Test-fired booster rocket bursts into flames at SpaceX plant

A booster rocket developed by Elon Musk’s SpaceX for its next-generation Starship spacecraft burst into flames throughout a ground-test firing on Monday in Texas, dealing a possible setback to Musk’s purpose of launching Starship to orbit this yr.

“Yeah, actually not good. Team is assessing damage,” Musk said on Twitter after the early night explosion of the Super Heavy Booster 7 prototype, as seen in a livestream recorded by the web site NASA Spaceflight.

There was no speedy indication of accidents.

The explosion, which engulfed the bottom of the rocket in a ball of flames and heavy smoke and appeared to shake the video digicam, was particular to the engine spin begin take a look at, Musk said on Tuesday.

“Going forward, we won’t do a spin start test with all 33 engines at once,” he said on Twitter.

The booster remained standing upright, bolted to a take a look at gantry afterward.

The failure got here within the midst of a dayslong static fireplace take a look at marketing campaign in Boca Chica, Texas, of the booster, geared up with an array of 33 Raptor engines to be used in an upcoming uncrewed orbital take a look at flight SpaceX hoped to launch later this yr.

SpaceX’s full Starship, which can stand 394 toes (120 meters) tall when mated with its super-heavy first-stage booster, is the corporate’s next-generation launch car at the middle of Musk’s ambitions to make human area travel extra inexpensive and routine.

SpaceX didn’t instantly reply to a Reuters request for touch upon Monday’s blast.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) additionally didn’t instantly reply when requested if it might examine the explosion.

In late 2020 and early 2021, SpaceX misplaced 4 prototypes of the Starship itself in a sequence of high-altitude take a look at launches when the return touchdown makes an attempt led to explosions. The Starship prototype lastly made a protected landing in May 2021.

Reporting by Joey Roulette in Washington and Juby Babu in Bengaluru; Editing by Neil Fullick and Clarence Fernandez