Elon Musk, the founder and CEO of SpaceX, marked Wednesday’s test flight of the Starship SN8 a success, despite it blowing up during the landing phase.
Musk wrote on Twitter that the uncrewed launch had a “successful ascent, switchover to header tanks and precise flap control to landing point.”
He continued that the “fuel header tank pressure was low during landing burn, causing touchdown velocity to be high & RUD, but we got all the data we needed!”
Musk, along with many others, celebrated the space accomplishment on social media.
“Mars, here we come,” he wrote.
Here are some of the celebratory tweets that were posted after the test:
Mars, here we come!!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 9, 2020
Some screen captures from today's #SpaceX SN8 launch. pic.twitter.com/kfxkMn4syc
— David Blanchflower (@DavidBflower) December 9, 2020
Proof it is not easy to land things, even as the folks @SpaceX make it look so routine with the Falcon 9. But wow was that epic. Can’t wait to see the results! #SN8 pic.twitter.com/pQ4HflWqx9
— Bobak Ferdowsi (@tweetsoutloud) December 9, 2020
Absolutely amazing. Watching a starship skydive for the first time ever was wild. Congatulations! Can't wait for SN9. @elonmusk @SpaceX #starshipsn8
— nikkcolas (@Nikkcolas) December 9, 2020
Congratulations @SpaceX and @elonmusk for the #starshipsn8 launch. It was a spectacular event, the landing was almost a success. SN9 will be the one I guarantee you :D
— VAJDAD4M (@vajdad4m) December 9, 2020
Awesome! Congrats @SpaceX @elonmusk! pic.twitter.com/CSJzNCjurA
— Karl Morrison (@basickarl) December 9, 2020
Great flight on SN8. Right in the middle of the landing pad. Hard landings are going to happen early in a program. @SpaceX @elonmusk pic.twitter.com/UKC0lPOOba
— David Silvester #StopTheSteal 🇺🇸 (@djs10a) December 9, 2020
Most stunning show in 2020 #SpaceX Thank you @SpaceX pic.twitter.com/m4EoDgnKlY
— Marek Prochera (@hicolour) December 9, 2020