Latest news with #GregChin
Miami Herald
07-03-2025
- Science
- Miami Herald
‘UFO!' SpaceX Starship explodes, Miami airlines grounded. See video that put us on alert
'Did you see the comet?' the swim coach quizzed, twisting toward the University of Miami's Lake Osceola and nudging a glance to the night sky above the student activities center. 'It was a UFO!' a young swimmer chimed in on the pool deck during a chilly Thursday night practice. 'Aliens!' the coach joked as she showed what looked like a meteor shower streak on her phone screen. They were among people across South Florida who saw streaks of something bright cascading across the sky when it was still light out early Thursday evening around 6:30. The Federal Aviation Administration did, too. The FAA halted flights, including at Miami International Airport and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, after SpaceX confirmed that its Starship launch experienced a 'rapid unscheduled disassembly' during its ascent. Translation: The rocket blew up. And it showered flaming debris over South Florida and the Caribbean that people caught on their cellphones while driving home or out and about. There were no reported injuries and no humans were in the rocket. Sorry, not a UFO or aliens. But the explosion up above had impact down below. Aviation halt At MIA, an airlines ground stop was issued at 6:42 p.m. that lasted until about 8 p.m., Miami Herald news partner CBS News Miami reported. The advisory cited a 'space launch incident.' Average departure delays soared to 36 minutes and a maximum delay twice that time of 74 minutes. 'Some flights at MIA are being delayed due to falling debris from the SpaceX launch over the Atlantic Ocean,' said Greg Chin, Communications Director at MIA. Same thing at FLL four minutes later. Departure delays averaged 41 minutes and peaked at 67 minutes. Arlene Satchell, FLL's spokeswoman, said that the ground stop that had everyone pondering the night skies was 'short lived and has been lifted.' Friday morning it was business as usual. Travel had resumed. SpaceX was investigating. And people were twittering on TikTok, Instagram and other social media accounts about the night before when something in the evening sky freaked the system out. What SpaceX said SpaceX, Elon Musk's aerospace company, issued a statement on his platform X at 7:16 p.m. Thursday. 'During Starship's ascent burn, the vehicle experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly and contact was lost. Our team immediately began coordination with safety officials to implement pre-planned contingency responses. We will review the data from today's flight test to better understand root cause. As always, success comes from what we learn, and today's flight will offer additional lessons to improve Starship's reliability.' The 400-foot rocket broke up during its eighth flight test, USA Today reported. The flight contained no crew. The spacecraft had lifted off from Boca Chica, Texas, at 6:30 p.m., Eastern time. What earth dwellers said 'Space X reached for the stars… and Florida got the leftovers,' quipped Only in Dade on Instagram. 'Space debris over Miami! Holy [expletive.] That's my first time ever seeing that,' said TikTok user SunAndSand87, identified as 'Your average Joe navigating Miami a Day at a Time.' His image shows the Miami skyline and PortMiami in the forefront and a shower of debris heading toward a dip into the ocean on the horizon. Miami Herald staff writer Milena Malaver contributed to this report.
