On Thursday, SpaceX, led by Elon Musk, successfully launched the next-generation "Starship" spacecraft for the first time aboard the new Super Heavy rocket. The uncrewed test flight ended minutes later with the spacecraft exploding in the sky. The two-stage rocket, standing 120 meters tall—taller than the Statue of Liberty—took off from the company's Starbase facility in East Brownsville, Texas. SpaceX hoped that, at best, the flight would last 90 minutes.
A live broadcast from SpaceX showed the rocket rising from the launch tower into the sky while the Super Heavy engines emitted flames, exhaust plumes, and water vapor. However, less than four minutes into the launch, the upper stage of Starship did not separate from the lower stage of Super Heavy as planned, and the spacecraft was seen flipping upside down before exploding. The spacecraft reached an altitude of about 32 kilometers before disintegrating.
Despite this, SpaceX officials cheered during the live broadcast and stated that the short test flight was a success. Elon Musk, the founder and CEO of SpaceX, tweeted, "Congrats to the SpaceX team on an exciting test launch of Starship! Learned a lot for the next test launch in a few months." SpaceX streams events live on their YouTube channel.
