SpaceX has faced public scrutiny for its previous Starship test failures. Its leadership insists that the company's rapid break-it-fix-it strategy is all part of the company's unique iterative philosophy — in stark contrast with NASA 's much slower and careful approach.

Starship's 10th flight test was scheduled to lift off from SpaceX's Starbase launch site in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. The company has yet to successfully complete a mission for the stainless-steel spacecraft, which is being engineered to be fully reusable and would be able to carry up to 100 people to deep space destinations.

SpaceX’s Starship Flight 7 launched with high hopes and cutting-edge upgrades—but ended in a spectacular explosion. From engine failures to onboard fires and a possible self-destruction trigger, this mission didn’t go as planned.