SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took to X on Thursday night to explain what his company believes may have caused part of the Starship rocket to experience an “unscheduled rapid disassembly.”

The upper stage of the SpaceX Starship rocket exploded during a test flight that the space company conducted Thursday afternoon from its star base in Texas.

“The preliminary indication is that we had an oxygen/fuel leak in the cavity above the ship’s engine firewall that was large enough to increase the pressure above the venting capacity.” he wrote.

In a post on its website, SpaceX said the “unscheduled rapid takedown” occurred after the upper stage successfully separated from Starship Super Heavy Booster and began his “ascension burn” into space. It lost telemetry with the upper stage “after approximately eight and a half minutes of flight,” according to the company.

STARSHIP UPPER STAGE LOST ON SEVENTH TEST FLIGHT, RESTRICTIONS INTO THE SKY

“Initial data indicates that a fire developed in the aft section of the spacecraft, which led to a rapid unscheduled takedown,” SpaceX said.

Images were posted on social media that appeared to show debris from the Starship rocket in the sky. Video captured pieces leaving red and white trails in the sky over Turks and Caicos.

“Other than obviously checking for leaks, we’re going to add fire suppression to that volume and probably increase the vent area,” Musk also told X, adding that “nothing so far suggests pushing the next release next month.”

Tesla CEO Elon Musk leaves the Phillip Burton Federal Building on January 24, 2023 in San Francisco, California. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images/Getty Images)

SpaceX said the turret arms successfully picked up the Starship’s Super Heavy booster during the flight test.

Thursday’s launch marked SpaceX’s seventh has carried out for its Starship rocket in the last two years or so. In November, when SpaceX made its sixth test, President-elect Trump came to watch.

A visitor walks near the launch site of the SpaceX Starship rocket on Jan. 14, 2025, near Boca Chica, Texas. (Sergio Flores/AFP via Getty Images/Getty Images)

TRUMP VISITS SPACEX STARSHIP LAUNCH IN TEXAS FOR ELON MUSK

“As always, success comes from what we learn, and this flight test will help us improve the reliability of Starship as SpaceX seeks to make life multiplanetary,” SpaceX said. “The data review is already underway as we look for the root cause. We will conduct a thorough investigation, in coordination with the FAA, and implement corrective actions to improve future Starship flight tests.”

Pre-launch testing and preparations are already underway for SpaceX’s planned eighth flight test of Starship, the company said. Ship and thruster construction done for this mission.

JEFF BEZOS’ BLUE ORIGIN TAKES NEW ROCKET ON FIRST TEST FLIGHT

SpaceX’s seventh flight test came on the same day as the competitor Blue originfounded by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, had the first launch of its New Glenn rocket under its belt.

The Blue Origin launch took place in Cape Canaveral, Florida.