SpaceX has confirmed that it destroyed the Crew Dragon capsule on trial

SpaceX Vice President for Mission HansKoenigsman confirmed today during a press conference that the Crew Dragon capsule, which flew to the International Space Station in March - however, without astronauts on board - was destroyed during failed tests on April 20. But Koenigsman does not use the word "explosion". And we will.

Explosive science

Earlier this week there was a powerful explosion onSpaceX on Cape Canaveral. Only twelve days after that, SpaceX publicly admitted that the Crew Dragon capsule was "completely lost." This was stated by Senator Richard Shelby, NASA budget manager.

Until today, SpaceX called this incident an “anomaly” - but this is an understated description of “thick, bright orange flashes” that rose above the horizon.

Koenigsman’s comments followed, after a note received by Orlando Sentinel earlier this week, seemed to confirm that the video of the explosion during the tests was genuine.

What caused the explosion? Königsman stated that "the vehicle was destroyed" - but before the engines started working. This suggests that the "anomaly" did not arise because of the eight emergency engines of Crew Dragon.

“We have no reason to believe that the problem is with the SuperDraco systems themselves,” Koenigsman confirmed at a press event.

Bad PR?

So, where we go Demo 2, in thiscase? The first test flight Crew Dragon was to be held in July. Koenigsman says that “there is certainly hope” that a test flight will take place this year. SpaceX is developing several devices at once. But the cause of the accident during the tests is still subject to investigation.

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