SpaceX has successfully launched 27 Falcon 9 rockets, including eight in 2016, with 10 more scheduled by year’s end.
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There were no injuries.
“The anomaly originated around the upper-stage oxygen tank and occurred during propellant loading of the vehicle”, SpaceX representatives said in a statement.
“It’s clearly a setback, but how great the setback is and how long the delay, it’s impossible to know until there is more information available”, said Logsdon.
The explosion – heard and felt for miles around – dealt a severe blow to SpaceX, still scrambling to catch up with satellite deliveries after a launch accident a year ago. Disaster struck as workers at the launch pad prepared for a test firing of the rocket.
This would have been part of a combined effort by Facebook and French satellite operator Eutelsat Communications SA to provide internet access to large parts of sub-Saharan Africa.
A grainy video of the blast, posted to YouTube by Steve Svensson, appears to shows a small, silver spherical object flying over the rocket as it exploded.
The explosion that destroyed the Falcon X rocket yesterday morning also destroyed a satellite developed by Facebook for the Internet.org initiative to provide free Internet to remote regions of the African continent. The Air Force says there is no threat to public safety.
While the pad was still burning, it was off-limits.
First responders said there were no human casualties due to the unexpected explosion. Upgrades at the SpaceX pad at California’s Vandenberg Air Force Base are close to completion. It quotes the appropriately named Dick Rocket as saying: “If anyone on this planet can recover from this, it’s Elon Musk”. The officials from the company also noted that it could also collect upwards of $205 million from Israel Aircraft Industries, which built the satellite.
This explosion has dealt a massive blow to NASA as well, as it was relying on SpaceX’s aim to send supplies to the International Space Station. The last such flight took place in July. The company also is working on a crew capsule to ferry station USA astronauts.
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The blast was heard and felt for miles around, reported the Associated Press. They were not informed of the accident immediately.
