Rocket test in China sparks accidental launch that ends in huge explosion after disastrous unplanned lift off
This is the moment a Chinese rocket ship accidentally launched flew into the sky before exploding in a massive fireball after the disastrous, unplanned launch.
The Tianlong-3 rocket, made by aerospace company Space Pioneer, accidentally took off during a test flight from the central Chinese city of Gongyi on Sunday.
The company said the flight occurred “due to the structural failure of the connection between the rocket body and the test platform,” which led to the first stage rocket leaving the launch pad.
Images taken with phones show the rocket, which is partially reusable, flying slowly through the air before its engines fail.
When the engines fail, the vessel can be seen tilting heavily. The entire hull is then seen sputtering black smoke as it falls on its side back to Earth.
The Tianlong-3 rocket, made by space company Space Pioneer, accidentally took off from the city of Gongyi in central China on Sunday.
The company said the flight occurred “due to a structural defect in the connection between the rocket and the test platform”
Footage taken by phones shows the rocket, which is partially reusable, flying slowly through the air before its engines fail.
As it hits the ground outside the city of about 790,000, a deafening explosion is heard as the area around the impact site is consumed by a fireball
When the bullet hits the ground outside the city of about 790,000, a deafening explosion is heard. The area around the impact site is destroyed by a fireball.
A company spokesman told CNN: “After launch, the onboard computer automatically shut down and the rocket fell into the deep mountain 0.9 miles southwest of the test platform. The rocket body fell into the mountain and disintegrated.”
No one was injured in the crash as people in the area had been evacuated well before the test.
The Tianlong-3’s maiden flight is expected to take place in just three months. The spacecraft is intended to deliver payloads into space in a cost-effective manner.
Just last month, the company announced it had raised $207 million (£163.7 million) in funding, making it one of China’s best-funded commercial space companies.
The company is a cornerstone of China’s so-called “eternal dream,” which President Xi Jinping has described as the vision of establishing the nation as a dominant space power amid a new space race with countries including the US that have ramped up their own space exploration programs.