Latest news with #CameronCounty
Al Jazeera
27-06-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Why is Mexico threatening to sue Elon Musk over SpaceX debris?
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has threatened to sue Elon Musk's SpaceX over falling debris from a rocket launch across the border in the United States. SpaceX said its efforts to recover debris from Mexico had been hindered by 'trespassers'. Here is more about what is happening between Mexico and SpaceX. What happened? A SpaceX 'Starship' rocket, part of Musk's project to send humans to space, exploded in a giant fireball during a routine launch test in Texas on June 19. Starship rockets are 120 metres (400ft) tall and made primarily from stainless steel. The rocket, called the Starship 36, went through 'catastrophic failure and exploded' at the Starbase launch facility at 04:00 GMT, according to local Cameron County authorities. The facility is located at Starbase, formerly called Boca Chica Village, in Cameron County, Texas, close to the US-Mexico border. What does Mexico say about contamination? On Wednesday this week, Sheinbaum told her morning news conference that 'there is indeed contamination' which has been detected in Mexico in the aftermath of the SpaceX explosion. She said Mexican officials are conducting a review of the environmental effect caused to the Mexican state of Tamaulipas, a little more than 300km (190 miles) from Starbase. Tamaulipas governor, Americo Villarreal Anaya, said authorities were examining 'the internationally required distances are being respected in order to have these types of facilities, so that there is no risk to urban centres', according to a report in The New York Times. 'We are reviewing everything related to the launching of rockets that are very close to our border,' said Sheinbaum. She added that Mexico is currently trying to determine whether international laws had been violated so it can file 'the necessary lawsuits'. What does SpaceX say? In an X post on Thursday, SpaceX claimed its attempts to recover the fallen debris from Mexican territory had been hindered. 'Despite SpaceX's attempts to recover the anomaly related debris, which is and remains the tangible property of SpaceX, these attempts have been hindered by unauthorised parties trespassing on private property,' the X account wrote. It did not clarify who these parties were or where they were 'trespassing'. SpaceX also said there were 'no hazards to the surrounding area' from the rocket debris. 'Previous independent tests conducted on materials inside Starship, including toxicity analyses, confirm they pose no chemical, biological, or toxicological risks. 'We have requested local and federal assistance from the government of Mexico in the recovery,' it added. As previously stated, there are no hazards to the surrounding area. Previous independent tests conducted on materials inside Starship, including toxicity analyses, confirm they pose no chemical, biological, or toxicological risks. And as is the case before any test, a safety… — SpaceX (@SpaceX) June 26, 2025 Where else have SpaceX rockets exploded? In May, the Federal Aviation Administration in the US granted SpaceX permission to increase the number of Starships it launches each year from five to 25. Later that month, a Starship prototype exploded over the Indian Ocean. Before that, two Starships broke into pieces after launching from Texas during test flights in January and March. In January, airlines were forced to divert flights to avoid falling debris. Does space debris pose a danger to the Earth? In January this year, a red-hot 500kg (1,100lb) metallic object fell onto a village in Kenya's Makueni county, 115km (70 miles) southeast of Nairobi. The Kenyan space agency said the debris was a fragment of a space object. On Monday, March 3, the Australian Space Agency released an advisory that a Russian rocket making re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere was expected to fall into international waters off the southeast coast of Tasmania, causing a 'sonic boom'. However, the following day, the agency said it had 'monitored a space debris re-entry over the southeast coast of Tasmania' but was 'unaware of any reports or sightings of the debris'. The likelihood of space debris posing a danger to people, aircraft or the Earth, in general, is very low. However, recent studies show that the amount of space debris falling to the ground is on the rise. A study by researchers at the University of British Columbia in Canada, published in Scientific Reports in January 2025, found that uncontrolled re-entries of rocket bodies or space debris into the Earth are on the rise and may pose an increased risk of collision to aircraft. Another study, called The Space Environment Report, released by the European Space Agency (ESA) in March this year, found that at least three 'intact', human-made objects fall back onto the Earth every day. This is besides the several fragments of space debris that fall onto the Earth. NASA has warned that there are millions of pieces of space debris low in the Earth's orbit, but there are no international space laws about cleaning up this debris. Currently, individuals on the ground are not at a high risk of being hit and injured by space debris re-entering the Earth. The US nonprofit space corporation, Aerospace, estimates this risk to be less than a one-in-one-trillion chance.
