SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket Explodes During Static Fire Test, KO's Facebook's First Satellite

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket exploded while sitting on its launchpad during a static fire test. The test was a routine procedure leading up to the scheduled September 3^rd launch from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. According to eyewitness accounts, multiple explosions were heard, with the force of the blasts shaking buildings located miles away from the launch pad.

Not surprisingly, those in close proximity to the launch facilities took to Twitter to not only post pictures, but to give commentary on what they witnessed this morning:

For anyone who wondered why launch prep takes weeks & why no one is allowed near, this is why #Falcon9 #SpaceX pic.twitter.com/ukCPmAhOhD

— Hunter Blaeser (@MinnesotaLoving) September 1, 2016

#Breaking| #SpaceX Falcon 9 explodes at launch site at Cape Canaveral, #Florida.
(pic via @Dehreeus ) pic.twitter.com/YzaeRkXuAG

— Just News (@aerdt) September 1, 2016

Here's a better picture showing actual flames from Cape Canaveral at the #SpaceX launch pad. pic.twitter.com/aW7Hyemiwr

— tuddle (@tuddle) September 1, 2016

Check this out from our First Alert Doppler Radar- the smoke from today's #SpaceX explosion dispersing north. #WESH pic.twitter.com/vthPjaGqSO

— Eric Burris (@EricBurrisWESH) September 1, 2016

Given that we’re still gathering information and that this incident just happened, we don’t have much else to go on. And SpaceX has not yet made an official statement on incident — and it’s probably a bit too early to give any ideas on what exactly went wrong on the launch pad.

We also don't know if the Eutelsat Amos-6 communication satellite was already onboard. This was Facebook’s first [leased] satellite in fact. It was to be used in Facebook’s Internet.org initiative to provide Internet access in underserved areas around the globe.

Updated 9/1/2016 @ 10:45am
We can now confirm that Facebook's satellite also went up in smoke:

Statement on this morning's anomaly pic.twitter.com/3Xm2bRMS7T

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) September 1, 2016