There are only a few days left until the Starship spacecraft's final and fourth test flight, but during today's test, Raptor rockets exploded at SpaceX's Boca Chica Starbase in South Texas, and one video shows the rocket's test stand catching fire.
SpaceX is already preparing for the next big test of Starship, which is scheduled for the beginning of June, but they probably didn't expect today's explosion either. At approximately 4:12 p.m. local time, engineers prepared to conduct another missile test, about 14 seconds after the missile was launched. After ignition, the Raptor's engine stalled and a fire broke out around it, eventually causing an explosion.
NASASpaceflight X user shared screenshots of the test, captioning it:
The McGregor Raptor test stand witnessed an anomaly moments ago. Fumes from the anomaly caused a secondary explosion on the test bed.
So far, there are no indications that this incident will hinder the launch of SpaceX's IFT-4 test flight. The company always puts Raptor engines through qualification tests before attaching them to spacecraft, and they have a lot to offer.
McGregor's Birds of Prey testing stand experienced an anomaly a few moments ago. Fumes from the anomaly caused a secondary explosion in the test stand.
connection: https://t.co/Eh5oaicmrw pic.twitter.com/3K7tz8d6OF
– Chris Bergin – NSF (@NASASpaceflight) May 23, 2024
