Noobenheim News for Nerds September 1st was just another day of work for the SpaceX employees in Cape Canaveral, Florida, where SpaceX was preparing for a new launch. Then, everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked the rocket exploded.
This was the rocket for the AMOS-6 mission, and the payload was a Facebook satellite that planned to spread internet access to parts of Africa and Europe. This $200 million dollar satellite, named Amos-6, was owned by the Israeli company Spacecom, and was in partnership with the French company Eutelsat Communications.
SpaceX described the event “an anomaly” in its press release. The rocket was undergoing fueling in preparation for a test firing when the anomaly happened in the upper stage liquid oxygen tank. There were no injuries as the crew had been cleared of the pad – however the pad itself did sustain some damage. The cause at this point is still unknown, though the company does have some theories about what happen. It will take a while to dig through the debris, so don’t expect an answer anytime soon. For now, SpaceX has grounded all of its launches.
