Thursday was another bad day for the space company SpaceX, because during a test flight of an unmanned Starship rocket, control over the rocket was lost and it exploded a few minutes after launch.
A spokesperson reported during the live broadcast that contact with the second stage of the rocket had been lost. The rocket was launched from Boca Chica in the American state of Texas. The rocket exploded in space and it is the second time that a test has failed. In January, the space company also tested a Starship rocket, but it also exploded.
The so-called Super Heavy launch vehicle did return to Earth as planned and was successfully grabbed out of the air by a Space X crane. An investigation into the cause of the explosion is being launched, but SpaceX says on X that they also learn from mistakes: "With a test like this, success comes from what we learn, and today's flight will help us improve Starship's reliability."
Several videos are circulating on social media showing debris lighting up the sky near the US state of Florida and the Bahamas. Due to the flying debris, many flights had to be diverted near the Turks and Caicos Islands. Flights were temporarily suspended from the airports of Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando and Palm Beach in Florida. This delay could be up to 45 minutes. Via.
Source: © Dailybuzz.nl