The Starship prototype exploded in the test

The explosion caused the Starship prototype to be torn to pieces and could cause SpaceX to be late in the race to send people to Mars.

The Starship prototype exploded in the test.

The Starship prototype was destroyed during a pressure test that took place around 10 pm on February 28 local time at the SpaceX launch site in Boca Chica, Texas. An image recorded by a local resident showed that the Starship SN1 ship exploded causing scattered stainless steel fragments.

In the test, the Starship SN1 vessel's fuel compartment was pumped with liquid nitrogen to test the ability to withstand fuel at extremely low temperatures. However, the vessel did not pass this test, similar to the Starship MK1 prototype in November 2019. Surveillance cameras showed large smoke rising from the bottom of the SN1, then the ship shot high and fell to the ground.

The Starship SN1 exploded and scattered stainless steel fragments.

Previously, SpaceX scheduled to launch a prototype in a short flight to orbit. The latest incident could cause the project to " stand still" in a race against rivals such as Blue Origin. In January, SpaceX successfully tested an emergency flight demolition system with the Falcon 9 rocket at the Cape Canaveral air station.

Starship is in ambition to send people to Mars of Elon Musk, owner of SpaceX. Starship is designed to launch into space on Super Heavy's back, the rocket carries the fuel tank to load the spacecraft in Earth's orbit during its journey to Mars. Both spacecraft and rockets are designed to be reusable, making the vehicle affordable.

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