It marks the second failure this year for Elon Musk’s SpaceX Mars program…
Elon Musk’s SpaceX spacecraft was captured on camera exploding and falling back down to Earth in its second failed attempt this year to deploy mock satellites.
Starship’s Second Attempt of the Year Ends in Fiery Failure
SpaceX’s Starship suffered yet another setback, as its latest test flight ended in disaster just minutes after liftoff.
The spacecraft launched from Starbase, Texas, on March 3 at 5:30 PM CT, but within 10 minutes, things went horribly wrong—Starship lost contact with ground control and shattered into pieces.
This was Starship’s eighth flight test overall and the second attempt this year to deploy mock satellites. Despite high hopes, the mission fell short once again.
Later that day, SpaceX released a report detailing the test. The Super Heavy booster initially performed well, igniting all 33 Raptor engines and delivering a smooth first-stage ascent.
At around two and a half minutes into flight, the booster shut down all but three engines as planned for a hot-staging separation.
However, despite successfully relighting 11 of the 13 planned Raptor engines and initiating a boostback burn to return to the launch site, the mission soon took a disastrous turn—ending in a fiery failure instead of a triumphant landing.
Starship’s Tragic Failure: Loss of Raptor Engines and Communications Leads to Disaster
SpaceX’s Starship test flight met a tragic end, as detailed in the company’s report. Just before the ascent burn concluded, an energetic event in the rear of the spacecraft led to the loss of several Raptor engines, causing the vehicle to lose attitude control and eventually communications with ground control. The report also noted that this chain of events triggered a “rapid unscheduled disassembly”, culminating in Starship’s catastrophic failure. The final contact with the spacecraft was lost approximately 9 minutes and 30 seconds after liftoff.
The explosive failure briefly grounded flights at Florida airports, including those in Miami and Orlando, according to the BBC.
Social media quickly became a source of updates, with some residents of the Bahamas reporting witnessing debris disintegrating in the sky above them. In the aftermath, several shared videos, with one Twitter user captioning footage of the falling debris:
“If NASA had the failure rate SpaceX does, Elon Musk would be firing everyone, and Congress would be demanding to know where the money is going.”
SpaceX Responds Swiftly Following Starship’s Failure
In the wake of Starship’s catastrophic failure, SpaceX’s Twitter page provided an update, noting that the company’s team immediately coordinated with safety officials to activate pre-planned contingency measures.
The company reassured the public that Starship flew within a designated launch corridor, prioritizing safety for people on the ground, on water, and in the air.
SpaceX further emphasized that it **quickly engaged with the FAA, ATC (air traffic control), and other safety authorities to implement their emergency response protocols, ensuring public safety was always at the forefront of their operations.
https://twitter.com/GeneDoctorB/status/1897798175081005540
SpaceX Provides Assurance on Starship Debris and Focuses on Lessons Learned
SpaceX reassured the public that any surviving debris from Starship’s failed test flight would have fallen within the pre-planned Debris Response Area. The company confirmed that no toxic materials were present in the debris and emphasized that there would be no significant impact on marine life or water quality.
SpaceX asked anyone who might encounter potential debris to contact local authorities to ensure safe recovery.
The company concluded with a statement about their commitment to learning from the failure, saying, “We will review the data from today’s flight test to better understand the root cause. As always, success comes from what we learn, and today’s flight will offer additional lessons to improve Starship’s reliability.”
SpaceX Commits to Thorough Investigation and Future Improvements Following Starship Failure
SpaceX expressed confidence in its ability to learn from the failure, stating, “With a test like this, success comes from what we learn, and today’s flight will help us improve Starship’s reliability.” The company emphasized its dedication to conducting a thorough investigation, in collaboration with the FAA, to identify the root cause and implement corrective actions aimed at improving future Starship flight tests.
