A SpaceX rocket has exploded at the testing site of the company’s Mars-bound Starship craft, Elon Musk has confirmed.

The SpaceX boss said the fireball at the firm’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas, on Monday evening occurred during a spin start test of all 33 Raptor engines onboard.

The explosion of the Super Heavy Booster 7, known as B7, was caught by cameras set up by NasaSpaceFlight, which were recording a live stream of the testing.

The B7 rocket is being developed for the first orbital flight of the Starship rocket. Set to take place later this year, the uncrewed journey will see the Starship second stage stacked on top of the booster to deliver it into orbit. After 90 minutes of flight, it will then aim to touch down just off the coast of Hawaii.

It is not the first time a Starship rocket has exploded during testing, however it is the first occurrence of the Super Heavy Booster suffering such a malfunction.

Read more: yahoo