Closeup Shots Of SpaceX's Starship Rocket Launch Before It Blew Up Are Stunning

SpaceX's launch of its uncrewed Starship garnered some astounding images during the second major flight test. The spacecraft achieved a height three times higher than its previous launch before it exploded over the Gulf of Mexico.

The company hoped Starship would have been able to successfully orbit Earth before landing in the Pacific Ocean. However, about eight minutes into the flight, a camera view seemed to show the Starship booster experiencing an explosion. At the time of the explosion, the rocket had reached an altitude of 91 miles (148km).

"We have lost the data from the second stage... we think we may have lost the second stage," remarked SpaceX engineer and livestream host John Insprucker. He added that engineers thought an automated flight termination command was triggered to destroy the rocket, but ground control was not clear as to why it happened.

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