By marcia dunn, ap aerospace writerCAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Sep 1, 2016, 9:29 AM ET
Erin Head/TwitterErin Head posted this photo on Twitter with this caption:"Explosion at #spacex. Can't be good," Sept. 1, 2016.An explosion has rocked the SpaceX launch site in Florida.
NASA says SpaceX was conducting a test firing of its unmanned rocket when the blast occurred Thursday morning. The test, considered routine, was in advance of a planned Saturday launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
Buildings several miles away shook from the blast, and multiple explosions continued for several minutes. A cloud of dark smoke filled the overcast sky.
Additional details were not immediately available. But sirens could be heard in the aftermath.
The rocket was supposed to hoist an Israeli satellite this weekend.
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SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket, meant to launch a satellite this weekend, exploded on the launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The explosion occurred during a static fire test of the rocket's engines, NASA told the Associated Press. The bl
ast reportedly shook buildings "several miles away."
SpaceX was getting the Falcon 9 ready to launch the Amos 6 satellite, a communications probe for the Israeli satellite operator Spacecom. The mission was scheduled for 3AM ET Saturday morning. Prior to all launches, SpaceX conducts a static fire test, in which the rocket's engines are turned on while the vehicle is constrained. It's a routine procedure the company has done many times before.
The 45th Space Wing, the US Air Force unit that commands the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, is responding to the explosion. "There are no known casualties (other than the destroyed rocket, of course that costs millions of dollars). There's no threat to public safety and our emergency management teams are on site responding," Bryan Bryan Purtell, a representative for the 45th Space Wing, told The Verge. The unit will provide more updates soon.
It's possible that the Amos 6 satellite was not harmed during the explosion. The satellites aren't always loaded on top of the Falcon 9s during a static fire. But right now, the fate of the Amos 6 is unclear.
It costs $60 million to make the Falcon 9, and $200,000 to fuel it, according to SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. Reusing rockets could substantially lower these costs, he says; theoretically, a rocket would only need to be refueled to launch multiple times again.
This is developing story.
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Explosion rocks SpaceX launch site in Florida during test
CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida --
An explosion rocked a SpaceX launch site Thursday during a routine rocket test.SpaceX was conducting a test firing of its unmanned rocket when the blast occurred shortly after 9 a.m., according to NASA. The test was in advance of a planned Saturday launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, which is next to NASA's Kennedy Space Center.
Buildings several miles away shook from the blast, and multiple explosions continued for several minutes. Dark smoke filled the overcast sky. A half-hour later, a black cloud hung low across the eastern horizon.
This photo from an eyewitness shows a huge fireball coming from the site:
Additional details were not immediately available. There was no immediate word on any injuries; the launch pad usually is cleared before a test firing of a SpaceX Falcon rocket.
SpaceX spokesman, John Taylor, said he could not comment as he worked to gather information.
NASA - SpaceX's major customer - said the explosion occurred at Launch Complex 40 at the Air Force station, and Kennedy emergency staff was on standby. At the same time, personnel were monitoring the air for any toxic fumes.
The rocket was supposed to hoist an Israeli communications satellite this weekend.
This video posted on social media shows heavy smoke coming from the explosion site:
The initial blast sounded like lightning, but was followed by the sounds of more explosions. SpaceX is one of two companies shipping supplies to the space station for NASA. It's also working on a crew capsule to ferry station U.S. astronauts; that first flight was supposed to come as early as next year.
Two NASA astronauts were conducting a spacewalk 250 miles up, outside the International Space Station, when the explosion occurred. Mission Control did not immediately advise them of the accident.
The explosion is a setback for SpaceX. The California-based company, led by billionaire Elon Musk, had been ramping up with frequent launches to make up for a backlog created by a launch accident in June 2015. SpaceX was leasing the pad from the Air Force for its Falcon launches.
The company is also redoing a former shuttle pad at Kennedy for future manned flights for NASA.