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SpaceX's Starship rocket lifts off for inaugural test flight, but explodes midair

Originally Published: 20 APR 23 09:45 ET Updated: 20 APR 23 10:51 ET By Jackie Wattles and Ashley Strickland, CNN (CNN) -- SpaceX's Starship, the most powerful rocket ever built, took off from a launch pad on the coast of South Texas on Thursday at 9:28 a.m. ET, but exploded midair before stage separation. Thursday's launch marked the vehicle's historic first test flight. "As if the flight test was not exciting enough, Starship experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly before stage separation," SpaceX tweeted. The massive Super Heavy rocket booster, which houses 33 engines, lifted off and sent a massive boom across the coastal landscape as it fired to life. The Starship spacecraft, riding atop the booster, soared out over the Gulf of Mexico. About two and a half minutes after takeoff, the Super Heavy rocket booster was scheduled to expend most of its fuel and separate from the Starship spacecraft, leaving the booster to be discarded in the ocean. The Starship was meant to use its own engines, blazing for more than six minutes, to propel itself to nearly orbital speeds. The flight reached its highest point 24.2 miles (39 kilometers) above the ground and the explosion occurred about four minutes after liftoff, according to SpaceX. SpaceX said that "teams will continue to review data and work toward our next flight test." Defining success for Starship Although it ended in an explosion, Thursday's test met several of the company's objectives for the vehicle. Clearing the launch pad was a major milestone for Starship. In the lead-up to Thursday's liftoff, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk sought to temper expectations, saying, "success is not what should be expected...That would be insane." "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 multi-planetary," SpaceX tweeted after the explosion. Musk congratulated the team on "an exciting test launch" in a post-launch tweet and said they "learned a lot for next test launch in a few months." SpaceX will need a new launch license from the FAA to make another attempt, but the company does not expect the process to be as laborious as securing the license for Thursday's launch. NASA administrator Bill Nelson took to Twitter to share his congratulations on the flight test. "Every great achievement throughout history has demanded some level of calculated risk, because with great risk comes great reward. Looking forward to all that SpaceX learns, to the next flight test —and beyond." The test flight comes after years of explosive tests, regulatory hurdles and public hyping from Musk. The company has been known to embrace fiery mishaps during the rocket development process. SpaceX maintains that such accidents are the quickest and most efficient way of gathering data, an approach that sets the company apart from its close partner NASA, which prefers slow, methodical testing over dramatic flare-ups. Musk has talked about Starship — making elaborate presentations about its design and purpose — for years, and he frequently harps on its potential for carrying cargo and humans to Mars, though NASA also plans to use the vehicle to put its astronauts on the moon. He's even said that his sole purpose for founding SpaceX was to develop a vehicle like Starship that could establish a human settlement on the Red Planet. Throngs of spectators lined local beaches to catch a glimpse of Starship's takeoff, pouring onto beaches with fold-out chairs, children and dogs in tow. It echoed the turnout on Monday, at the company's first launch attempt, which was ultimately left grounded as engineers worked to troubleshoot an issue with a valve on the Super heavy booster. In the area surrounding Starbase — SpaceX's name for the Starship development site that lies on Texas' southernmost tip — many locals have greeted the rocket with fervid enthusiasm. Throughout the area, there are signs of Starship permeating the local culture: a model Starship in a front yard, a "Rocket Ranch" camping ground filled with diehard enthusiasts, and a billboard advertising Martian beer. What to know about this rocket Development of Starship has been based at SpaceX's privately held spaceport about 40 minutes outside Brownsville, Texas, on the US-Mexico border. Testing began years ago with brief "hop tests" of early spacecraft prototypes. The company started with brief flights that lifted a few dozen feet off the ground before evolving to high-altitude flights, most of which resulted in dramatic explosions as the company attempted to land the prototypes upright. One suborbital flight test in May 2021, however, ended in success. Since then, SpaceX has also been working to get its Super Heavy booster prepared for flight. The gargantuan, 230-foot-tall (69-meter-tall) cylinder is packed with 33 of the company's Raptor engines. Fully stacked, Starship and Super Heavy stand about 400 feet (120 meters) tall.

Free Speech vs. National Security in Proposed TikTok Ban

Libertad de expresión frente a seguridad nacional en la propuesta de prohibición de TikTok

With its dancing cats and lip-synched grandmas, TikTok has gained a massive foothold in the US, but lawmakers here say the platform threatens privacy rights and raises serious national security concerns.

