--- title: "Close Up Photo Shows SpaceX Starship Booster After Mysterious Blast" description: "SpaceX’s Booster 7 rocket prototype ignited in a massive fireball on Monday, stunning onlookers.   “Yeah, actually not good,” wrote SpaceX CEO Elon Musk on Twitter, after seemingly implying that the explosion was planned.   Not good is right. The explosion’s blast was strong enough to rock a nearby camera livestreaming the test. Musk provided […]" date: "2022-07-12" modified: "2022-07-12" authors: - name: "Frank Landymore" job_title: "Contributing Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/flandymore" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/close-up-photo-shows-spacex-starship-booster-after-mysterious-blast" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Space" - "SpaceX" - "Starship" tags: - "elon musk" - "rocket booster" - "SpaceX" - "the digest" --- # Close Up Photo Shows SpaceX Starship Booster After Mysterious Blast ![SpaceX’s Booster 7 rocket prototype ignited in a massive fireball on Monday, stunning onlookers. A new photograph provides a closer look at the damage.]() *03 September 2020, Brandenburg, Grünheide: Elon Musk, head of Tesla, stands on the construction site of the Tesla Gigafactory. In Grünheide near Berlin, a maximum of 500,000 vehicles per year are to roll off the assembly line starting in July 2021. According to the plans of the car manufacturer, the maximum is to be reached as quickly as possible. Photo: Patrick Pleul/dpa-Zentralbild/ZB (Photo by Patrick Pleul/picture alliance via Getty Images) \Image: Getty Images\* ## Up In Flames SpaceX’s Booster 7 rocket prototype ignited in a massive fireball [on Monday](), stunning onlookers. "Yeah, actually not good," wrote SpaceX CEO Elon Musk [on Twitter](), in a reversal after seemingly [implying that the explosion was planned](). Not good is right. The explosion’s blast was strong enough to [rock a nearby camera]() livestreaming the test. While we’re still waiting for a definitive explanation, a photo provided by *NASASpaceFlight* photojournalist Nic Ansuini provided an up-close look at the damage. https://twitter.com/NicAnsuini/status/1546869091323023361 ## Rocket Science Looking on the bright side, it doesn’t appear that anything was completely blown off by the explosion. But any lurking damage to the integrity of the booster’s structure remains to be seen. "A good view of the business end of Booster 7 the morning after Monday's test anomaly. Seems like it could be much worse," [tweeted]() *Ars Technica* senior space editor Eric Berger in reaction to the image. More optimistically, *NASASpaceFlight* managing editor Chris Bergin [tweeted]() that a "lot of the Raptor 2 gang on Booster 7 might be OK!" ## Puzzling In the aftermath, Musk initially hypothesized [in a tweet]() that an oxygen rich environment may have been the cause of the explosion: "Cryogenic fuel is an added challenge, as it evaporates to create fuel-air explosion risk in a partially oxygen atmosphere like Earth. That said, we have a lot of sensors to detect this. More later." Later that night, he provided a tentative assessment of the damage. "Base of the vehicle seems ok by flashlight," Musk[ tweeted](). "I was just out there about an hour ago. We shut down the pad for the night for safety. Will know more in the morning." The booster is intended to power SpaceX's Starship, the space company's flagship Mars-bound spacecraft. NASA [selected Starship]() for future lunar missions in its Artemis program, but with setbacks like these, it might be a while before this thing is headed anywhere off-world. After all, it's yet to complete its [first orbital test flight](). **More on SpaceX:** [*Area Residents Express Dismay As SpaceX Looks Poised To Downgrade "Starbase" R&D Facility*]() ## Author At Futurism, my work has often centered on bringing a sense of clarity and insight to complex topics ranging from the regulation of emerging technologies to the esoteric ideologies of Silicon Valley executives, while striving not to lose the poetic sense of awe inspired by often-obscure fields like astrophysics and quantum computing. I broke the story of CNET using AI to produce articles that turned out to be riddled with factual errors and plagiarism — a dam-breaking inflection point, as I've reported, that's inspired copycats and endless discourse while beguiling stakeholders ranging from tech giants to purveyors of spam around the web. My work at Futurism has been cited by publications including CBS News, the Los Angeles Times, Vice, Gizmodo, Engadget, the Verge, and Vanity Fair. I grew up in locales ranging from India to China, and now live in the exotic suburbs of Virginia. In my free time, I'm an avid reader of weird sci-fi literature, an aficionado of East Asian cinema, and, regrettably, a relapsed gamer. Allegedly, I’m working on a debut novel, currently untitled. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()