The explosion that destroyed the Falcon X rocket yesterday morning also destroyed a satellite developed by Facebook for the Internet.org initiative to provide free Internet to remote regions of the African continent.
The rocket was scheduled to launch Saturday, September 3 from NASA’s Cape Canaveral Space Launch Complex, but mysteriously exploded during routine tests on the morning of September 1.
First responders said there were no human casualties due to the unexpected explosion. Later during the day, SpaceX, the aerospace manufacturer that produces the FalconX rockets, said that both the rocket and its payload were permanently destroyed in the explosion.
Internet.org’s Africa coverage goes up in smoke, literally
The FalconX payload was an Amos-6 communication satellite developed by Facebook and Eutelsat, which the two companies announced in October 2015.
The satellite was intended to provide free (limited) Internet to various regions of the African continent, as part of Internet.org, a Facebook project that aims to bring cheap and affordable Internet to people around the globe.
The FalconX rocket explosion is a serious drawback for both companies, Facebook and SpaceX. SpaceX rockets have exploded in the past, and the once-promising FalconX project is now plagued with all sorts of technical difficulties.
Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s CEO, published the following message on his Facebook account regarding the incident:
“ As I’m here in Africa, I’m deeply disappointed to hear that SpaceX’s launch failure destroyed our satellite that would have provided connectivity to so many entrepreneurs and everyone else across the continent. Fortunately, we have developed other technologies like Aquila that will connect people as well. We remain committed to our mission of connecting everyone, and we will keep working until everyone has the opportunities this satellite would have provided. ”
Below is a video of the Falcon X explosion. The explosion is at the 1:10 mark.
