Eight minutes after the 400ft rocket system launched from the company’s Starbase in Texas, the upper-stage spacecraft’s engines malfunctioned and the vehicle spun out of control before exploding in the atmosphere above the Caribbean. The lower-stage super heavy booster returned to the launch pad after separation and was caught by mechanical arms.

SpaceX's mammoth Starship spun wildly out of control and broke apart during its eighth test flight, another setback for Elon Musk's company less than two months after its last mission ended with an explosion.