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Today in History: SpaceX's Starship makes debut before explosive end

4/20/2026

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Summary

Story summary

On April 20, 2023, SpaceX's Starship launched for the first time from Starbase, Texas. The ambitious mission aimed to demonstrate the capabilities of the fully reusable rocket, designed to have the highest payload capacity of any launch vehicle. However, the flight ended in failure as the rocket exploded four minutes after liftoff.

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Story summary

On April 20, 2023, SpaceX's Starship launched for the first time from Starbase, Texas. The ambitious mission aimed to demonstrate the capabilities of the fully reusable rocket, designed to have the highest payload capacity of any launch vehicle. However, the flight ended in failure as the rocket exploded four minutes after liftoff.