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[snip] On November 21st, Superheavy booster 18, the first next generation block 3 Superheavy, suffered a catastrophic structural rupture during ground testing at the Massiey's outpost. Intended to fly alongside ship 39 for Starship flight 12, the vehicle experienced an energetic failure in the opening phase of its proof campaign. The event immediately ended booster 18's qualification path and pushed flight 12 several months beyond SpaceX's original target. [/snip] Elon Musk Revealed Root Cause 'COPV Failure' on Booster 18 V3 After Inspection! Weird Explosion | 10:29 SpaceX Community | 69.2K subscribers | 5,114 views | November 22, 2025

Chinese Tianlong-3 Rocket Accidentally Launched During A Engine Test https://x.com/WallStreetSilv/status/1807420368820347272

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...