SpaceX loses Starship in orbit, but catches booster of giant rocket again
The eighth test flight of SpaceX's giant rocket was also ultimately unsuccessful. Starship suffers loss of control in space, but at least the booster came back.
Starship two minutes before take-off
(Image: SpaceX-Video)
The eighth test flight of a SpaceX Starship was initially successful. The giant rocket had a picture-perfect launch in beautiful weather. After a few minutes, the booster used for take-off separated from the upper stage, the actual Starship, as planned, returned to earth and was captured again by the tower called "Mechazilla". Shortly afterwards, however, the Starship lost control and just lurched through space instead of orbiting the Earth as planned.
This is reminiscent of the previous, seventh test flight of the giant rocket. In mid-January, the Starship spacecraft exploded after take-off, but the booster was captured. As a result, debris crashed into the sea near Puerto Rico and the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had to divert several flights in the area. The seventh Starship was lost around eight and a half minutes after take-off. This has now also happened during the eighth test flight of the giant rocket.
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Shortly after the booster was captured, 8 minutes and 20 seconds after launch, one or more of the Starship's engines ignited, causing the spacecraft to spin and orbit uncontrollably above the Earth. During the live broadcast, the activity of the Starship's six Raptor engines was displayed. It became clear that several of them had failed. Initially, only two engines were still in operation and shortly afterwards only one. SpaceX then lost contact with the Starship. Presumably the giant rocket exploded again – or underwent a "rapid unscheduled disassembly", as SpaceX calls it.
A giant rocket for the colonization of Mars
The Starship consists of the approximately 70-metre-long "Super Heavy" booster and a 50-metre-long upper stage. The world's largest rocket is designed in such a way that the spaceship and rocket can be reused after returning to Earth. The rocket is to be used for humanity's return to the moon, but SpaceX promises flights to Mars.
In April 2023, a complete Starship took off for the first time, but remained intact for only minutes. Six months later, the second launch attempt was successful before the rocket exploded again. Four more followed in 2024, three of which were successful. The two launches this year have so far only been partially successful: the booster was recaptured in both cases, still a spectacular process, but the rocket itself was once again lost before the mission could be completed.
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