--- title: "Watch SpaceX Starship Rocket Burst, Crumple During Test" description: "An early prototype of SpaceX's massive Starship rocket partially burst apart during a ground test at the company's test site in Boca Chica, Texas." date: "2019-11-21" modified: "2019-11-21" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/spacex-starship-bursts-crumples-during-test" categories: - "Space" - "SpaceX" - "Starship" tags: - "elon musk" - "SpaceX" - "Starship" - "the digest" --- # Watch SpaceX Starship Rocket Burst, Crumple During Test ![An early prototype of SpaceX's massive Starship rocket partially burst apart during a ground test at the company's test site in Boca Chica, Texas.]() *\Image: @LabPadre\* ## Poof A prototype of SpaceX's massive Starship rocket partially burst apart during a ground test on Wednesday at the company's test site in Boca Chica, Texas, [*The Verge* reports](). A [livestream]() of the incident shows the massive stainless steel cylinder burst into a thick white cloud, showing large creases and dents at the top afterwards. SpaceX is playing down the failure. "The purpose of today’s test was to pressurize systems to the max, so the outcome was not completely unexpected," a spokesperson for SpaceX told *The Verge*. "There were no injuries, nor is this a serious setback." ## Thanks Mark SpaceX CEO Elon Musk [said on Twitter]() that the company will move on to a newer "MK3" version with a modified design. "This had some value as a manufacturing pathfinder, but flight design is quite different," he wrote. The very same 165-foot test vehicle that burst yesterday, dubbed MK1, [stood behind Musk]() as he gave the press an update on the company's planned rocket back in September. "This thing is going to take off, fly to 65,000 feet — about 20 kilometers — and come back and land in about one to two months," Musk said at the event. ## Ambitious Timelines It's not the first time we've seen SpaceX test vehicles explode during testing. A SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft, meant to ferry astronauts to the International Space Station, [exploded]() during an emergency systems test in April. If all goes well — and Musk is known for his extremely ambitious timelines — SpaceX will launch the gigantic rocket within "in less than six months," according to Musk. **READ MORE:** [SpaceX’s prototype Starship rocket partially bursts during testing in Texas]() \[*The Verge*\] **More on Starship:** *[Elon Musk: I Can Build a Martian City With 1,000 Starships]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()