--- title: "Amazing Tracking Footage Shows Starship Explosion Close Up" description: "SpaceX's Starship test launch last week was quite literally explosive — and now, we've got incredible, close-up footage of it." date: "2023-04-30" modified: "2023-04-30" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/tracking-footage-starship-explosion" categories: - "Space" - "SpaceX" - "Starship" tags: - "explosion" - "SpaceX" - "Starship" - "the digest" --- # Amazing Tracking Footage Shows Starship Explosion Close Up ![SpaceX's Starship test launch last week was quite literally explosive — and now, we've got incredible, close-up footage of it.]() *\Image: Everyday Astronaut via YouTube\* ## Track This SpaceX's [explosive Starship test launch]() last week was truly a sight to behold — and now we've got incredible, close-up footage to experience it all over again. Released by blogger Tim Dodd, better known as "Everyday Astronaut," the [incredible video]() shows the massive spacecraft launch from multiple angles. But the footage we're most excited about comes halfway through the video when an ultra-high-definition tracking camera captures the rocket's epic rise and fall against a clear blue Texan sky. Starting at around the 7:30 minute mark, an 8K tracking camera follows the rocket as it blasts off, starts spinning uncontrollably, and eventually blows itself up. ## Collateral Damage As we learned last week, the explosion captured so beautifully at the end of the video was [actually intentional]() on SpaceX's part. In a [statement]() released after the prototype's test flight, the company said that after the rocket reached an apogee of more than 24 miles, "the vehicle experienced multiple engines out during the flight test, lost altitude, and began to tumble." As a result, "the flight termination system was commanded on both the booster and ship." In other words, it self-destructed after veering off course. While that particular part of the rocket's maiden voyage went according to plan, a lot didn't. The launch kicked up tons of debris, [coating the adjacent town]() in a layer of grime, and [punched a hole]() through the company's launchpad. It even [set fire]() to a nearby state park. But hey, experts are saying the [explosion was a huge success]() — and the resulting footage is a marvel to look at as well. **More on SpaceX:** [*Elon Musk Lost $13 Billion on 4/20*]() ## 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]()