SPACEX’S BIGGEST MAKES FIRST LANDING, THEN EXPLODES

Space Exploration Technologies Corp.’s newest and biggest rocket pulled off its first successful landing, then exploded a brief time later and was engulfed by fire, Justin Bachman reported for Bloomberg News.

The Starship SN-10 prototype lifted off from SpaceX’s seaside launch pad at about 5:15 p.m. in Boca Chica, Texas, on Wednesday, based on a live video stream on SpaceX’s website. The rocket then flew to an altitude of about 10 kilometers (around 6 miles) before turning its engines back on and settling on the landing pad with a slight lean.

Shortly, the rocket was lifted into the air by an explosion and consumed by flames, possibly after a fire ignited the fuel. Until that point, the rocket appeared to achieve a key milestone with its first stable landing in three attempts.

After its ascent, Starship shut off its three Raptor engines and performed a controlled “belly flop” descent, then reignited its engines to make a vertical landing.

Despite the mishap, the test is likely to signal progress for the massive vehicle.

An earlier Starship rocket slammed to the ground on the program’s first high-altitude flight on Dec. 9, igniting a fireball, followed by a similar outcome with a second prototype last month.

No one was hurt in the mishaps, and there were no reports of injuries from the fire after the latest flight, which was the third high-altitude test.

In short, SpaceX’s three tests have all failed to make a successful landing, blasting the boast of SpaceX founder Elon Musk that his Starship can shuttle as many as 12 people around the moon in 2023, land NASA astronauts on the lunar surface, and eventually settle explorers on Mars. And bring the astronauts back to Earth alive.

WEEKLY FEATURE : BONNER DYTOC SHOWS THE WAY IN STOCK PLAY