Update: 4:00 PM: This piece was updated with a full video of the explosion.
SpaceX is pioneering the future of space exploration, but, as NASA has learned over the years, not every launch goes as planned. Such was the case this morning, when a rocket exploded during a test launch this morning at Cape Canaveral, FL.
The plan was for the rocket to launch on September 3. It'd be carrying a satellite built by Facebook that would beam an internet connection down to remote, internet-less areas here on Earth as part of the social network's Internet.org initiative.
Thankfully, no one was injured in the blast. SpaceX confirmed in a statement shared to Twitter exactly what happened:
Statement on this morning's anomaly pic.twitter.com/3Xm2bRMS7T
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) September 1, 2016
In another tweet, SpaceX elaborated on the incident in more detail. Just after 9 a.m. EST this morning, something went wrong during a routine pre-launch static fire test. The anomaly began near the Falcon 9 rocket's upper oxygen tank. Personnel were clear of the launch pad at the time, so there were no injuries or fatalities. But photos of the fire and smoke shared on social media sure did make it look nasty.
For anyone who wondered why launch prep takes weeks & why no one is allowed near, this is why #Falcon9 #SpaceX pic.twitter.com/ukCPmAhOhD
— Hunter Blaeser (@MinnesotaLoving) September 1, 2016
Significant smoke plume coming from the Cape Canaveral Space X launch pad in Florida, seen on radar. #Spacex pic.twitter.com/43FiZKMIXB
— Brad Panovich (@wxbrad) September 1, 2016
No word yet as to when Facebook and SpaceX will try to send up another satellite into orbit. A Falcon 9 launch costs roughly $57 million. Watch ABC News' recording of the explosion below.
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