SpaceX Engine Test Stand Blows Up After Likely Starship Raptor Engine Test

While it prepares for the Starship IFT-4 in its facilities in Boca Chica, Texas, SpaceX’s rocket engine test pad in McGregor, Texas has gone up in flames. Footage from local media shows that as the firm was testing a rocket engine at the site, a fiery explosion took place and engulfed the tower in flames. So far, there have been no updates from SpaceX about the mishap, and it follows a smaller anomaly that took place on a Starship second stage spacecraft earlier this month during testing on a different pad.

SpaceX’s Rocket Engine Test Leads To Massive Fireball At Test Stand

Unlike the majority of rocket companies, which produce a fixed number of engines intended for specific future rockets, SpaceX is a hardware rich company. Its Starship rocket development in Texas has seen the firm spool up the production of steel sheets, metal tanks, and rocket engines.

Before a rocket engine is installed either on the Falcon 9, Starship Super Heavy or Starship second stage, it undergoes qualification tests at SpaceX’s facilities in McGregor, Texas. The two rocket engines can be distinguished through their exhaust plumes. While the Merlin’s exhaust glows orange because of kerosene, Raptor’s exhaust is cleaner and emit a bluish hue. The Raptor engines are a brand new design created especially for Starship since they can use methane as their fuel.

Today, footage from a local media channel in Texas, NASASpaceflight, shows that what appeared to be a Raptor engine test at a SpaceX stand in McGregor end up in flames. The test started a little after 4:12 p.m. local time and looked to proceed normally as the smoke from the firing blocked the camera view. As the smoke cleared 14 seconds post ignition, the engine had shut off, and the test seemed to have concluded.

However, immediately after the smoke clouds dissipated, a fire started to blow out from the bottom of the pad where the rocket engine’s nozzle emits flame. During the test, this region had seen flames characteristic of a Raptor with the classic Mach diamonds. However, these new flames were orange, and they appeared to travel upwards before a second explosion engulfed the entire structure.

Thankfully for SpaceX, the pad remained standing after the explosion. Yet, after the mishap, white clouds continued to blow out from the top of the stand for more than a minute before the landscape cleared.

SpaceX often upgrades its Raptor engines along the way as they wait for installation on a Starship booster. The engines currently being used are the Raptor 2 engines. These feature higher thrust and less complexity in their design. The Raptor is designed to utilize resources on Mars for its fuel, liquid methane. It is also significantly more powerful than the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy’s Merlin engines, with SpaceX using a complement of 33 engines on its Starship rocket booster.