SpaceX's Starship explodes again ... while still on the ground

SpaceX has made excellent progress with its Starship rocket. The stainless steel vehicle can now explode before even leaving the Earth.

The latest setback happened just before a planned static fire this morning. The rocket was fueled ahead of a test firing of its Raptor engines, but abruptly exploded.

The explosion occurred on a test stand, and it is unclear how much damage the facility sustained. According to SpaceX, "a safety clear area around the site was maintained throughout the operation and all personnel are safe and accounted for."

SpaceX boss Elon Musk quipped: "Just a scratch" several minutes before The Reg published this. We can only presume he was referring to Starship, though his Grok chatbot managed to ignore its real-time X access to suggest the comment related "to his recent feud with President Trump, given the timing," adding: "No evidence suggests a literal injury or damage to Musk ...