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SpaceX’s latest high-altitude Starship test flight ends in another explosion
SpaceX's latest Starship test flight apparently ended with another explosion Tuesday in South Texas, but dense fog obscured clear views of the launch and failed landing. The Federal Aviation Administration said late Tuesday it is working with SpaceX to determine if light debris reported in a nearby town came from the Starship test rocket.
SpaceX’s next Starship test flight delayed to Tuesday
SpaceX scrubbed the launch of its next Starship test rocket Friday afternoon, and the the next opportunity for the atmospheric test flight is now expected Tuesday. SpaceX plans to launch and land the rocket at company's South Texas development complex after losing three previous prototypes in explosions.
Launch companies, range teams reassessing Cape Canaveral weather rules
Launch companies and U.S. Space Force range officials at Cape Canaveral are reassessing long-standing weather rules, looking at beefing up rocket defenses against lightning, and considering strategies to prepare for two different launch windows on a given day to guard against weather delays, something SpaceX may demonstrate with a Falcon 9 launch early Thursday.
VideoSpaceX nails Starship landing, but rocket explodes minutes later
The latest prototype of SpaceX's Starship launch vehicle -- Starship SN10 -- took off from the company's South Texas test site and flew to an altitude of more than 30,000 feet Wednesday, then descended to a controlled vertical landing after two previous test vehicles crashed at touchdown. Minutes later, the 16-story test rocket exploded in a fireball, but the test flight appeared to be a major step forward in the early stages of the Starship program.
VideoSpaceX Starship prototype lost in test flight landing mishap
SpaceX launched a prototype Starship rocket Tuesday from its Boca Chica, Texas, flight facility, successfully sending the silver booster up to an altitude of about six miles as planned. But the unpiloted test flight ended with a spectacular explosion when the rocket failed to right itself and slow down enough for a tail-first landing.
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Second high-altitude Starship test flight ends in landing explosion
Starship completed a successful climb to approximately 10 kilometers altitude and then descended horizontally toward the landing site. It appeared to lose control as it was in the process of flipping back to a vertical position and exploded as it bellyflopped onto the landing pad. Watch a replay of the test flight.
VideoFAA approves Starship test after saying SpaceX violated safety rules on last flight
SpaceX defied public safety rules on its most recent Starship launch over South Texas in December, the Federal Aviation Administration said Tuesday as it approved a license for SpaceX's next high-altitude Starship test flight scheduled for the same day.
Full video of Starship’s seven-minute high-altitude test flight
This video replay shot from South Padre Island shows SpaceX’s Starship SN8 prototype rocket taking off from Boca Chica, Texas, climbing high into the atmosphere, then gliding back to a fiery crash landing after an otherwise successful test flight.
Spectators watch the final fiery moments of the Starship test flight
Spectators on South Padre Island watch the Starship prototype end its test flight in a fiery crash landing.
SpaceX’s Starship achieves most objectives in mesmerizing test flight
A full-size prototype of SpaceX’s heavy-lift Starship launch vehicle soared high into the atmosphere Wednesday in a spectacular test flight over South Texas, and successfully guided itself to a beachside landing site before exploding at touchdown. Elon Musk, SpaceX’s founder and CEO, hailed the nearly seven-minute test flight as a success.