Yahoo
19-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
SpaceX explosion: Starship explodes prior to static fire test at Starbase facility
The Brief Cameron County officials have confirmed an explosion occurred in Starbase, Texas, involving a Starship. The vehicle exploded prior to a static fire test on Wednesday night. No injuries have been reported. STARBASE, Texas - FOX 26 is learning of a large explosion that occurred in Starbase, Texas, late Wednesday night. What we know According to a social media post from the Cameron County Constable Precinct 1, there was a static fire test being conducted at the facility. Officials said SpaceX's Starship 36 suffered a catastrophic failure and exploded just after 11 p.m. Authorities said no injuries have been reported as of this report. Officials said emergency protocols were quickly enacted. What we don't know An investigation is now underway to determine the cause. What they're saying Space X took to X early Thursday morning and put out a statement saying, "On Wednesday, June 18 at approximately 11 p.m. CT, the Starship preparing for the tenth flight test experienced a major anomaly while on a test stand at Starbase. A safety clear area around the site was maintained throughout the operation and all personnel are safe and accounted for. Our Starbase team is actively working to safe the test site and the immediate surrounding area in conjunction with local officials. There are no hazards to residents in surrounding communities, and we ask that individuals do not attempt to approach the area while saving operations continue." The Source Information from social media post by Cameron County Constable Precinct 1, and a statement posted to X by Space X early Thursday morning. Video Credit: LabPadre via Storyful
Yahoo
19-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
SpaceX Starship explodes during routine test
One of Elon Musk's SpaceX Starships exploded during a routine test in Texas late Wednesday, law enforcement officials said, in the latest setback to the billionaire's dream of turning humanity into an interplanetary species. The Starship 36 suffered "catastrophic failure and exploded" at the Starbase launch facility shortly after 11:00 pm (0400 GMT Thursday), a Facebook post by Cameron County authorities said. A video shared with the post showed the megarocket attached to the launch arm and then a flash and a towering, fiery explosion. Musk's Space X said the rocket was preparing for the tenth flight test when it "experienced a major anomaly while on a test stand at Starbase," without elaborating on the nature of the complication. "A safety clear area around the site was maintained throughout the operation and all personnel are safe and accounted for," Space X said on social media. "There are no hazards to residents in surrounding communities, and we ask that individuals do not attempt to approach the area while safing operations continue." The Starship was not scheduled for launch on Wednesday evening when the explosion occurred during a "routine static fire test," according to the Cameron County authorities. During a static fire, part of the procedures preceding a launch, the Starship's Super Heavy booster would be anchored to the ground to prevent it from lifting off during the test-firing. Starbase, on the south Texas coast near the border with Mexico, is the headquarters for Musk's space project. Musk appeared to downplay the incident early on Thursday. "Just a scratch," he posted on his social media platform X, although without context it was unclear if he was referring to the fiery explosion of the rocket. - Megarocket - Standing 403 feet (123 meters) tall, Starship is the world's largest and most powerful rocket and is central to Musk's long-term vision of colonizing Mars. The Starship is billed as a fully reusable rocket with a payload capacity of up to 150 metric tons. The latest setback follows the explosion of a prototype Starship over the Indian Ocean in late May. The biggest and most powerful launch vehicle ever built had lifted off from the Starbase facility on May 27, but the first-stage Super Heavy booster blew up instead of executing its planned splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico. The previous two outings also ended poorly, with the upper stage disintegrating over the Caribbean. However, the failures will likely do little to dent Musk's spacefaring ambitions. SpaceX has been betting that its "fail fast, learn fast" ethos, which has helped it dominate commercial spaceflight, will eventually pay off. The company has caught the Super Heavy booster in the launch tower's giant robotic arms three times -- a daring engineering feat it sees as key to rapid reusability and slashing costs. NASA is also increasingly reliant on SpaceX, whose Dragon spacecraft is vital for ferrying astronauts to and from the International Space Station. The Federal Aviation Administration approved an increase in annual Starship rocket launches from five to 25 in early May, stating that the increased frequency would not adversely affect the environment. The decision overruled objections from conservation groups that had warned the expansion could endanger sea turtles and shorebirds. burs-abs/aha/pbt
