SpaceX Starship mega rocket launches successfully but is lost on re-entry

SpaceX’s next-generation mega rocket launched Thursday morning, thundering into orbit on a key test flight meant to demonstrate new technologies and techniques that will be crucial on future missions to the moon and beyond. The flight, held on the 22nd anniversary of SpaceX's founding, was the rocket’s third and most ambitious such test, according to the company.

However, Super Heavy did not accomplish a final burn as it fell back to Earth, causing it to splash down “hard” in the Gulf of Mexico, SpaceX said during its webcast. SpaceX had also hoped to demonstrate several other processes and capabilities during the flight, including opening and closing the vehicle’s payload door and transferring propellant between two of Starship’s tanks in orbit. The company said it will need to analyze post-flight data to determine if those objectives were completed.

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