Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) launched the two-stage Falcon 1 rocket at 5:30 p.m. EST (2230 GMT) from the U.S. military’s Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Test Site at the Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific Ocean’s Marshall Islands.
“We had a successful liftoff and Falcon made it well clear of the launch pad, but unfortunately the vehicle was lost later in the first stage burn,” SpaceX chief Elon Musk said in an update posted to his El Segundo, California-based firm’s website. “More information will be posted once we have had time to analyze the problem.”