Overview
- Livestreams from the Masseys test site captured the lower section of Booster 18 buckling around 4:04 a.m. CT, releasing a large gas cloud as the vehicle remained upright.
- SpaceX confirmed an anomaly during gas‑system pressure testing before structural proof tests, noting no engines were installed and no injuries were reported.
- Post‑event images show a major rupture in the liquid oxygen tank and extensive lower‑section damage, leading observers to assess the vehicle as likely a total loss.
- The loss removes the immediate Starship V3 test article, leaving no completed V3 boosters at the site and likely delaying V3 verification, Pad 2 commissioning, and the next integrated flight as work shifts toward Booster 19.
- Specialist analyses point to a possible COPV failure in a chine that cascaded into a LOX‑tank rupture, a preliminary hypothesis that remains unconfirmed, and the setback intensifies scrutiny on schedules tied to Starlink operations and NASA’s Artemis lander plans.