SpaceX Elon Musk's Starship rocket fails to launch

The SpaceX test launch came just hours after the first launch of the Blue Origin New Glenn rocket system, backed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.

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Starship rocket launch from Texas, Photo: EPA
Starship rocket launch from Texas, Photo: EPA
Disclaimer: The translations are mostly done through AI translator and might not be 100% accurate.

The latest test launch of the large Starship rocket from the American company SpaceX was unsuccessful, which became clear just minutes after launch.

The upper part of the spacecraft was lost due to problems that occurred shortly after takeoff from Texas on Thursday, January 16, officials from the company owned by American billionaire Elon Musk said.

But the base part of the Super Heavy engine returned to the launch site as planned, drawing great applause from the team that controlled the flight from the ground.

SpaceX's test flight began just hours after the first flight of the Blue Origin New Glenn rocket system, backed by Amazon owner Jeff Bezos.

Two billionaires want to dominate the spaceflight market in the future.

"The starship experienced a rapid and unplanned disintegration during takeoff with flames."

"Our teams will continue to analyze data from today's test flight to better understand the causes," SpaceX said in a post on the X platform.

"When it comes to trials like this, success comes through learning, and today's flight will help us improve Starship's reliability," they added.

A video circulating on social media, the authenticity of which has not yet been established, shows the rocket disintegrating in flames.

Orange balls of light can also be seen flying through the sky over Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, leaving trails of smoke behind them.

"Success is not certain, but fun is guaranteed," Elon Musk posted on the X platform, where he also shared a video of a fire trail in the sky.

He also announced that an "improved version" of the spacecraft and engines "are already waiting for launch."

"Initial indications indicate that we had an oxygen or fuel leak into the cavity above the engine shroud, which was large enough to create pressure that exceeded the capacity of the ventilation system," Musk announced.

He added that "there is nothing to suggest that a new launch should be postponed beyond next month."

The launch video was watched by 7,2 million people, according to streaming data from SpaceX.

Starship took off from the Boca Chica base in Texas at 17.38:XNUMX p.m. local time, which was the company's seventh test launch.

The incident occurred about four minutes after takeoff.

At that time, Dan Huot, SpaceX's chief spokesman, said in a broadcast that teams on the ground had lost contact with the spacecraft.

The engine portion of the spacecraft returned to the launch site about seven minutes after launch.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) says it was aware "that an anomaly had occurred" during the SpaceX mission.

"The FAA quickly slowed and redirected aircraft to the area where the missile fragments were falling. Normal operations have resumed," they said in a statement.

The day before, a SpaceX rocket took off from Florida, carrying two moon landing machines built by private companies and a small rover.

The Falcon 9 spacecraft took off unmanned from Kennedy Space Center.

Bezos' company Blue Origin has successfully launched a rocket into orbit.

It's a big step for Bezos and his company, which has worked for years to achieve that goal.

Watch a video of an earlier launch of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket

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