00:00 SpaceX's colossal Starship spacecraft exploded during its second major test flight, but all
00:10 was not in vain.
00:11 The test reportedly achieved new milestones that advance Elon Musk's crucial Deep Space
00:16 Launch System.
00:17 As the Starship spacecraft was heading to near-orbit, it appeared to burst on an ex-live
00:23 stream.
00:24 Later, the hosts of the live stream said that Starship likely had been lost.
00:29 They believed that the vehicle's flight termination system activated while the vehicle was attempting
00:34 to reach near-orbit.
00:35 The flight termination system is used to destroy a rocket if it starts to malfunction or deviates
00:40 from its flight path during a launch.
00:43 SpaceX's post on X-Red, the world's most powerful launch vehicle ever developed, powered by
00:48 33 Raptor engines, lifting off from Starbase.
00:53 Starship is the largest and most powerful rocket ever developed by SpaceX.
00:58 It successfully took off from SpaceX's Starbase launch facility in Boca Chica, Texas, riding
01:04 atop its massive Super Heavy booster.
01:07 The flight appeared to begin smoothly, with the vehicle clearing the launch tower.
01:11 The two vehicles separated as planned a little more than two-and-a-half minutes into the
01:15 mission, which is a feat SpaceX failed to accomplish on the vehicle's first test flight
01:20 in April.
01:21 However, soon after the separation, the Super Heavy booster burst apart for reasons not
01:26 immediately clear.
01:28 Starship continued onward on its path to reach near-orbit and eventually reached space for
01:32 the first time.
01:33 But roughly eight minutes into the flight, a large cloud of debris could be seen surrounding
01:37 the spacecraft, and SpaceX said that it had lost data from the vehicle.
01:42 The Federal Aviation Administration said by email that a mishap occurred during the launch,
01:47 though no injuries or public property damage were reported.
01:50 The FAA will oversee a SpaceX-led mishap investigation.
01:55 Starship is designed to carry payloads and people to distant destinations like the Moon
01:59 and Mars, making it central to Musk's vision of starting a settlement on the Red Planet.
02:09 [BLANK_AUDIO]
Comments