The US Federal Aviation Administration opened an investigation into the SpaceX case Spacecraft An explosion over Turks and Caicos on Thursday. The explosion occurred during the vehicle's recent test launch, which SpaceX CEO Elon Musk described as a major step toward humanity's journey into space. Mars.

“After stage separation, the Starship’s upper stage successfully lit all six Raptor engines and performed the ascent into space,” SpaceX said in a statement. statement. “Before the burn was complete, the vehicle's telemetry was lost about eight and a half minutes into the flight. Preliminary data indicates a fire occurred in the aft portion of the vessel, resulting in an unscheduled rapid disassembly.

Since April 2023, SpaceX has been testing the launch and recovery capabilities of its Super Heavy Booster and Starship spacecraft for future use. After the explosion, Musk addressed the issue on X (formerly Twitter), where he analyzed what went wrong based on raw data.

“The initial indication is that we had an oxygen/fuel leak in the cavity at the top of the ship's engine firewall that was large enough to build pressure beyond the vent capacity,” Musk said. books. “Apart from double checking for leaks, we will add fire suppression to this volume and possibly increase ventilation space. Nothing yet indicates that the next launch will be postponed beyond next month.

Meanwhile, SpaceX successfully recovered the super-heavy booster using a launch tower called a "Michazela," which held the booster between two massive arms. Despite this success, the Federal Aviation Administration ordered SpaceX to report the spacecraft accident.

“The FAA is requesting that SpaceX conduct an unfortunate investigation into the loss of the Starship vehicle during launch operations on January 16,” the FAA said in a statement. statement. “There are no reports of public injuries, and the FAA is working with SpaceX and appropriate authorities to confirm reports of damage to public property in the Turks and Caicos Islands.”

In a message to publish The Federal Aviation Administration told X on Friday that it would oversee SpaceX's investigation into the cause of the explosion and the diversion of air traffic from the area.

“The FAA ensures safe and efficient launches and reentries into our national airspace,” the agency said. “In the event of an unfortunate incident, the FAA can quickly identify affected airspace and take necessary actions to protect aircraft from falling debris.”

The FAA declined to comment on the investigation when contacted Decryption.

SpaceX, unafraid of loss, is preparing to launch its next spacecraft.

“The ship and booster were built for Starship’s eighth flight test and are undergoing pre-launch testing and preparing for flight, as we continue a rapid iterative development process to build a fully reusable, rapid space transportation system,” the company said.

Modified by Andrew Hayward