SpaceX's Starship spacecraft is apparently destroyed after launch test: Watch video
A new version of SpaceX's Starship spacecraft was apparently destroyed during its first flight launch of 2025 that blasted off from south Texas on Thursday afternoon.
"Starship experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly during its ascent burn. Teams will continue to review data from today's flight test to better understand root cause," SpaceX wrote on X. "With a test like this, success comes from what we learn, and today’s flight will help us improve Starship’s reliability."
At 4:49 p.m. CT, SpaceX senior manager and host Kate Tice said during a livestream that the team lost contact with the uncrewed ship, later announcing the spacecraft had presumably been lost.
Officials said a couple of engines dropped out during the ascent phase but could not offer a direct explanation for the outcome. The launch was the seventh overall flight test of the 400-foot-tall Starship that took place from SpaceX's Starbase in Boca Chica near Brownsville, Texas.
'It's about to fall on top of us'
Several videos shared on social media show what appear to be the remains of the spacecraft breaking up in what looks like a stunning meteor shower.
One video captured the reactions of flabbergasted bystanders witnessing the rare event. It is unclear where that video was being filmed.
it is beautiful though 😭 pic.twitter.com/rQpdrsJ8VX
— strwb (@strwbcom) January 16, 2025
"That's the coolest (expletive) I ever seen in my life," someone watching the breakup is heard saying.
"It's about to fall on top of us," someone else says.
More on the rocket launch
Despite the spacecraft being lost, SpaceX did manage to successfully complete the rocket booster return and catch at the launch pad for the second time ever. The booster was caught with the pair of giant mechanical arms referred to as "chopsticks."
The maneuver was only pulled off once prior during an Oct. 13 demonstration, and was called off during a Nov. 19 liftoff.
SpaceX received Federal Aviation Administration permission on Dec. 17 to launch after the sixth flight test on Nov. 19. The November launch completed successfully in Boca Chica and was observed by SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and President-elect Donald Trump, just over a week after his 2024 victory.
Initially scheduled for 4 p.m. local time, the liftoff was slightly postponed to 4:37 p.m. The launch was initially slated for Monday afternoon before SpaceX moved it back to Wednesday and then later rescheduled for Thursday due to inclement weather.
Watch the Starship flight test and boost catch
What is the purpose of the Starship?
Musk's goal is for the SpaceX vehicle, which is composed of both the 165-foot Starship spacecraft itself and the 232-foot Super Heavy rocket, to be a fully reusable system that can transport humans and cargo to Earth's orbit, the moon, Mars and back.
The Starship is due to play a vital role in NASA's lunar ambitions amid a heated international space race to get back to the moon. As part of the U.S. space agency's ambitious Artemis campaign, its first lunar program since the Apollo era of the 1970s, NASA is paying SpaceX $4 million to develop a spacecraft capable of safely transporting astronauts from orbit to the moon's surface.
Musk also envisions the Starship as the vehicle that will eventually lead to the colonization of Mars having presiously said the first Starships trip to Mars would be in late 2026, when Earth and Mars are lined up. Crewed flights will follow by 2028.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: SpaceX Starship spacecraft explodes after launch: See video.