SpaceX continues to struggle with its new Starship upper-stage rocket as it lost the ship for the second consecutive time during today's Flight 8 launch attempt. As was the case with Starship Flight 7, the rocket successfully lifted off from Boca Chica, Texas and completed its ascent to space. It was caught by the launch tower and soon after the ship's engines started, SpaceX's livetream showed most of the ship's engines go out as it started to spin out of control. Soon, footage was lost as well, and SpaceX's commentators confirmed that the ship had been lost.
SpaceX Successfully Catches Super Heavy Booster With Launch Tower Yet Again
Starship Flight 8 was nearly a mirror of Flight 7 as soon after the tower catch, the upper stage spacecraft started to demonstrate problems. However, this time around, SpaceX's on board cameras on the ship provided live views of the failure and its consequences. They showed what was most likely propellant or liquid oxygen leaking from the ship's bottom section just as its Raptor engines stopped firing.
After the engine malfunction, which appeared to mirror Flight 7's where all but one engine shut down, the rocket started spinning out of control for quite some time before the feed stopped.
Soon afterward, SpaceX confirmed that it had lost the ship during the flight. Today's second-stage failure marks the second consecutive time that the brand-new rocket has failed during its test. SpaceX decided to stand down from a launch attempt on Monday and spent the next few days working with the rocket before attempting today's flight.
However, the caution appears to have yielded no results apart from a beefier safety profile to avoid damage from the rocket's debris. Footage captured from Florida and posted on X showed the rocket's fiery debris raining down, as had been the case with Flight 7.
During the test, it might also be the case that one of Starshi's engines exploded. SpaceX's livestream included views from the control room, and a snippet of the feed shared by an X user shows what is most likely a Raptor engine on the ship exploding.
SpaceX is yet to share the reasons behind the upper-stage's failure. During Flight 7, a leak in the ship's rear section had led to a fire which had forced the Raptor engines to shut themselves down. Starship's self-destruct system had activated during the flight as a result. Whether the same systems failed today is unclear, but given the timing and the nature of the ship's destruction, it is likely to be the case.
What in the world? In the Bahamas and saw light above me… then this! Anyone know what this is? Lights in the sky. Shooting stars? Asteroids? Rocket explosion? Satellite reentering orbit? Any ideas!? Someone reply pic.twitter.com/BuUs7SkK6r
— Vic (@VictorOnX) March 6, 2025
