SpaceX has experienced a series of rocket losses in a problem-plagued start to 2025. The world’s busiest space launch provider has endured two Starship losses in a row and a Falcon 9 loss. Two of the losses have occurred since the start of March.
Starship’s eighth test flight on March 7 (AEDT) ended abruptly when it exploded nine minutes after launch. The seventh test flight on January 17 also ended in an explosion.
“During Starship’s ascent burn, the vehicle experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly, and contact was lost,” SpaceX posted on X soon after the explosion. “Success comes from what we learn, and today’s flight will help us improve Starship’s reliability.”
SpaceX has not experienced back-to-back mission failures since its early start-up days. CEO Elon Musk called the second Starlink explosion a “minor setback.”
“Progress is measured by time,” he posted on X. “The next ship will be ready in four to six weeks.”
A still-to-be-concluded investigation has uncovered the most likely root cause for the seventh test flight loss. Investigations identified a harmonic response several times stronger in flight than seen during testing. This led to increased stress on hardware in the propulsion system. The resulting propellant leaks exceeded the venting capability of the ship’s attic area and resulted in an explosion.
Investigations into last week’s explosion are less advanced. “Prior to the end of the ascent burn, an energetic event in the aft portion of Starship resulted in the loss of several Raptor engines,” a SpaceX statement reads. “This, in turn, led to a loss of attitude control and ultimately a loss of communications.”
Falcon 9 rocket topples off droneship
Receiving less attention was the loss of a smaller Falcon 9 rocket earlier last week. The March 4 Starlink Group 12-20 launch was successful. Twenty-one Starlink v2-mini satellites were deployed. But earlier on, after stage separation, the first stage booster returned to Earth and landed on a droneship some 250 nautical miles off Florida.
“Following the successful landing, an off-nominal fire in the aft end of the rocket damaged one of the booster’s landing legs, which resulted in it tipping over,” SpaceX said. “While disappointing to lose a rocket after a successful mission, the team will use the data to make Falcon even more reliable on ascent and landing.”
The rocket, B1086 or Just Read the Instructions, was on its fifth flight. It was the fifteenth failed recovery in 432 attempts.
Meanwhile, while overshadowed by the loss of the Starship rocket, SpaceX successfully executed its third in-air capture of the launch booster. Last week, the company used its launch tower’s mechanical arms to grab the booster on its controlled return. It was a repeat of the spectacular technological feat first performed in October 2024 and again in January.
Despite 2025’s series of rocket losses, it remains business as usual at SpaceX. It has four Falcon 9 launches scheduled this week – two Vandenberg, one from Cape Canaveral, and one from Kennedy. The company is yet to set its next Starship launch date.