Postseason Atmosphere Lead Astros To Victory Over Blue Jays

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Texas Southern Cheerleaders Make History As the First HBCU to Win the NCAA National NCA Cheer Competition Title in 75 Years

TS, TS, TS, TSU, U,U, U, I thought you knew! If you didn’t know, now you do. The Texas Southern University (TSU) cheerleaders have put Texas Southern University and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) on the map as the first HBCU to win the 2023 NCAA collegiate National Cheer Association Championship title. In NCA’s 75-year history, no HBCU has ever won the national cheer competition.

Mayor Sylvester Turner Announces New Houston Poet Laureate, Aris Kian Brown

In celebration of National Poetry Month, Mayor Sylvester Turner is pleased to announce the new Houston Poet Laureate: Aris Kian Brown. Brown is the sixth poet laureate and the youngest to be chosen.

Blessed are the children

Blessed are the children – this is the teaching of every religion. The miracle of birth and the joy of new life are transcendent. In this rich country, however, too many babies and too many mothers are at risk – and far too many are dying. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that new mothers in America are dying at a higher rate than those in any other industrial country. A higher percentage of children die before their first birthday in the U.S. than in any other industrial country.

2 Felony Charges For White Man Who Shot Black Teen For Ringing His Doorbell

Everyone should have the right to feel safe within their homes. However, the line between self defense and self incrimination can get a little blurry when the situation becomes race-related.

University of Texas Honors First Black Graduates with Historical Markers

The University of Texas at Austin honored, alumnus Griffin and others, May 24, 2023 in Austin, “Precursors We are Texas East Mall Project Launch.”

GOP prepared to block vote to replace Feinstein on Senate Judiciary

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said on Tuesday that he hopes to replace Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein on the Senate Judiciary Committee with Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland and aims to set up a floor vote on the issue this afternoon, which Republicans are expected to block.

Mayor Turner Announces City's 2023 Demolition Initiative with Demolition Day Event

Today Mayor Sylvester Turner, joined by the Department of Neighborhoods (DON), City officials, and community representatives, announced the City’s 2023 Demolition initiative at a “Demolition Day” press conference in Kashmere Gardens, one of Mayor Turner's Complete Communities. The initiative calls for the removal of nearly 300 dangerous structures by the end of the year.

Alicia Keys Announces North American Summer Tour

The Keys to the Summer Tour

Alicia Keys announced today that she will be launching a North American summer concert tour which starts June 28thin Ft. Lauderdale, FL. Produced by Live Nation, the KEYS TO THE SUMMER TOUR follows her sold-out and critically acclaimed The Alicia + Keys World Tour which brought Keys across Europe, North America and will soon head to Latin America.

Start Mother's Day Shopping with Just Desi

Honor thy mother and show her your love with a special piece of diamond jewelry from JUSTDESI!

"House of Cotton" by Monica Brashears

The role is yours, if you want it. You can play the part on a stage or in a film, but there are a few requirements: you have to be able to sing and dance and speak with an accent. Can you convince an audience that you're someone you're not? As in the new book, "House of Cotton" by Monica Brashears, can you play dead?

Chit, Chat & Chew

Before you can market, sell or even open a business, you must be vigilant in honing your leadership skills. I am Joi Beasley, a Houston business owner for the last 16 years. Houston has so many great programs that teach us to how to sell, market, operate, purchase, accounting, finance, etc. all the elements of doing business. What I have found there are a lot assumptions about small business owners, their #2s, CEOs and the C-Suite. The assumption is they were taught to lead. Leading is a lifelong learning journey that has to grow and develop as our businesses grow and develop.

Olympians Visit Houston for the 2023 Make-a-Splash Tour Presented By Phillips 66

Olympians Nathan Adrian, Elizabeth Beisel, Rowdy Gaines, Cullen Jones and Chase Kalisz will participate in a community swimming activity and visits to local schools during the 2023 Make-a-Splash Tour stop in Houston.

GOP revolts against plan to replace Feinstein on key panel in push to block Biden judicial picks

Senate Republicans are prepared to block Democratic efforts to replace Sen. Dianne Feinstein on the powerful Judiciary committee, ratcheting up pressure on the 89-year-old California Democrat to resign or return quickly to allow President Joe Biden's judicial nominees to be confirmed.

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