SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule ‘EXPLODES during catastrophic safety test’ in shocking footage
The space vehicle is due to carry Nasa astronauts into space for the first time later this year
A SPACEX craft that will one day take Nasa astronauts into space has dramatically exploded during a key safety test.
Shocking footage of the incident appears to show one of the firm’s Crew Dragon capsules bursting into an enormous fireball at a site in Florida.
The video, leaked to the web over the weekend, has garnered thousands of views and reportedly shows a fault during an escape hatch test.
SpaceX has not revealed whether the clip is real, but admitted an “anomaly” halted a Crew Dragon test on Saturday.
Onlookers could see reddish orange smoke billowing from the site at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, with reports suggesting the mushroom cloud was visible for “miles around”.
The United States Air Force told local press that the incident had been contained, and confirmed no one was hurt in the blast.
SpaceX, a rocket company bankrolled by eccentric billionaire Elon Musk, eventually wants to send humans to space aboard its Crew Dragon capsule.
It has a deal with Nasa worth a reported £2billion to develop the tech, which is supposed to fly astronauts to the International Space Station later this year.
An unmanned test capsule flew to and from the off-Earth science lab for the first time last month, but the latest incident could represent a serious setback.
SpaceX was reportedly attempting a test of the emergency abort system on the latest version of the capsule.
The company confirmed the test did not go as planned in a cryptic statement.
“Earlier today, SpaceX conducted a series of engine tests on a Crew Dragon test vehicle on our test stand at Landing Zone 1 in Cape Canaveral, Florida,” a spokesperson said.
“The initial tests completed successfully but the final test resulted in an anomaly on the test stand.
“Ensuring that our systems meet rigorous safety standards and detecting anomalies like this prior to flight are the main reasons why we test. Our teams are investigating and working closely with our NASA partners.”
SpaceX has not released any official footage of the test, but an unverified video was posted to Twitter by a self-proclaimed Kennedy Centre rocket scientist.
When asked about the clip, SpaceX simply pointed to the statement about Saturday’s test.
If SpaceX manages to fly astronauts to space this year as planned, it will mark the first time Nasa crew has flown on a private rocket.
The launch would also mark the first time astronauts have flown from American soil since the end of the Space Shuttle programme in 2011.
SpaceX successfully flew the Dragon Crew capsule for the first time last month.
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Over the weekend, a grocery rocket blasted off to deliver Easter goodies to International Space Station crew.
Why do you think the SpaceX test went wrong? Let us know in the comments!
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