On April 20, SpaceX launched its Starship rocket, the largest and most powerful ever flown, from a site in Texas. The unmanned rocket flew successfully for only a few minutes before exploding in midair. The dramatic scene was live-streamed and viewed by many on the ground, also raining down debris on a nearby town. Though some may view the explosion as a mark of complete failure, SpaceX has remained positive, citing the incident as a learning experience.

In 2021, NASA contracted SpaceX to build a version of their Starship rocket to carry astronauts to the moon during the Artemis III mission in late 2025. In its April launch, the Starship was meant to orbit once around the Earth and then re-enter the atmosphere, landing in the Pacific Ocean near Hawaii. The launch, however, fell short of those goals. After launching, the Starship flew successfully for two minutes and achieved a maximum altitude of about 24 miles, providing engineers with crucial data to understand the rocket’s performance. Unfortunately, several engines failed during the launch, and the rocket’s upper stage (which provides the thrust to launch and maintain trajectory) failed to separate. Starship’s automated Flight Termination System was then triggered, leading to the explosion over the Gulf of Mexico. This was likely done by SpaceX engineers themselves, looking to self-destruct the out-of-control rocket to prevent possible harm to those on the ground. 

Despite criticism, SpaceX does not view the incident as a failure, but as a learning curve, with some employees even cheering after the Starship’s explosion. The company said the launch provided its engineers with valuable information, regardless of its shortcomings. Despite this, the Federal Aviation Administration, which regulates civil aviation, has temporarily grounded the Starship fleet, citing safety concerns.

In spite of its failures, April’s SpaceX launch marks a key step towards further technological advancements for the company. By continuing to develop these technologies, we will enter an exciting era of new possibilities and frontiers in space exploration.