SpaceX’s latest Starship rocket, which was designed to take humans, cargo and payloads to Earth orbit, the moon and Mars, failed minutes after rising from the launch pad on 29 July. The rocket was on a test flight from southern Texas but failed after separating from the booster. The cause of the malfunction has yet to be determined, but SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said a problem during the rocket’s landing burn led the Starship to make a “crater in the ocean”. Despite the setback, Musk said the flight was a success because data gathered from the test will help SpaceX debug a variety of issues. So far, constraints in relating to materials and rocket design have been factors in previous failed launches. SpaceX estimates it has spent billions of dollars on the Starship programme to date. In addition to its lunar aspirations, Starship is also believed to be a key part of SpaceX’s vision of putting humans on Mars. Meanwhile, the vehicle has not yet successfully completed an orbital flight, which is a major step toward preparing for a moon mission expected before 2030.
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