SpaceX says debris recovery attempts hindered after Starship explosion
FILE PHOTO: Debris from a SpaceX spacecraft lies partially submerged in the Rio Grande River, as seen from Matamoros, Mexico, June 19, 2025. REUTERS/Abraham Pineda/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Debris from a SpaceX spacecraft lies partially submerged in the Rio Grande River as a boat navigates nearby, as seen from Matamoros, Mexico, June 19, 2025. REUTERS/Abraham Pineda/File Photo
SpaceX said on Thursday its debris recovery efforts after last week's Starship explosion have been hindered and it has sought cooperation from Mexico, whose president has raised the possibility of legal action against the company.
A massive Starship spacecraft by SpaceX exploded into a dramatic fireball during testing in Texas last week, which Elon Musk's space firm attributed to a "major anomaly."
The Starship rocket appeared to have experienced at least two explosions in rapid succession, lighting up the night sky and sending debris flying, according to video capturing the moment it exploded.
"Despite SpaceX's attempts to recover the anomaly related debris, which is and remains the tangible property of SpaceX, these attempts have been hindered by unauthorized parties trespassing on private property," the company said in a post on social media platform X.
"We have requested local and federal assistance from the government of Mexico in the recovery," it said, adding that it also has offered resources and assistance in the clean-up.
President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Wednesday that her administration is investigating the security and environmental impact of the launch of rockets, particularly for the Mexican state of Tamaulipas.
A general review is being conducted to determine what international laws are being violated. "From there, we'll start a process, because there is indeed contamination," Sheinbaum had said during a morning press conference.
A Starship spacecraft exploded in space minutes after lifting off from Texas in March, prompting the FAA to halt air traffic in parts of Florida, in a setback for Musk's Mars rocket program.
In January, a Starship rocket broke up in space minutes after launching from Texas, raining debris over Caribbean islands and causing minor damage to a car in the Turks and Caicos Islands. REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Times
an hour ago
- Business Times
Core inflation in Tokyo slows but stays above BOJ target
[TOKYO] Core consumer inflation in Tokyo slowed in June but stayed well above the Bank of Japan's (BOJ) 2 per cent target, data showed on Friday (Jun 27), keeping alive market expectations for further interest rate hikes. The Tokyo consumer price index (CPI), which excludes volatile fresh food costs, rose 3.1 per cent in June from a year earlier, government data showed, compared with a median market forecast for a 3.3 per cent gain. It slowed from a 3.6 per cent increase in May. A separate index for Tokyo that strips away both fresh food and fuel costs – closely watched by the central bank as a measure of domestic demand-driven prices – rose 3.1 per cent in June from a year earlier after a 3.3 per cent gain in May, the data showed. The BOJ exited a decade-long, radical stimulus programme last year and raised short-term interest rates to 0.5 per cent in January on the view Japan was on the cusp of sustainably hitting its 2 per cent inflation target. Central bank governor Kazuo Ueda has said the BOJ will keep pushing up borrowing costs if continued wage gains underpin consumption and allow firms to raise prices, thereby maintaining inflation stably around its 2 per cent target. The rising cost of living has drawn the attention of some BOJ board members including Naoki Tamura, who said on Wednesday that the BOJ may need to raise interest rates 'decisively' if upward inflation risks heighten. REUTERS
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Toyota sales in May hit third monthly record on Japan, US demand
