SpaceX Starship explodes into enormous fireball during routine test at Texas facility

Elon Musk’s SpaceX Starship exploded into an enormous fireball on Wednesday night during a routine test for an upcoming launch, as nearby residents recalled their homes shaking from the blast.The fiery blowup happened just after 11 p.m.local time as the Starship crew was preparing for the tenth flight test of Ship 36 at the Texas Starbase site near Boca Chica Beach.Officials reported a “major anomaly” took place as the reusable super heavy-lift launch vehicle was stationed on a test stand.A live stream of the SpaceX facility captured the moment of the explosion.In the footage, the initial fireball appears to come from the top of the rocket before the screen turned white from the dramatic change in lighting ripping through the otherwise dark night sky.The gigantic explosion scattered debris around the test site area, as the Starship and test stand were no longer seen in their vertical, upright position.SpaceX officials confirmed a safety zone had been in place and all staff are accounted for with no reports of any injuries.“Our Starbase team is actively working to safe the test site and the immediate surrounding area in conjunction with local officials,” the company said on X.SpaceX reported residents in the nearby communities did not face any hazards due to the explosion.Residents living near the facility say they felt their explosion from their homes.“Our whole neighborhood felt it and all the neighbors went outside to see what had happened because it shook all the houses ….

my brother-in-law thankfully worked during the day shift,” Brownsville resident Arely Cantu told My San Antonio.  Starbase is about 22 miles east of Brownsville.Another resident, Juan Martinez, said he heard the “huge boom” as he watched the test from a nearby beach.“Be safe and contact your family members that work there,” Martinez said in a Facebook post.The fire continued to burn for two hours after the explosion.Wednesday night’s explosion is the latest disaste...