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SpaceX’s Starship exploded over the Indian Ocean after losing control during descent, following booster failure and upper-stage malfunctions.
SpaceX’s prototype Starship exploded over the Indian Ocean on Tuesday, with its flight team saying it lost control with the booster during its descent before it presumably plunged into the sea instead of making the controlled splashdown the company planned.
The biggest and most powerful launch vehicle ever built lifted off around 6.36 pm (2336 GMT) from the company’s Starbase facility, near a southern Texas village that earlier this month voted to become a city — also named Starbase.
Excitement ran high among SpaceX engineers and spectators alike, after the last two outings ended with the upper stage disintegrating in fiery cascades over the Caribbean.
However, signs of trouble emerged quickly, with the first-stage Super Heavy booster blowing up instead of executing its planned splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico.
A live feed then showed the upper-stage spaceship failing to open its doors to deploy a payload of Starlink satellite “simulators.”
Though the ship flew farther than on its two previous attempts, it sprang leaks and began spinning out of control as it coasted through space.
🚨STARSHIP LIGHTS UP THE SKY OVER INDIAN OCEANSpaceX says Starship went out with a bang—literally.
After venting its last propellant and putting on a show in the sky, Starship broke up over the Indian Ocean at nearly 20 times the speed of sound, enduring over 2,500°F before… pic.twitter.com/4MvpxcdOzO
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 28, 2025
Mission teams vented fuel to reduce the force of the expected explosion, and onboard cameras cut out roughly 45 minutes into what was meant to be a 66-minute flight — falling short of its target splashdown zone off Australia’s west coast.
🚨🇺🇸 SPACEX: STARSHIP SPINNING ON REENTRY TO INDIAN OCEANStarship’s Raptor engines ignited mid-flight during hot-staging separation, a risky but efficient move.
After losing attitude control, mission control expects Starship to still re-enter and fall in the Indian Ocean.… pic.twitter.com/7uEvW9eNW6
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 28, 2025
Ahead of the launch, dozens of space fans gathered at Isla Blanca Park on nearby South Padre Island, hoping to catch a glimpse of history.
Several small tourist boats also dotted the lagoon, while a live feed showed Elon Musk sitting at ground control in Starbase, wearing an “Occupy Mars” T-shirt.
Starship has now completed nine integrated test flights atop its Super Heavy booster.
SpaceX is betting that its “fail fast, learn fast” ethos, which helped it dominate commercial spaceflight, will once again pay off.
This ninth flight marked the first time SpaceX reused a Super Heavy booster, though it opted not to attempt a catch — instead pushing the envelope with a steeper descent angle and one engine intentionally disabled.
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