Washington: SpaceX faced another challenge on Sunday as its ninth Starship test flight ended in failure, with the rocket exploding over the Indian Ocean just 30 minutes after liftoff from Texas. The uncrewed test was part of Elon Musk’s ambitious plan to eventually send humans to Mars.
The rocket had been expected to release mock satellites, but a malfunctioning payload bay door disrupted the mission. Despite the setback, Musk described the flight as a “big improvement” over previous tests.
In a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter), Musk revealed that Starship successfully reached the point of scheduled engine cutoff and maintained its heat shield during ascent. However, leaks during the coasting and re-entry phases caused a loss of main tank pressure, ultimately leading to the explosion.
“Lots of good data to review,” Musk noted, while also promising faster progress: “Launch cadence for the next 3 flights will be faster—approximately one every 3 to 4 weeks.”
The 400-foot Starship is central to Musk’s Mars vision and is designed to be fully reusable for cost-efficient space travel. Though he was expected to deliver a speech about the mission at Starbase, the presentation was delayed.
SpaceX continues to push forward with its goal of making life multiplanetary, learning from each test along the way.