Before the tenth test flight: Starship explodes on the ground

During an engine test in Texas, the upper stage of SpaceX's Starship exploded before its tenth test flight. The “severe anomaly” occurred at around 11 p.m. local time, SpaceX confirmed via its account on the social network X. Fortunately, no employees were injured, as a safety zone was set up during the test. The company is currently working with the relevant authorities to secure the accident site. There was no danger to the surrounding area.

Images from NASASpaceflight.com show dramatic pictures of the explosion: a massive fireball shot into the dark sky over Texas after the 52-meter-high upper stage on the test stand went up in flames. According to SpaceX, the incident occurred shortly before a planned static-fire test.

Another setback for the Starship program

The incident represents a further setback for the Starship program. In static-fire tests, the engines are briefly ignited while the vehicle remains anchored to the ground – a standard procedure before every launch. A successful static fire test with a single Raptor engine had already been carried out for the upper stage in question. The failed test was possibly intended to ignite all six engines of the upper stage.

The explosion is one in a series of problems with Starship upper stages. During the three most recent test flights in January, March, and May of this year, the upper stage broke up during the mission. While on flights 7 and 8 the “rapid unscheduled disassembly” – SpaceX jargon for explosion – took place less than ten minutes after launch, the upper stage flew much further on flight 9. SpaceX only lost contact after 46 minutes, and the debris is presumed to be at the bottom of the Indian Ocean.

Super Heavy, much more reliable

In contrast, the Super Heavy first stage with its 33 Raptor engines performed much better. On Flights 7 and 8, the booster successfully returned to the starbase and was caught by the launch tower's “chopstick” arms – a spectacular maneuver that serves the purpose of reusability.

SpaceX has ambitious plans for the Starship system, which consists of the reusable Super Heavy first stage and the 171-foot-tall Starship upper stage. The system is intended not only to enable Mars colonization, but also to support other space missions.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is currently investigating the Flight 9 incident. An official launch date for Starship Flight 10 has therefore not yet been announced – After Wednesday's explosion, the schedule will have to be revised anyway. SpaceX founder Elon Musk actually wanted to increase the test frequency to make faster progress. SpaceX is developing the Starship as the largest and most powerful rocket system in the world.

(mki)