One of SpaceX’s Starship rockets exploded at a test facility in Texas late Wednesday night as the company was preparing for the tenth test flight of the heavy rocket system.
A statement on SpaceX ‘s website said that “all personnel are safe” and claimed that “there is no danger to residents of the surrounding communities.” The company did not provide an explanation for the explosion.
It is not immediately clear what impact this will have on the development of SpaceX’s Starship rocket system. A recent recommendation from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) suggests that the tenth test flight could take place as early as June 29.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, in a post likely related to the explosion, said he believes it was just a scratch: “Just a scratch.”
Over the past few years, SpaceX has been intensively developing the 171-foot Starship and the massive 232-foot Super Heavy rocket that launches it into space. The company kicked off 2025 by saying that this year would be a “transformational” year for the program, and the Federal Aviation Administration recently increased the limit on Starship launches in Texas from 5 to 25.
But this year, Starship, in particular, faced a number of problems. The rocket unexpectedly exploded during its seventh test flight in January, and then again in March. It failed again during the ninth test in May.
Although the rocket flew further during the latest flight in May than during the previous two tests, it still failed to deploy the dummy Starlink satellites it was carrying on board, a crucial step in the company’s plan to use the mega rocket to develop its space-based internet service.
Musk claims that SpaceX is on track to try to send a starship to Mars in 2026, giving it a “50-50” chance in a company update in May. The company is also developing a larger “version 3” Starship, which, according to Musk, could fly as early as this year.
