A test of a prototype of a rocket that Elon Musk has dreams of sending people to Mars in flew several miles high. But in attempting to land, it hit the ground too fast and exploded. That was the latest test, partly successful, in the development of next-generation spacecraft built by SpaceX. SpaceX’s live broadcast showed the smoldering remains of the rocket, named Starship, at the company’s test site in southern Texas. The gargantuan stainless steel spacecraft lifted off from a launchpad. After reaching its apogee, it started falling, as planned, tipping over in a controlled glide back to Earth. Near the ground, it righted itself back to a vertical orientation and fired three engines to slow down – but not enough. Upon impact, it disintegrated in a fireball, leaving a cloud of smoke. Still, it was an advance in SpaceX’s development efforts. Earlier prototypes disintegrated without ever leaving the ground during test that simply pumped ultracold liquid propellants into the rocket’s tanks. SpaceX has become successful in the launch business, and it is now the world’s most valuable privately held company. Since 2019, SpaceX has launched hundreds of satellites to low-Earth orbit to build a constellation called Starlink that aims to provide high-speed internet service from space. One of Starlink’s stated goals is to provide broadband access to underserved places. The Federal Communications Commission announced the award of billions of dollars in funding to an array of internet service providers to expand broadband access in such locations, and SpaceX received an award of worth $885 million.
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