The first takeoff of Starship, SpaceX's new rocket, seriously damaged its launch pad on Thursday in Texas (United States). The force of the craft ejected pieces of concrete, bent metal and dug craters into the ground.

Before the test flight, Elon Musk had indicated that his only wish was "not to destroy the launch pad". The CEO of SpaceX feared that the rocket would explode before it had even taken off. It finally exploded, but after four minutes of flight, over the sea.


View of Starship liftoff from South Padre Island pic.twitter.com/JrXCZLrQEy

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) April 20, 2023

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Big damage

SpaceX had obviously underestimated the damage that the takeoff of Starship, now the tallest (120 m) and most powerful rocket in the world, could cause. "The engines, when they ignited, may have shattered the concrete, rather than just eroded it," Elon Musk tweeted Saturday.

The launch tower held the shock. The huge base also held firm but was damaged. Under the base, however, a deep crater has been dug. All around reigns a landscape of desolation. A shower of debris was catapulted into the nearby sea and a cloud of dust reached a small town several kilometers away, according to local press.


In this drone shot you can see debris kicked up by Starship splashing into the water. The debris has been kicked out with a speed of at least 70m/s to go this far - 160 mph. And possibly faster. pic.twitter.com/LVvjOze4Xm

— Scott Manley (@DJSnM) April 22, 2023

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Missing infrastructure

The damage will likely take several months to repair, which may delay Starship's upcoming test flights. "The main damage to the launch pad is below, where the flames attack the ground," said Olivier de Weck, a professor at MIT. "The crater that was created is going to have to be filled and repaired, and it's certainly going to take several months."

The launch pad did not appear to be equipped with two infrastructures often used for heavy launchers: a "deluge" (large quantities of water spilled when the engines are ignited) and a "jet deflector" (a system of tunnels to redirect the emitted gases). Building them is extremely expensive.



According to Elon Musk, SpaceX had begun building "a water-cooled steel plate," which was to be placed under the rocket base. But this plate was not "ready in time" for takeoff. The company thought "wrongly" that the launch pad would withstand the test, acknowledged the boss of SpaceX. A new take-off will likely be possible within one or two months, according to the CEO.

  • SpaceX
  • Rocket
  • Space
  • Damage
  • Texas
  • USA
  • Sciences