Arab News
19-06-2025
- Science
- Arab News
SpaceX Starship explodes during routine test
HOUSTON: One of Elon Musk's SpaceX Starships exploded during a routine test in Texas late Wednesday, law enforcement officials said, in the latest setback to the billionaire's dream of turning humanity into an interplanetary species. The Starship 36 suffered 'catastrophic failure and exploded' at the Starbase launch facility shortly after 11:00 p.m. (0400 GMT Thursday), a Facebook post by Cameron County authorities said. A video shared with the post showed the megarocket attached to the launch arm and then a flash and a towering, fiery explosion. Musk's Space X said the rocket was preparing for the tenth flight test when it 'experienced a major anomaly while on a test stand at Starbase,' without elaborating on the nature of the complication. 'A safety clear area around the site was maintained throughout the operation and all personnel are safe and accounted for,' Space X said on social media. 'There are no hazards to residents in surrounding communities, and we ask that individuals do not attempt to approach the area while safing operations continue.' The Starship was not scheduled for launch on Wednesday evening when the explosion occurred during a 'routine static fire test,' according to the Cameron County authorities. During a static fire, part of the procedures preceding a launch, the Starship's Super Heavy booster would be anchored to the ground to prevent it from lifting off during the test-firing. Starbase, on the south Texas coast near the border with Mexico, is the headquarters for Musk's space project. Musk appeared to downplay the incident early on Thursday. 'Just a scratch,' he posted on his social media platform X, although without context it was unclear if he was referring to the fiery explosion of the rocket. Standing 123 meters tall, Starship is the world's largest and most powerful rocket and is central to Musk's long-term vision of colonizing Mars. The Starship is billed as a fully reusable rocket with a payload capacity of up to 150 metric tonnes. The latest setback follows the explosion of a prototype Starship over the Indian Ocean in late May. The biggest and most powerful launch vehicle ever built had lifted off from the Starbase facility on May 27, but the first-stage Super Heavy booster blew up instead of executing its planned splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico. The previous two outings also ended poorly, with the upper stage disintegrating over the Caribbean. However, the failures will likely do little to dent Musk's spacefaring ambitions. SpaceX has been betting that its 'fail fast, learn fast' ethos, which has helped it dominate commercial spaceflight, will eventually pay off. The company has caught the Super Heavy booster in the launch tower's giant robotic arms three times – a daring engineering feat it sees as key to rapid reusability and slashing costs. NASA is also increasingly reliant on SpaceX, whose Dragon spacecraft is vital for ferrying astronauts to and from the International Space Station. The Federal Aviation Administration approved an increase in annual Starship rocket launches from five to 25 in early May, stating that the increased frequency would not adversely affect the environment. The decision overruled objections from conservation groups that had warned the expansion could endanger sea turtles and shorebirds.
The Guardian
19-06-2025
- Science
- The Guardian
The moment Elon Musk's SpaceX's Starship 36 explodes
One of Elon Musk's SpaceX rockets exploded during a routine test in Texas. The Starship 36 suffered 'catastrophic failure and exploded' at the Starbase launch facility according to the Cameron County authorities. Starship is the world's largest and most powerful rocket. It is central to Musk's long-term vision of colonising Mars. This is the latest setback, with SpaceX betting that its 'fail fast, learn fast' ethos will eventually pay off
