In 9th flight test, SpaceX's Starship experiences 'rapid unscheduled disassembly'
Source: ABC News
Elon Musk and SpaceX are getting a little closer to sending humans to Mars, but they still have plenty of work to do.
After the last two test flights ended prematurely with the destruction of the spacecraft, Tuesday's Starship launch demonstrated that the vehicle could successfully reach orbit. However, an apparent propellant leak after the craft entered its suborbital trajectory caused a loss of attitude control, leaving the spacecraft spinning and mission control unable to control the craft.
Without the ability to steer the craft, SpaceX said it re-entered Earth's atmosphere at an angle that is not ideal for its heat shield. As a result, most of it was expected to burn up, with the remaining pieces falling into the Indian Ocean. The company said it cleared a large area of the landing zone to ensure public safety.
The company posted a statement on X reading, "As if the flight test was not exciting enough, Starship experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly. Teams will continue to review data and work toward our next flight test. With a test like this, success comes from what we learn, and today's test will help us improve Starship's reliability as SpaceX seeks to make life multiplanetary.”
Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/spacex-launch-9th-flight-test-starship-spacecraft-after/story?id=122204009
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