"SpaceX Starship Upper Stage Lost Again in 8th Test, Booster Catch Succeeds".

 "SpaceX Starship Upper Stage Lost Again in 8th Test, Booster Catch Succeeds"

SpaceX Super Heavy booster successfully caught, upper ship reportedly explodes.

SpaceX on Thursday launched its eighth suborbital flight test of its Starship megarocket at Starbase in Boca Chica Beach, Texas. (SpaceX / Fox News)

After a failed mission in January, SpaceX conducted its eighth suborbital test flight of the fully integrated Starship megarocket on Thursday. The launch, featuring the upper stage (S34) and Super Heavy booster (B15), took place at Starbase in Boca Chica Beach, Texas.

Despite reaching space, the upper stage began spinning uncontrollably, lost contact, and ultimately broke apart, with debris falling back to Earth early Thursday evening.

However, the test achieved a major milestone as the Super Heavy booster was successfully caught using the launch tower’s chopstick arms, marking a significant step forward in SpaceX’s recovery efforts.

"During Starship's ascent burn, the vehicle experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly, resulting in a loss of contact. Our team promptly coordinated with safety officials to implement pre-planned contingency measures," SpaceX stated. "We will analyze the data from today's flight test to determine the root cause. As always, success comes from what we learn, and today’s flight will provide valuable insights to enhance Starship's reliability."

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has announced that it is requiring SpaceX to conduct a "mishap investigation" into the loss of the Starship vehicle.

"During the event, the FAA activated a Debris Response Area and temporarily slowed aircraft outside the affected zone or held departing flights at their locations," the statement said. "Normal operations have since resumed."

According to the FAA, a mishap investigation aims to improve public safety, determine the root cause of the incident, and identify corrective measures to prevent future occurrences.

"The FAA will oversee every step of the SpaceX-led investigation and must approve the final report, including any corrective actions," the agency stated.

As of 7:45 p.m., SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has not yet commented on the launch.

SpaceX announcers streaming the launch confirmed that mission controllers lost contact with the ship, adding that a debris response plan was in place and air traffic control was working to "keep the public safe."

"We fly to learn," the announcers said before ending the broadcast.

The upper stage was intended to coast in space for about 40 minutes before executing a controlled splashdown in the Indian Ocean.

Due to space launch debris, the FAA issued a ground stop for several Florida airports, including Miami International. As of 7:45 p.m., Miami remained grounded, while Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport reported departure delays related to the debris.

After completing an investigation into Starship’s similar failure during its seventh test flight in January, SpaceX implemented several hardware and operational changes to improve the upper stage’s reliability.

During the January test, all but one of Starship’s engines shut down in a controlled sequence, ultimately resulting in a loss of communication with the vehicle.

A pre-coordinated response plan, developed by SpaceX in collaboration with the FAA and air traffic control, was activated to ensure there were no significant impacts on people, marine life, or water quality.

Following the incident, SpaceX immediately contacted the government of Turks and Caicos and worked with the United Kingdom to coordinate recovery and cleanup efforts.

Thursday’s flight followed the same suborbital trajectory as previous missions but aimed to achieve new objectives not met in the last test. These included Starship’s first payload deployment and multiple reentry experiments designed to support future plans for returning the upper stage to the launch site for recovery.

During the test, Starship was set to deploy four Starlink simulators, modeled after next-generation Starlink satellites, which were expected to disintegrate upon reentry. The plan also included relighting a single Raptor engine while in space.

It remains unclear whether these operations were completed before the upper stage lost communication.

Reentry Experiments & Heat Shield Testing

The test also included several experiments focused on improving Starship’s ability to survive reentry and return to the launch site. These experiments involved:

• Removing a "significant number" of heat shield tiles to stress-test vulnerable areas.
• Testing multiple metallic tile options to determine which provides the best reentry protection.
• Installing non-structural versions of Starship’s catch fittings to evaluate their thermal performance.
• Smoothing and tapering a section of the tile line to address hot spots observed during the sixth flight test.

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