Global automakers, however, are braced for big losses to come from Trump's tariffs on imported cars. PHOTO: AFP Toyota sales in May hit third monthly record on Japan, US demand TOYOTA - Toyota Motor's sales reached a third straight monthly record in May on strong demand for hybrid vehicles in the United States, Japan and China, even as global automakers braced for big losses to come from US President Donald Trump's tariffs on imported cars. Toyota's global sales – including subsidiaries Daihatsu Motor and Hino Motors – reached 955,532 vehicles in May, up 8 per cent from a year earlier, the company said on June 27. Worldwide production came in at 906,984 units. Toyota and its Lexus brand vehicle sales rose more than 4 per cent in Japan, 7 per cent in China and 11 per cent in North America. The world's biggest carmaker will raise the prices in July of some vehicles it sells in the US by more than US$200, as part of a regular revision based on factors that include market conditions and competition, a spokesperson said last week. The move came after Mitsubishi Motors announced it was hiking US prices for three models. Major automakers have been scrambling to minimise the fallout of the trade war between the US and China. Japan's biggest carmakers, which rely heavily on the US market, are facing billions in losses should negotiations with the White House fail to lower tariff levels. Toyota said in May that it was expecting a 180 billion yen (S$1.6 billion) hit from tariffs in April and May alone. Nissan Motor and Honda Motor both forecast a US$3 billion (S$3.8 billion) impact, while Subaru and Mazda Motor withheld their annual profit guidance for the fiscal year ending March 2026. Japan's chief trade negotiator Ryosei Akazawa said on June 26 that the nation can't accept Trump's 25 per cent auto tariffs. Japanese automakers produce roughly 3.3 million cars annually in the US, Mr Akazawa said, which is much more than the 1.37 million they ship there. Earlier this month, Toyota chairman Akio Toyoda was reappointed with 97 per cent of voted shares during the company's annual general meeting. After a three-year slump in investor support, the rebound signaled a tacit approval of the carmaker's steady performance through a particularly tumultuous period for the global automobile industry. BLOOMBERG Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
HSBC Asia chairman's son buys Hong Kong homes for $37 million
With the Hong Kong property market mired in a slump, high-profile properties are being let go by distressed sellers at low prices. PHOTO: ST FILE HONG KONG – The son of an HSBC Holdings leader has spent at least HK$231 million (S$37.5 million) buying luxury properties in Hong Kong this year, as the city's home prices hover at an eight-year low. Jeremy Wong Ka Chun bought four flats at Hong Kong Parkview, a prime residential development in the city, through a vehicle in the past three months, according to filings. Mr Wong is the son of Peter Wong, chairman of the UK bank's Asia subsidiary, according to people familiar with the matter. Jeremy also works for HSBC, according to his LinkedIn profile. He purchased two connected units for HK$121.5 million this month, through local company Lion Rock (HK), land registry filings show. Months earlier, he used the same company, of which he is the sole director, to buy adjacent homes at another tower for HK$109 million. The properties were formerly owned by Bain Capital's Asia private equity partner Jonathan Zhu Jia and his wife, filings show. Peter Wong was HSBC's top executive in Asia until he relinquished that role to be non-executive chairman of Hongkong & Shanghai Banking Corp., the bank's Asian entity, in 2021. Mr Wong backed a petition in support of Hong Kong's national security law in 2020, a move that prompted rebukes from UK politicians and investors. The UK lender, which counts Hong Kong as its biggest market, is in a major restructuring under chief executive officer Georges Elhedery, who is seeking to increase efficiency. Hong Kong's housing market is mired in a prolonged downturn, prompting some deep-pocketed investors to buy high-profile assets from distressed sellers at low prices. In 2024, when a local wealthy family tried to offload seven luxury mansions in the Peak area, billionaire Yeung Kin-Man, who made his fortune from mobile phone touch screens, purchased four of them for HK$1.1 billion, according to the South China Morning Post. Another manufacturing entrepreneur, Stephan Horst Pudwill, bought the rest for HK$860 million, the same publication reported. Hong Kong Parkview sits on a hill in Tai Tam, an area in the city's southeast known for its reservoirs and country park. Its developer, Parkview Group, has been strapped for cash as banks became reluctant to extend funds. It sought a loan backed by a collection of artwork from auction house Sotheby's earlier this year, but the talks didn't go through, Bloomberg reported this week. Some of the art has been displayed in a clubhouse at Hong Kong Parkview, according to documents seen by Bloomberg. Parkview Group received a HK$300 million loan from investment firm PAG, and has also been in talks with private credit lenders since late last year for financing of at least HK$2.8 billion, using two residential towers as collateral. BLOOMBERG Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
