Musk's Infinite Challenge... SpaceX Spaceship Starship Explodes Again (Summary)

Succeeded in High-Altitude Flight but Exploded During Landing Process

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] Starship, the Mars colonization spacecraft being developed by SpaceX, a private space exploration company led by Elon Musk, exploded again during the landing process.

According to CNBC on the 2nd (local time), the Starship prototype 'SN9', which was test-launched for the second time at the Boca Chica launch site in Texas, USA, around 2:25 PM, succeeded in flying at an altitude of about 10 km but exploded during the landing process.

The explosion of the unmanned SN9, which is as tall as a 16-story building, is presumed to have been caused by an error during the landing attempt using aerodynamic control by tilting the aircraft's nose downward.

SN9 plunged straight to the ground and exploded in flames.

Previously, the prototype 'SN8', test-launched in December last year, also flew for about 7 minutes and reached its highest altitude but exploded during landing.

SpaceX stated that although SN9 exploded like SN8, this test flight was a step forward in spacecraft development.

John Insprucker, SpaceX's integration engineer, said, "This flight was the second test flight of launching the spacecraft, and like last December, the condition was good and stable. We have a lot of excellent data and achieved the main capabilities targeted during the launch process."

He added, "Only the landing needs a little more refinement."

Meanwhile, Starship is a massive spacecraft aimed at carrying about 100 people and 100 tons of cargo to the Moon and Mars. Musk has mentioned that Starship will be ready for orbital flight within this year.