Texas – SpaceX’s Starship spacecraft exploded in space on Thursday, just minutes after launching from Texas, marking the second consecutive failure this year for Elon Musk’s Mars-bound rocket program. The incident prompted the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to briefly halt air traffic in parts of Florida due to space launch debris.
Videos circulating on social media captured fiery debris streaking through the skies near southern Florida and the Bahamas following the spacecraft’s in-flight breakup. SpaceX’s live stream showed Starship spinning uncontrollably with multiple engines shutting down before losing contact.
This eighth test of Starship follows a similar failure in January, underscoring challenges in early mission phases that the company had previously surpassed. The 403-foot (123-meter) rocket system is a key component of Musk’s vision to transport humans to Mars within the next decade.
The rocket launched at approximately 6:30 p.m. ET (2330 GMT) from SpaceX’s Boca Chica, Texas, facility. The Super Heavy booster successfully executed its return maneuver and was caught midair by a SpaceX crane as planned. However, minutes later, the Starship upper stage lost control, leading to its destruction.
Dan Huot, a SpaceX spokesperson, acknowledged the similarities to the previous failure, stating, “Unfortunately, this happened last time too, so we’ve got some practice now.”
In a statement, SpaceX attributed the incident to an “energetic event” in the spacecraft’s aft section, resulting in the loss of several engines, attitude control, and ultimately communication. The final contact with Starship occurred approximately 9 minutes and 30 seconds after liftoff. The company confirmed that the debris contained no toxic materials.
The FAA has launched an investigation into the failure, requiring SpaceX to determine the cause and secure approval before conducting another test. This comes after the agency had authorized Thursday’s launch despite an ongoing investigation into January’s failure.
Starship had been aiming for a nearly complete orbit of Earth before re-entering over the Indian Ocean in a simulated landing sequence—a crucial step in its future development for land-based returns.