An impeccable space mission took place on Thursday, but it wasn't from SpaceX.
The SpaceX Starship space vehicle disintegrated shortly after its launch on Thursday; however, thousands of kilometers away, another new rocket had a more successful liftoff in its first commercial mission.
The recent launch of SpaceX's Starship rocket was marred by a catastrophic failure: the upper portion of the spacecraft disintegrated shortly after separating from the Super Heavy booster. This incident occurred just two months after a similar failure during a previous flight test, attributed to fires caused by fuel leaks and unexpected harmonic vibrations. However, it has not yet been determined whether the same factors played a role in the latest accident. Despite this disappointment for the SpaceX engineering team, the company emphasized that "success comes from what we learn," suggesting that this experience will help improve the reliability of Starship.
Meanwhile, over 3,200 miles southeast of SpaceX's launch site in Texas, the Ariane 6 rocket successfully completed its mission during its second flight. It lifted off from the Guiana Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, and successfully placed the CSO-3 Earth observation satellite into orbit, developed for the French Defense Acquisition Agency (DGA) and the French space agency (CNES). Although the technology of the Ariane 6 is less complex than that of the next-generation Starship, the successful completion of its first commercial mission is a significant achievement, reaffirming European and French excellence in the space sector.
The CEO of CNES, Lionel Suchet, expressed satisfaction with this achievement: "I am delighted with the successful launch of the CSO-3 satellite for CNES and the DGA. This successful launch, the first commercial mission of the Ariane 6, is excellent news that demonstrates, in many ways, European and French excellence in space for the benefit of our citizens."
In another context, the uncontrolled reentry of debris from a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket created a dramatic spectacle in the skies over Europe, resulting in a fireball that struck Poland. According to the European Space Agency, the debris originated from a Starlink launch conducted on February 1.
On a different note, SpaceX also achieved a milestone with its Falcon 9 rocket, setting a record with 26 launches and landings. The launch took place on Saturday from Cape Canaveral, Florida, delivering 21 Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit.