--- title: "SpaceX Rocket Engine Explodes In a Green Blast" description: "A SpaceX Raptor rocket engine exploded during a recent test, joining a long line of fellow Elon Musk-manufactured spacecrafts that have blown up." date: "2022-12-05" modified: "2022-12-05" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/spacex-rocket-engine-explosion-rud" categories: - "Space" - "SpaceX" tags: - "rapid unscheduled disassembly" - "raptor engine" - "SpaceX" - "the digest" --- # SpaceX Rocket Engine Explodes In a Green Blast ![A SpaceX Raptor rocket engine exploded during a recent test, joining a long line of fellow Elon Musk-manufactured spacecrafts that have blown up.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## Xxxplosive A SpaceX Raptor rocket engine exploded during a recent test, joining a long series of epic blasts at Elon Musk's space travel company. As [*NASASpaceFlight* explains]() in video of the explosion, the green flash of light that occurred in this specific blaze generally happens when "the engine has started to eat into its copper sections." Known in the spaceflight world as a "[rapid unscheduled disassembly]()" or RUD, this type of explosion, while spectacular, is fairly common for SpaceX as it throws stuff at the proverbial wall and see what sticks — or, in this case, blows up. ## Paul RUD Indeed, while a SpaceX blast [occurred as recently as this past summer](), May 2021 saw one Starship prototype explode so spectacularly that it was [picked up by weather radar](), and there [have been enough]() [similar explosions]() [over the years]() that it's become a sort of calling card for Musk, who's been [known to quip]() about the phenomenon. After this past July's explosion — which rocked but did not destroy the Booster 7 prototype intended to push the company's Starship into orbit — Musk appeared to suggest that the blast wasn't "unscheduled" at all, but then [deleted the tweet and reversed course](). "Yeah, actually not good," the [now-Twitter owner tweeted]() in response to *NASASpaceFlight's* Chris Bergin. ## Money Talks While explosions seem to be par for the SpaceX course, that doesn't mean they aren't expensive as all get out. The company lost upwards of upwards of $260 million in 2015, when one of its Falcon 9 spacecraft [blew up shortly after liftoff](). A 2016 Falcon 9 explosion annoyed Musk so much that the company [investigated whether]() sabotage might have been to blame. And that's without getting into the [various demises]() of its Falcon 1 prototypes, or the [explosion of an early Crew Dragon module]() before it had sent any astronauts to space. Needless to say, it's much better for explosions to occur during test firings rather than during actual launches. And even when they do explode at inopportune times, Musk [often insists]() that they data the company collects from the mishap is worth it to do a better job next time. **More on SpaceX:** [*Passenger Jet Flies Over Launchpad Right as SpaceX Rocket Takes Off*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()