A first-stage booster for an upgraded version of SpaceX’s Starship rocket failed during testing in Texas early Friday, creating a new obstacle for the company’s plans to demonstrate the vehicle’s moon-landing capabilities for NASA.

The stainless steel Super Heavy booster, rolled to a pad at SpaceX’s Starbase site on Thursday, was undergoing checks of its redesigned propellant and pressure systems. The test occurred around 4 a.m. CT Friday. A live video stream from the LabPadre group showed the structure suddenly deform and vent gas, signaling that an internal blast had ruptured the booster’s exterior.

SpaceX said the event was an “anomaly during gas system pressure testing” and reported no injuries. The company said the failure happened before a planned structural-strength trial. It added that investigators would review the incident before determining the cause.

The booster was intended for an early-2026 flight with a Starship upper stage that was not part of Friday’s test. That mission would have marked the company’s twelfth Starship demonstration since 2023. The setback is expected to affect that schedule.

Starship is a key element of NASA’s strategy to return astronauts to the lunar surface. The agency’s multibillion-dollar plan relies on a pair of future landings that would be the first human missions to the moon since 1972. NASA has pressed SpaceX to advance development as the United States seeks to achieve a landing before China’s planned attempt around 2030. Leadership debates inside the agency have continued over how to manage the timeline while China’s program gains momentum.

The booster destroyed on Friday was the first of the V3 series, an upgraded Starship variant that SpaceX says includes several new features linked to the lunar mission architecture. SpaceX produces new boosters rapidly under a test-to-failure approach, but it was not clear whether another V3 unit was immediately available or how long the delay might last.

Starship testing has faced turbulence this year. Three of five flights encountered major failures before steadier progress resumed in August. The most recent mission in October preceded the shift to building the V3 model, which SpaceX had targeted for a February 2026 launch. The Starbase site has also seen past explosions, including a June blast that scattered debris across the nearby U.S.–Mexico border and drew political attention.