On March 7, SpaceX carried out the eighth launch of the Starship superheavy system. It followed the same scenario as the previous test. SpaceX once again managed to successfully land the Super Heavy booster. However, the spacecraft itself lost control and exploded shortly thereafter.
The Starship launch proceeded normally. The 123-meter rocket lifted off from the launch pad and began to gain altitude. After separating from Starship, the Super Heavy booster performed a return maneuver and, despite the failure of two Raptor engines, returned to the launch site. The spacecraft successfully reduced its speed before being picked up by Mechazilla’s turret manipulators.
However, this success was little consolation for SpaceX. As during the previous test, when Starship was a few dozen seconds away from reaching the target trajectory, several engines shut down. Apparently, it was caused by a fire. It caused loss of spacecraft orientation and communication failure.
Footage of SpaceX’s Starship breaking up on reentry over the Bahamas and West Indies. pic.twitter.com/2TaGkvLzrB
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) March 7, 2025
Soon after, numerous videos began appearing on social media showing the explosion of the spacecraft and the re-entry of its wreckage into the atmosphere. Apparently, Starship was detonated by the emergency flight termination system. A similar situation occurred during its previous test. Then SpaceX managed to return the Super Heavy booster, but the spacecraft itself collapsed, producing a very spectacular firework in the sky over the Caribbean islands.
Jesus Christ #starship flight 8 over here in the Dominican Republic #spacex pic.twitter.com/BX8WKf2dHi
— Wandy Rodriguez (@JustFlyAndRock) March 6, 2025
It is unknown at this time what exactly caused the new accident. But it’s clear that a second consecutive failure in a similar scenario was an extremely serious challenge for SpaceX. During the last two flights, the company tested a new version of Starship, which received larger fuel tanks and many technical upgrades. And we can definitely say that it turned out to be too crude, and SpaceX engineers will need to make a number of changes to its design in order to repeat their previous successes.
