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SpaceX’s Starship takes flight, crashes and explodes again, but there may still be some good news for Elon Musk

John Insprucker, a SpaceX engineer said: 'We demonstrated the ability to transition the engines to the landing propellant tanks, the subsonic reentry looked very good and stable'

On Tuesday, February 2, Starship SN9, SpaceX's early prototype for a rocket Elon Musk’s company hopes will carry the first humans to Mars, launched a high-altitude test flight. The test, however, saw the vehicle travel a few miles up in the air, hover for a moment and ultimately explode landing back on the launch pad at a test site in Boca Chica, Texas.

Just like the test flight in December 2020, this too ended in a crash. But there is still hope. As per a New York Times report, SN9 rose to an altitude of about six miles. But even as the 160-foot tall rocket appeared to tip over on its side as it descended in a controlled belly flop back toward a landing, the prototype fired its engines to right itself back to a vertical orientation. However, one engine, as could be seen, did not properly ignite, and SN9 hit the ground at an angle. As soon as it touched the ground, it turned into a fireball.

Despite the explosion, there’s good news

John Insprucker, a SpaceX engineer hosting a webcast of the test, said: “We had, again, another great flight up… We’ve just got to work on that landing a little bit,” adding, “So all told, another great [flight] -- and a reminder, this is a test flight, the second time we’ve launched starship in this configuration.” The Times also reported that while the end fate was similar to the last test flight -- which also ended in an explosion at landing -- the particular cause of the rocket failing to slow down enough may have been different. This is being seen as a positive by many.

Tyler Gray, a writer, and reporter for NASA Spaceflight wrote on Twitter: “Well, that’s another one lost. Fortunately, #SpaceX now has plenty of data to suggest that #Starship can remain stable upon descent, which is a big thing. In the words of @jinsprucker, ‘just have to work on that landing a little bit.’ #SN9” Insprucker said the same thing: “We’ve got a lot of good data, and [achieved] the primary objective to demonstrate control of the vehicle and the subsonic reentry.”

Insprucker added, “We demonstrated the ability to transition the engines to the landing propellant tanks, the subsonic reentry looked very good and stable.”

Watch the Live feed of Starship SN9 flight test here

At the same time, fans of SpaceX remained hopeful even in the face of this explosive failure. One Twitter user argued, “This is why it’s called a TEST flight. Shit like this going down during tests is a GOOD thing. It allows for them to see what the data from that was and make adjustments and fix mistakes accordingly without worrying about loss of human life.”

Brazilian racing driver Lucas Tucci di Grassi tweeted, “#kaboom #spaceX SN9 flipping maneuver didn’t go so well.. But amazing nevertheless.”

Other snags

As per a CNN report, last Thursday, January 28, even as Starship SN9 was fueled and ready, the Federal Aviation Administration sent out a surprising advisory that said the launch had been scrubbed. The FAA, which oversees US airspace as well as licenses rocket launches, ordered SpaceX to halt operations "that could affect public safety," the agency said. 

The statement came a few days after Musk publicly chastized the FAA for getting in the company’s way as it develops and tests the Starship prototype, the spacecraft SpaceX hopes to fly to the moon and Mars. Meanwhile. Musk is keeping mum on Twitter as he left a five-worded message for followers "Off Twitter for a while."