. Fire suppression will be added to the area, along with increased ventilation and double-checking for leaks, he said via X.
The 400-foot (123-meter) rocket took off late in the afternoon from Boca Chica Beach near the Mexican border. The late hour ensured the entry halfway around the world into the Indian Ocean during the day. But the shiny, retro-looking spacecraft never made it nearly as far.
SpaceX improved the spacecraft for the latest demo and added a fleet of mock-up satellites. The test satellites were the same size as the SpaceX’s Starlink internet satellites and, like the spacecraft, were to be destroyed upon entry.
Musk plans to launch actual Starlinks on Starship before moving on to other satellites and, eventually, crews.
SpaceX’s Starship booster mega 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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It was the seventh test flight of the largest and most powerful rocket in the world. NASA has reserved a pair of Starships to land astronauts on the moon later this decade. Musk’s goal is Mars.
A few hours earlier in Florida, the rocket company of another billionaire — Jeff Bezos Blue Origin — launched the newest large rocket, the New Glenn. The rocket reached orbit on its first flight, successfully placing an experimental satellite thousands of miles above Earth. But the first stage was destroyed, missing its target landing on a floating platform in the Atlantic.
