SpaceX’s Starship rocket conducted its ninth test flight on Tuesday evening, surpassing previous failed attempts but ultimately losing control mid-flight.
The rocket, launched from Starbase at approximately 6:37 p.m. CST, successfully reached space, unlike the seventh and eighth test flights. However, a propellant leak caused the spacecraft to spin out of control, leading to its disintegration upon re-entering Earth’s atmosphere. The debris fell into the Indian Ocean, away from inhabited areas.
SpaceX had planned to conduct multiple tests during the flight, including deploying next-generation Starlink satellite simulators and evaluating heat shield improvements. Unfortunately, due to the unexpected failure, these tests could not be executed.
Elon Musk described the flight as a “big improvement over the last flight,” noting that Starship retained most of its heat shield tiles. However, SpaceX will need to analyse flight data to determine next steps in its ambitious pursuit of a reusable interplanetary vehicle.
