The explosion of the SpaceX Starship rocket over the Caribbean Islands on Thursday forced air traffic control operators to improvise on a dime and may have caused damage to property on the ground.
An NPR review of flight tracking data and audio exchanges between pilots and controllers paints a picture of momentary chaos as colorful bits of debris flashed through the sky around 6 p.m.
“Just got a major streak going from at least 60 miles with all these different colors,” one pilot near Puerto Rico radioed. “It looked like it was coming towards us.”
Those were the remnants of a test flight that took off from Boca Chica, Texas at 5:37 p.m. SpaceX controllers lost contact with the rocket in fewer than 10 minutes, during which time the Starship appears to have exploded.
“What is that?!” shrieked someone in Turks and Caicos while filming glowing debris streaking across the sky.
First night in Turks and Caicos and we’re on the beach and see this.
— KingDomRedux (@KingDomRedux) January 16, 2025
SpaceX owner Elon Musk reposted that video to his social media feed, writing, “Success is uncertain, but entertainment is guaranteed!”
The explosion forced the delay or diversion of at least 20 flights, according to aircraft data from tracking websites FlightAware and FlightRadar24. The Federal Aviation Administration reported several planes requested to change course “due to low fuel levels while holding outside impacted areas.”
While no injuries were reported, government officials in Turks and Caicos on Friday were investigating reports of property damage caused by debris falling from the sky, according to CNN.
Thursday’s ill-fated SpaceX test launch was supposed to terminate in the Indian Ocean after an hour of flight.