'We were too dumb': Elon Musk reveals regrets about engine mistakes led to Starship SN9 exploding, but says SpaceX will 'try the pull up method' next time
Elon Musk stayed silent following the epic explosion of SpaceX's Starship SN9, mainly because he took a break from Twitter, but the billionaire has shared his thoughts and regrets about the failed mission.
On February 2, the massive rocket attempted its first high-altitude test but was unable to stick the landing that finished with a deafening crash.
When asked on Twitter 'why only light 2 engines for landing' instead of all three in order to remove any points of failure, Musk replied 'we were too dumb.'
'Next time,' he added, 'we try the pull *up* method.'
However, reports state that one of the two Raptor engines failed to re-ignite before returning to the ground, which caused SN9 to travel too fast to perform a safe landing.
Elon Musk stayed silent following the epic explosion of SpaceX's Starship SN9, but the billionaire has shared his thoughts and regrets about the failed mission. When asked on Twitter 'why only light 2 engines for landing' instead of all three in order to remove any points of failure, Musk replied 'we were too dumb'
Musk announced he was going 'off Twitter for a while' on the day SN9 launched and exploded.
But the CEO, which occasionally takes a hiatus from the platform, came crawling back Wednesday and broke his silence about the missteps that led to the demise of the Starship prototype.
SN9 took off from SpaceX's Boca Chica, Texas testing facility at around 3:24pm ET Tuesday.
It soared out over the Gulf of Mexico and after about five minutes, it flipped sideways as planned and descended in a free-fall back to the southeastern tip of Texas near the Mexican border.
Musk shard a an image with a tweet saying: 'Next time,' he added, 'we try the pull *up* method'
Musk announced he was going 'off Twitter for a while' on the day SN9 launched and exploded. But the CEO, which occasionally takes a hiatus from the platform, came crawling back Wednesday and broke his silence about the missteps that led to the demise of the Starship prototype
The sideways flip, dubbed a 'belly flop' maneuver by Musk, was designed to mimic the technique Starship will use when returning through Earth's atmosphere from space - presenting the 'belly' as it enters the atmosphere reduces the speed of descent as it approaches the ground.
The rocket is supposed to twist to reorient itself so it can land in the position it took off, but it seemed as if SN9 was unable to make the maneuver in time and exploded upon reading the launch pad.
However, the problem stemmed from a failed Raptor engine that did not ignite and stopped the rocket from turning vertical before touching down.
The crash has now caught the attention of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which will oversee the investigation Tuesday's crash-landing of the SpaceX prototype rocket ship.
However, reports state that one of the two Raptor engines failed to re-ignite before returning to the ground, which caused SN9 to travel too fast to perform a safe landing. Pictured is the last image seen of SN9 before it made a crash landing
On February 2, the massive rocket attempted its first high-altitude test but was unable to stick the landing that finished with a deafening crash and exploded into bright orange flames
'The FAA's top priority in regulating commercial space transportation is ensuring that operations are safe, even if there is an anomaly,' the federal agency told DailyMail.com in a statement.
'The FAA will oversee the investigation of the landing mishap involving the SpaceX Starship SN9 prototype in Boca Chica, Texas.
'Although this was an uncrewed test flight, the investigation will identify the root cause of today's mishap and possible opportunities to further enhance safety as the program develops.'
Prior to Tuesday, Musk bashed the agency on Twitter for temporarily grounding its experimental spacecraft due to safety concerns stemming from a previous crash.
However, it was later revealed that SpaceX had requested a waiver for launching its Starship SN8 rocket in December, which was denied by the FAA – but Musk went ahead with launch.
The non-compliance of SpaceX is what led to the delays of the SN9 rocket taking its first high-altitude test.
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