The aerospace company lost contact with the Starship after it descended to Earth, possibly due to burning up, exploding upon re-entry, or crashing into the ocean.
At 9:25 AM on March 14 (U.S. time), the ground shook at the launch site Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, as SpaceX’s “super rocket” Starship lifted off from the launch pad and entered space.
This test flight was significantly more successful than the two previous flights, as it became the first Starship to complete the fuel burn process throughout its journey.
As the largest and most powerful rocket ever built, Starship flew from southern Texas, near the Mexico border, and headed towards the Gulf of Mexico. It did not carry any crew or satellites onboard.
The disappearance of Starship caused SpaceX to miss the core objective of the test flight. (Photo: Gwynne Shotwell).
Minutes after launch, the Starship system successfully separated from the Super Heavy booster and opened its payload bay doors. This demonstrated that Starship is fully capable of launching large satellites like Starlink into orbit.
The spacecraft then continued its flight eastward, reaching an altitude of 160 km and a suborbital speed. The peak altitude achieved by Starship during the flight was 234 km – surpassing previous test flights.
However, when Starship descended to Earth, SpaceX reported that they had lost contact with the spacecraft. Specifically, during the live broadcast on March 14, SpaceX commentators stated that the control system lost contact with Starship while the spacecraft was re-entering the atmosphere at supersonic speeds.
Video data from cameras mounted on the spacecraft showed a red glow enveloping the silver spacecraft, created by the heat of friction during re-entry and descent to Earth. Minutes later, SpaceX confirmed that the spacecraft had “disappeared,” possibly due to burning up or exploding from the pressure of re-entry.
“We may have lost Starship. At this point, we have not received any information from the vehicle, so the recovery team is reporting that the vehicle is missing. It did not land in the ocean,” said SpaceX spokesperson Dan Huot.
This was SpaceX’s third test attempt with the Starship launch. The first flight took place on April 20, 2023, and the rocket burned up approximately 4 minutes after launch. The second attempt on November 18 yielded better results. While the Super Heavy booster exploded after separation, the Starship spacecraft continued its journey into orbit, ultimately self-destructing after losing contact with SpaceX.
According to Independent, the loss of contact with the spacecraft marked the end of a fairly successful test for SpaceX. The rocket completed nearly the entire experimental flight into space, traveling farther than ever before. Prior to the launch, the aerospace company had stated that they anticipated potentially losing Starship as it re-entered Earth.
Reuters suggested that the disappearance of Starship caused SpaceX to miss the core objective of the test flight, which was to reignite one of Starship’s Raptor engines while the vehicle was in low orbit. This milestone is considered crucial for the future success of the spacecraft.
However, the flight still achieved many of the objectives that Starship had set before, demonstrating that SpaceX has made significant progress in developing spacecraft for their satellite launch business and NASA’s lunar program.
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson congratulated SpaceX on the successful test flight via social media platform X. On her personal page, SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell also affirmed that the test marked “an incredible day” for the aerospace company.