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
SpaceX Starship rocket lost during 8th test flight, debris shoots through sky
SpaceX's Starship rocket broke up during its eighth uncrewed flight test on Thursday, sending debris shooting through the sky and temporarily affecting flights at Miami-area airports. It was SpaceX's second such setback since January. SpaceX on Thursday lost communication with the rocket just over nine minutes after the launch. Elon Musk's company said the rocket "experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly," the same language it used when Starship's last test flight in January unexpectedly exploded in the sky The 400-foot spacecraft, composed of both the Starship vehicle and Super Heavy rocket, launched just after 6:30 p.m. ET Thursday. The Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement to USA TODAY Thursday that it activated a debris response area and "briefly slowed aircraft outside the area where space vehicle debris was falling or stopped aircraft at their departure location." Greg Chin, a spokesman with the Miami-Dade Aviation Department, said that "some flights" were delayed at Miami International Airport between 7 and 7:30 p.m. ET "due to falling debris from the SpaceX launch over the Atlantic Ocean." The FAA said that normal operations resumed Thursday night night. As of 8:30 p.m. ET, the National Airspace System Status page listed a departure delay at Miami International due to "space launch debris," though the FAA said in a follow-up email that the airspace was open. Despite Thursday's setback, SpaceX was able to complete its third return and catch of the rocket booster at the launch pad, but it did not complete a Starlink payload deployment test. The Starship vehicle was intended to land in the Indian Ocean. "Obviously a lot to go through, a lot to dig through, and we're going to go right at it," SpaceX's Dan Huot said during the livestream of Thursday's launch. "We have some more to learn about this vehicle." Video of the apparent explosion began appearing on social media Thursday night as what is likely Starship debris streaked across the sky in the Bahamas. The previous Starship demonstration on Jan. 16 ended in a fiery explosion after the Starship vehicle was lost during its suborbital flight. Mission controllers lost contact with the spacecraft within 8 1/2 minutes of its flight before determining that it was destroyed in what the company called a 'rapid unscheduled disassembly.' Video on social media showed the explosion and its aftermath as remains of the spacecraft are seen breaking up in what looks like a stunning meteor shower. SpaceX, which conducted an investigation with the FAA, determined that the mishap was due to a series of propellant leaks and fires in the aft section of the vehicle that caused 'all but one of Starship's engines to execute controlled shut down sequences." This led to the communication breakdown and the vehicle to trigger its own self destruction. This story has been updated with new information This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: SpaceX Starship rocket lost during 8th test flight
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
SpaceX Starship rocket lost during 8th test flight, debris shoots through sky
SpaceX's Starship rocket broke up during its eighth uncrewed flight test on Thursday, sending debris shooting through the sky and temporarily affecting flights at Miami-area airports. It was SpaceX's second such setback since January. SpaceX on Thursday lost communication with the rocket just over nine minutes after the launch. Elon Musk's company said the rocket "experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly," the same language it used when Starship's last test flight in January unexpectedly exploded in the sky The 400-foot spacecraft, composed of both the Starship vehicle and Super Heavy rocket, launched just after 6:30 p.m. ET Thursday. The Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement to USA TODAY Thursday that it activated a debris response area and "briefly slowed aircraft outside the area where space vehicle debris was falling or stopped aircraft at their departure location." Greg Chin, a spokesman with the Miami-Dade Aviation Department, said that "some flights" were delayed at Miami International Airport between 7 and 7:30 p.m. ET "due to falling debris from the SpaceX launch over the Atlantic Ocean." The FAA said that normal operations resumed Thursday night night. As of 8:30 p.m. ET, the National Airspace System Status page listed a departure delay at Miami International due to "space launch debris," though the FAA said in a follow-up email that the airspace was open. Despite Thursday's setback, SpaceX was able to complete its third return and catch of the rocket booster at the launch pad, but it did not complete a Starlink payload deployment test. The Starship vehicle was intended to land in the Indian Ocean. "Obviously a lot to go through, a lot to dig through, and we're going to go right at it," SpaceX's Dan Huot said during the livestream of Thursday's launch. "We have some more to learn about this vehicle." Video of the apparent explosion began appearing on social media Thursday night as what is likely Starship debris streaked across the sky in the Bahamas. The previous Starship demonstration on Jan. 16 ended in a fiery explosion after the Starship vehicle was lost during its suborbital flight. Mission controllers lost contact with the spacecraft within 8 1/2 minutes of its flight before determining that it was destroyed in what the company called a 'rapid unscheduled disassembly.' Video on social media showed the explosion and its aftermath as remains of the spacecraft are seen breaking up in what looks like a stunning meteor shower. SpaceX, which conducted an investigation with the FAA, determined that the mishap was due to a series of propellant leaks and fires in the aft section of the vehicle that caused 'all but one of Starship's engines to execute controlled shut down sequences." This led to the communication breakdown and the vehicle to trigger its own self destruction. This story has been updated with new information This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: SpaceX Starship rocket lost during 8th test flight
