The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and officials from the Turks and Caicos Islands have launched probes into SpaceX's explosive Starship rocket test that sent debris streaking over the northern Caribbean and forced airlines to divert dozens of flights.
The United States on Friday grounded SpaceX's Starship and ordered Elon Musk's company to investigate why the spaceship spectacularly disintegrated in a fiery cascade over the Caribbean during its latest test mission.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk made light of Starship's fiery end. "Success is uncertain, but entertainment is guaranteed!" he said on X.
The FAA says it has grounded the Starship vehicle pending a mishap investigation, and it is working with the company to assess reports of property damage in Turks and Caicos.
After SpaceX’s Starship exploded over Turks and Caicos on Thursday, the FAA launched an investigation, demanding answers into the mishap.
A SpaceX Starship rocket broke up in space minutes after launching from Texas on Thursday, forcing airline flights over the Gulf of Mexico to alter course to avoid falling debris and setting back Elon Musk's flagship rocket program.
SpaceX suspects a fire may have caused its Starship to break apart during liftoff and send trails of flaming debris near the Caribbean. SpaceX's Elon Musk said preliminary indications are that leaking fuel built up pressure in the cavity above the engine firewall. The resulting fire would have doomed the spacecraft.
The "rapid unscheduled disassembly" was likely caused by a propellant leak, Elon Musk said, and was captured on video by spectators on the ground.
In a statement following the accident, the FAA said that it was working with SpaceX and other authorities to confirm the property damage caused by the debris that fell in the Turks and Islands
SpaceX announced that its Starship experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly during its ascent burn on Friday, forcin
The US Federal Aviation Administration on Friday grounded SpaceX’s Starship pending an investigation by Elon Musk’s company into why the rocket’s upper stage dramatically disintegrated in a fiery cascade over the Caribbean during its latest test flight.