SpaceX's Starship Booster catches fire during tests; Elon Musk reveals reason

The Super Heavy Booster of SpaceX's Starship rocket was engulfed in flames after a huge fire ignited at the base of the booster. The incident occurred during the static fire test on July 12 at SpaceX's Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas. Reacting to the incident, CEO Elon Musk said that this was "actually not good" and that the team is accessing the damage. 

In a video shared by NASA Spaceflight's Chris Bergen, the Booster 7, which was recently equipped with 33 new Raptor 2 engines, was engulfed in a thick cloud of smoke followed by an explosion. A few hours later, Bergin revealed that the fire was extinguished safely and the preparations to test Ship 24 will continue. The Ship 24 is the upper stage which when mated with the Booster 7 becomes the full Starship rocket measuring 120 metres (394 ft) tall.

What caused the anomaly?

Musk said that the anomaly was specific to the engine spin start test, a process which is relatively complex with the Raptor engines. He further stated that engineers would know more about the anomaly later in the day and confirmed that the base of the Booster is fine. According to Musk, the cryogenic fuel being used as a propellant for the Booster is "an added challenge" because it "evaporates to create fuel-air explosion risk in a partially oxygen (laden) atmosphere like Earth".

Moreover, to avoid any such incident again, Musk said that his team would not carry out the spin test with all 33 engines at once. SpaceX is ramping up for Starship's first orbital launch which would push further in its quest to transport humans and cargo to the Moon and eventually Mars. Last month, Musk had said that Starship would be ready for its orbital mission this month and we would see monthly launches of the mega-rocket after August. 

As for the Raptor engines, it has been a major puzzle for SpaceX engineers for their complexity. Previously, Musk had revealed that his team had to invent alloys to make the engine work. However, these engines would lift the most powerful rocket ever built as they are being designed to generate 230 tons of force during launch.