SpaceX lost communication with its powerful Starship rocket over the Gulf of America after launch on Thursday. “We lost contact with the ship, just like last time,” said SpaceX official Dan Huot. He referred to the January launch when the upper stage exploded over the Caribbean, scattering debris. Soon after, videos on social media showed burning debris streaking through the sky near South Florida and the Bahamas.

RIP Starship Flight 8, just caught it exploding after a few engines cut off and it losing attitude control, viewed from Titusville, FL🚀 pic.twitter.com/VBBtApjsd7

— 📸Trevor Mahlmann🚀 (@TrevorMahlmann) March 6, 2025

Booster Successfully Retrieved Despite Setback

The Starship test had mixed results. SpaceX lost contact with the upper stage but successfully recovered the booster. The company used robotic arms called “chopsticks” to catch the booster at the launch tower. This marked their third successful attempt at the complex maneuver.

Mechazilla has caught the Super Heavy booster! pic.twitter.com/JFeJSdnQ5x

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) March 6, 2025

Live footage showed the upper stage tumbling out of control before the signal was lost. SpaceX turned off its livestream about 40 minutes after liftoff.

Liftoff of Starship! pic.twitter.com/OL7moLdZ2u

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) March 6, 2025

Challenge for Musk Amid Washington Commitments

The failure raises concerns about Elon Musk’s SpaceX program. Meanwhile, Musk spends much of his time in Washington, leading the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) under President Donald Trump’s administration. Starship launched successfully from SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas, at 5:30 PM (2330 GMT). It remains the world’s largest and most powerful rocket.

Flight Disruptions in Florida

The explosion affected air traffic in Florida. Major airports briefly paused operations. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reported delays of up to 45 minutes for flights departing from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood and Miami International Airports due to "space launch debris."

Uncrewed Mission and Starship’s Future Role

This was Starship’s eighth orbital mission. All previous missions were uncrewed. The rocket stands at 403 feet (123 meters), making it 100 feet taller than the Statue of Liberty. SpaceX designed Starship for full reusability. It plays a key role in Musk’s long-term plan to colonize Mars. NASA also plans to use a modified Starship as a lunar lander for the Artemis program. This mission aims to return astronauts to the Moon within this decade. After Starship’s previous test flight on January 16 ended in an explosion over the Turks and Caicos Islands, the FAA grounded the rocket and launched a cleanup operation for the debris.