SpaceX’s Starship 36 rocket exploded during a routine ground test, marking the latest in a series of failures that have affected the company’s ambitious space program led by CEO Elon Musk throughout 2025.
Local media reported that the windows of nearby houses vibrated and that the explosion was felt as far as South Padre Island and Port Isabel, located several kilometers from the test site in southern Texas, near the Mexico border.
How was the explosion of the SpaceX rocket?
“On Wednesday, June 18, at approximately 11 pm local time, the Starship preparing for the tenth flight test experienced a major anomaly while on a test stand at Starbase,” SpaceX said on Wednesday in a post on X, confirming that “all personnel are safe and accounted for” and that “there are no risks to residents of nearby communities.”
The Sheriff’s Office of Precinct 1 of Cameron County, Texas, where the SpaceX Starbase facility is located, posted a video on Facebook stating that "no injuries have been reported so far" and that “an investigation has been initiated to determine the cause of the incident.”
The explosion occurred while the engineers were preparing the huge rocket for a static firing test.
Video images captured the moment of destruction, showing a rupture near the nose of the rocket seconds before a huge fireball exploded in the night sky, with debris scattered throughout the facility. The resulting fire burned for over 90 minutes before crews were able to extinguish it, as reported by CBS News.
Problems for SpaceX
The explosion represented another major failure of the Starship in 2025, which could likely delay the tenth test flight, originally scheduled for June 29.
Earlier this year, three Starship flights faced consecutive failures, revealing a concerning pattern for the company that aims to revolutionize space travel. Technical issues, particularly related to the Raptor engines that power the Starship, are at the core of these setbacks.