Pakistan, June 19 -- HOUSTON - SpaceX's ambitious Starship project faced another setback as Starship 36 exploded during a routine test at the company's Starbase launch facility in Texas late Wednesday night. The incident occurred around 11:00pm local time and was described as a "catastrophic failure" by Cameron County officials.

A video released by local authorities showed the rocket attached to its launch arm just before a massive flash and fiery explosion lit up the night sky. Thankfully, SpaceX confirmed that all employees were safe and that a secure perimeter had been maintained throughout the operation.

The explosion took place during a routine static fire test, not an actual launch. During such tests, engines are fired while the r...