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Earth as seen from the upper stage of SpaceX’s seventh Starship vehicle during its test flight on Jan. 16, 2025. The vehicle suffered an anomaly and exploded in Earth’s atmosphere around 8.5 minutes after launch. (Image credit: SpaceX)
SpaceX knows how to put on a show.
The company launched the seventh flight test of its Starship megarocket this afternoon from its Starbase site in South Texas. The 403-foot-tall (123 meters) vehicle lifted off successfully and achieved stage separation. And its first-stage booster, called Super Heavy, made it back down to Starbase for a dramatic catch by its launch tower’s “chopstick” arms.
But some eight minutes into the flight, SpaceX lost contact with the Starship upper stage, known as Ship. It’s currently unknown what caused the problem, but one thing is certain: Ship went out with a bang.