Drone’s view of Sunday’s SpaceX rocket landing

Technicians planned to attach two Boeing-built communications satellites to a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket Monday, a day after launch controllers fueled the rocket and fired its nine Merlin first stage engines in a key preflight test.

Investigators probing the Sept. 1 explosion of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on its launch pad in Florida believe a high-pressure gas tank inside the launcher’s upper stage most likely burst due to the conditions of the helium loaded into it, a finding that could simplify fixes needed before the commercial booster can return to service.

SpaceX launched and landed an upgraded prototype for the company’s next-generation Starship vehicle in South Texas on Wednesday, the company’s first Starship test flight since winning a $2.9 billion NASA contract to use the craft to land astronauts on the Moon.