Elon Musk’s company SpaceX has once again tested the world’s most powerful rocket. This was the third test of the Starship rocket, during which it achieved several significant milestones. However, as it returned to Earth, the rocket disintegrated into a fireball.
Highlights
- Elon Musk’s company conducted a test of the Starship rocket.
- This was the third test of the rocket.
- The rocket was destroyed upon returning to Earth.
Elon Musk’s Starship met its demise for the third time. The rocket, which was intended to bring humans to Mars, faced a hard landing upon returning to Earth. Although the previous two Starship tests were more successful, this launch marked a significant milestone.
The launch of the SpaceX Starship rocket took place in America on Thursday. While the launch itself was nearly successful, the rocket was destroyed upon re-entering Earth’s atmosphere. This rocket is being developed to travel to the Moon and Mars. It soared for about an hour. Initially, there was concern that it would crash into the Indian Ocean. However, during its return to Earth’s orbit, two key pieces of communication ceased functioning, indicating a problem.
Starship’s Mission to Mars
Despite the outcome of this Starship flight, Elon Musk was familiar with the results. He knew that the craft would experience a hard landing. However, it fared significantly better than the previous two Starship tests. Following the launch, SpaceX’s CEO Elon Musk tweeted, “Starship will carry humanity to Mars.” SpaceX’s goal is to transport humans to Mars. Therefore, this rocket is crucial for SpaceX. NASA congratulated SpaceX on this achievement.
Booster Failed to Land
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson wrote in a post on X, “Congratulations to SpaceX for a successful test flight! The Starship has flown into space. We are making significant progress through Artemis to return humanity to the Moon and then look towards Mars.” The lowest part of this rocket is the Super Heavy booster. During the successful launch, it burned most of its fuel. However, despite expectations for an automatic landing, not all of its engines fired, causing the booster to be lost.
The World’s Most Powerful Rocket
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk stated that the primary goal of these initial tests is to bring the Starship to “orbital speed.” Musk wants the flight to be so fast that the Starship can enter a stable orbit around Earth within a few hours. This requires a speed of 28,000 km/h. The Starship rocket is the largest and most powerful in the world. Elon Musk aims to make it reusable. The Starship rocket is 121 meters long and has a diameter of 9 meters.