Express Tribune
07-03-2025
- Science
- Express Tribune
Elon Musk's SpaceX Starship explodes after losing contact during test flight
Listen to article A SpaceX Starship rocket exploded shortly after launch on its eighth test flight, triggering airport closures and warnings about falling debris. The un-crewed mission, which marked another milestone for SpaceX, suffered what the company described as a "rapid unscheduled disassembly" during its ascent into space. Although no injuries were reported, fiery debris was observed falling over the Caribbean Sea, raising concerns in nearby regions. Photo: Reuters In response to the incident, flights at Miami International Airport (MIA) and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) were delayed. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued temporary flight restrictions after the failure, with some departures at MIA being delayed due to falling debris. Greg Chin, Communications Director at MIA, confirmed the delays, saying, "Some flights at MIA are being delayed due to falling debris from the SpaceX launch over the Atlantic Ocean." The FAA later activated a "Debris Response Area," which briefly slowed or halted aircraft departures in areas affected by the falling rocket parts. "Normal operations have resumed," the FAA said in its statement. This measure is put in place when space vehicle debris falls outside the identified hazard zones, allowing the FAA to safely guide aircraft away from the danger. The 123-metre (403-foot) Starship was intended to complete a one-hour flight and re-enter Earth's orbit over the Indian Ocean. However, the rocket lost contact with ground control shortly after launch. While the Super Heavy booster, which assists in liftoff, was able to return to the launch pad successfully, the spacecraft itself spiraled out of control, resulting in its catastrophic failure. The spacecraft, which had reached an altitude of nearly 90 miles, failed to release its mock satellites as planned and fell back to Earth. The exact location of its descent remains unclear. In response to the failure, SpaceX acknowledged the incident on X (formerly Twitter), stating, "During Starship's ascent burn, the vehicle experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly and contact was lost. Our team immediately began coordination with safety officials to implement pre-planned contingency responses." Despite the setback, SpaceX successfully recovered the first-stage booster using mechanical arms at the launch pad. The company also stated that it would analyze the data from the failed test to determine the cause of the failure and improve the reliability of future Starship flights. The Starship test flight was part of SpaceX's ongoing efforts to develop the next generation of spacecraft capable of supporting lunar and Martian missions. While this failure marks a significant setback, the company remains committed to continuing Starship tests, with plans to land astronauts on the Moon later this decade. SpaceX has been making continuous improvements to the rocket's design, including modifications to its flaps, fuel system, and computer systems. The company recently received approval from the FAA for subsequent launches. Photo: Reuters This failed test flight is the second major failure for the Starship program. The previous test flight, which occurred nearly two months ago, also ended in failure when debris fell over the Turks and Caicos Islands. Following that incident, an investigation revealed that a leaking fuel system caused a fire that shut down the rocket's engines mid-flight.
CBS News
07-03-2025
- Science
- CBS News
SpaceX debris grounds flights at South Florida airports
Flights at Miami International Airport (MIA) and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) were delayed Thursday afternoon after debris from a failed SpaceX Starship launch over the Atlantic Ocean prompted ground stops. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued temporary flight restrictions for both airports after SpaceX confirmed that its Starship vehicle suffered a "rapid unscheduled disassembly" during ascent, resulting in lost contact with the spacecraft. Ground stops and delays mount At MIA, a ground stop was issued at 6:42 p.m. EST, initially lasting until 8 p.m. The advisory cited a "space launch incident" as the cause, with average departure delays climbing to 36 minutes and a maximum delay of 74 minutes. A similar ground stop at FLL was put in place at 6:46 p.m., leading to departure delays averaging 41 minutes and peaking at 67 minutes. "The situation is evolving and we are working with the appropriate authorities to minimize the impact on travelers," said Greg Chin, communications director for the Miami-Dade Aviation Department. SpaceX responds SpaceX acknowledged the failure in a statement on X, formerly Twitter, saying, "During Starship's ascent burn, the vehicle experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly and contact was lost. Our team immediately began coordination with safety officials to implement pre-planned contingency responses." The company added that it would analyze the data from the failed test to determine the cause and improve the reliability of future Starship flights. Uncertain timeline for resolution The FAA has not provided an exact timeline for when full operations will resume but indicated a "medium probability" that delays could extend further into the evening. With SpaceX planning additional Starship launches in the coming months, aviation officials will likely reassess protocols to prevent similar disruptions in the future.
