A rocket stage test firing by Chinese commercial company Space Pioneer ended in catastrophic failure and a dramatic explosion Sunday. Space Pioneer conducted what was intended to be a static-fire test of the first stage of its Tianlong-3 launch vehicle at a test facility in Gongyi country, Henan province, Sunday, June 30. Amateur footage captured by Gongyi citizens and posted on Chinese social media shows the nine-engine test stage igntiing and then, exceptionally, taking off. Hold-down clamps and other structures are typically used to securely keep stages in place. The stage is seen climbing into the sky before halting, apparently...
