However, this time the journey of the Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy rocket took longer than the launch in April. According to AP, the rocket carrying the spacecraft was launched from SpaceX's Starbase launch pad in southern Texas in the early morning of November 18 (local time).
Super Heavy rocket and Starship spacecraft launched on the morning of November 18
After about three minutes of flight, the booster separated from the spacecraft and exploded after completing its mission. Starship then continued its journey until about eight minutes into the flight when it exploded. SpaceX officials said it appeared the spacecraft's self-destruct system had triggered while it was flying over the Gulf of Mexico.
Watch billionaire Musk's giant rocket explode in mid-air
In April, the booster failed to separate from the spacecraft and both exploded after about four minutes of flight.
Starship and Super Heavy are about 400 feet tall, making them the largest and most powerful rockets ever built. SpaceX is developing these two reusable systems to take humans to the moon and Mars.
SpaceX commentators called the launch a success and said the company gathered a wealth of data to help improve future flights.
The rocket has up to 33 engines.
SpaceX founder Elon Musk watched the launch from a control room near Boca Chica, in southern Texas on the border with Mexico. At the company’s headquarters in Hawthorne, California, employees cheered as the rocket lifted off at dawn. The room fell silent when the spacecraft exploded and fell into the ocean.
This time the spacecraft's journey is about 8 minutes, twice as long as the launch in April.
Starship
SpaceX had aimed to take Starship to an altitude of 150 miles, enough to orbit the Earth before splashing down near Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. Since the April test, SpaceX has made several improvements to the rocket and its 33 engines, as well as the launch pad. The Federal Aviation Administration granted the flight approval on November 15 after concluding that all safety and environmental standards had been met.
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