Elon Musk, president of SpaceX, explained the reason why the Starship spacecraft exploded during its second test flight and could not enter orbit. The fact is that it turned out to take off without carrying a load.

The second test flight of Starship, the largest space rocket in history, attracted great attention. The rocket, launched from the SpaceX Starbase site in Boca Chica, Texas, on November 18, 2023, took off regularly, passed the first stage separation, passed the Pocket Line and reached space for the first time. And then the problems started. Shortly after separation, the Super Heavy launch vehicle exploded, and the same fate befell Starship eight minutes into the flight.

And only now, two months later, Elon Musk told what happened then. “We almost made it into orbit on the second flight. Ironically, if [корабль] If it had a payload, it would enter orbit. So actually the reason it didn’t get into orbit was because we released the oxygen and the liquid oxygen ignited and exploded. The reason for this was that we wanted to release liquid oxygen, and under normal circumstances, if we had a payload, we wouldn’t have that liquid oxygen. So, ironically, if [корабль] “If it had a payload, it would reach orbit.”— reported Mask Super Heavy never mentioned the reasons for the explosion.

However, Musk confirmed that he is ready to destroy several more rockets if Starship’s entry into service is accelerated. “It is always better to sacrifice equipment rather than time. Time is the only real currency, so to speak.”– added the businessman.

During the third test flight, SpaceX plans to ignite Starship’s engines and successfully return the ship from orbit. The company also wants to conduct initial tests of fuel transfer technology and test the payload cover and distribution mechanism of Starlink satellites. The flight is planned for February, pending approval from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).