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SpaceX’s Starship explodes during test launch minutes after rocket booster successfully caught
SpaceX launched its Starship rocket on its latest test flight on Thursday, but the spacecraft broke apart following a thrilling booster catch back at the pad.
Elon Musk’s space company said the Starship had a “rapid unscheduled disassembly”.
The spacecraft’s six engines appeared to shut down one by one during ascent, with contact lost just 8 1/2 minutes into the flight.
“Teams will continue to review data from today’s flight test to better understand root cause,” SpaceX said in a social media post.
“With a test like this, success comes from what we learn, and today’s flight will help us improve Starship’s reliability”.
The spacecraft was a new and upgraded model making its debut. It was supposed to soar across the Gulf of Mexico from Texas on a near loop around the world similar to previous test flights.
A minute before the loss, SpaceX used the launch tower’s giant mechanical arms to catch the returning booster, a feat achieved only once before.
The descending booster hovered over the launch pad before being gripped by the pair of arms dubbed chopsticks.
‘Bummed out about the ship’
The thrill of the catch quickly turned into disappointment for not only the company, but the crowds gathered along the southern tip of Texas.
“It was great to see a booster come down, but we are obviously bummed out about ship,” said SpaceX spokesman Dan Huot. “It’s a flight test. It’s an experimental vehicle,” he added.
The last data received from the spacecraft indicated an altitude of 146 km and a velocity of more than 21,000 km/h.
Musk said a preliminary analysis suggests leaking fuel may have built up pressure in a cavity above the engine firewall.
Fire suppression will be added to the area, with increased venting and double-checking for leaks, he said via X.
It was the seventh test flight for the world’s biggest and most powerful rocket.
NASA has reserved a pair of Starships to land astronauts on the moon later this decade. Musk’s goal is Mars.
Hours earlier in Florida, Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin launched its New Glenn rocket on its first test flight, successfully placing an experimental satellite thousands of kilometres above Earth.
The first-stage booster, however, was destroyed, missing its targeted landing on a floating platform in the Atlantic.
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Kidnappers Took Loan With My Phone – Victim Recounts Ordeal
A woman has shared a disturbing account of her abduction in Abuja, detailing how kidnappers allegedly exploited her personal information during captivity.
According to her, she was kidnapped while going home in a bus and kept blindfolded for two days as her captors demanded a ransom of ₦5 million from her family and friends.
She further alleged that while she was still in captivity, the abductors accessed her phone and used it to download a loan application.
With her ATM card and identification documents in her possession at the time, they reportedly secured a loan of ₦148,000 without her knowledge.
The victim said she remained unaware of the transaction throughout her ordeal, as she was blindfolded and focused on pleading for her life.
She revealed that when she later found out and wrote to the loan app, they insisted she must pay off the loan.
“I was kidnapped in a bus in Abuja. They blindfolded my eyes for two days. Even after asking for ransom of 5 million from my family and friends, they took a loan. They downloaded a loan app on my phone, and I always carry my ATM card and my ID cards in my bag, so they used it to up the loan app and took a loan of 148 thousand Naira. I didn’t even know about the loan all the time I was there cause I was blindfolded and just begging for my life….” she partly said.
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Man Ends His Marriage After Finding Photographs Of His Wife With Another Man While Browsing Google Maps
A husband was left shocked and reportedly had to end his marriage after discovering photos of his wife with another man while using Google Maps.
The man was using Google Maps to plan a route before setting off on a journey when he noticed an image of his wife sitting on a bench, stroking the hair of another man whose head rested in her lap.
Captured by a Google camera vehicle in Lima, the Peruvian capital, the stunned husband said the photograph grabbed his attention because the woman pictured seemed to be wearing identical clothing to pieces his wife owned.
Although the photo dated back to 2013, the furious husband challenged his wife with proof of her previous betrayal.

The pair, whose identities remain anonymous, subsequently divorced after the woman confessed to having an affair.
In a twist of fate, she was photographed with her lover on a bench near the city’s Puente de los Suspiros de Barranco (Bridge of Sighs of the Ravine).
The husband recently posted the photographs on Facebook where they sparked considerable reaction amongst users.
One social media commenter, San Pateste, said: “What a small world it is… It would have been enough if she said to her husband that she did not love him any more.”
Guillermo Sanchez added: “Out of 100 women, 90 per cent are not loyal, the rest are loyal and only have one eye (hahaha) or are immortal (hahaha).”
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Explosion injures soldier, NSCDC personnel in Imo
An Improvised Explosive Device, IED, explosion injured a soldier and a personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps, NSCDC, in Orsu Local Government Area of Imo State.
A counter-insurgency and security expert in the Lake Chad region, Zagazola Makama, made this disclosure on X.
Makama disclosed that the incident occurred at about 8:35am on March 18 during a joint operation by troops of 34 Artillery Brigade in the Orsu general area.
According to the source, the personnel were operating around a suspected hideout of Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, and its armed wing, the Eastern Security Network, ESN, when they stepped on a concealed pressure-activated IED.
It noted that the device detonated, leaving both operatives injured.
“They were immediately administered first aid and subsequently evacuated to a medical facility for further treatment.
“Operations are ongoing in the area to dismantle criminal hideouts and enhance safety,” the source said.
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