The aircraft was unmanned and was flying test at about 40,000 feet (12 kilometers) above sea level.
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Elon Musk’s ambitious Starship project suffered a setback on Wednesday when the SN8 prototype was subjected to a rapid unscheduled disassembly event, while attempting to land after a high altitude suborbital flight test.
The aircraft was unmanned and was conducting a flight test at about 40,000 feet (12 kilometers) high.
The incident had already been predicted by Musk, admitting that the rocket had little chance of complete success in the first attempt. “A lot of things have to go right, so maybe there’s a one in three chance” that the spacecraft will land in one piece, the space company’s CEO previously said.
Despite the inconveniences, the South African tycoon congratulated the SpaceX team, while explaining the reasons for the explosion. “The fuel tank pressure it was low during landing, causing the landing speed to be high, “Musk tweeted.
Likewise, the businessman pointed out that they obtained “all data” they needed during the test.
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Moreover, in a statement posted on its website prior to launch, SpaceX warned that even if a crash or explosion occurred, that it wouldn’t necessarily be a failure for this flight.
“With a test like this, success is not measured by the achievement of specific objectives, but by how much can we learn, which will inform and improve the likelihood of success in the future, as SpaceX rapidly advances the development of Starship, “the company said.
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