The United States on Friday grounded SpaceX's Starship and ordered Elon Musk's company to investigate why the spaceship spectacularly disintegrated in a fiery cascade over the Caribbean during its latest test mission.

SpaceX's Starship mega-rocket exploded midair on Thursday, after which the FAA warned pilots of dangerous debris.

She said initially she thought maybe it was fireworks off in the distance, but the explosion's streaks kept crawling across the sky with amazing colors.

"During the event, the FAA activated a Debris Response Area and briefly slowed aircraft outside the area where space vehicle debris was falling or stopped aircraft at their departure location."

SpaceX suspects a fire may have caused its Starship to break apart during liftoff and send trails of flaming debris near the Caribbean.

The FAA says it has grounded the Starship vehicle pending a mishap investigation, and it’s working with SpaceX to assess reports of property damage in Turks and Caicos.

The Federal Aviation Administration is requiring Elon Musk's SpaceX and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin to investigate what went wrong on their respective

SpaceX suspects a fire may have caused its Starship to break apart during liftoff and send trails of flaming debris near the Caribbean. SpaceX's Elon Musk said preliminary indications are that leaking fuel built up pressure in the cavity above the engine firewall. The resulting fire would have doomed the spacecraft.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Friday said it would require SpaceX to issue a mishap investigation after its Starship mega-rocket broke up after launch.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and officials from the Turks and Caicos Islands have launched probes into SpaceX’s explosive Starship rocket test that sent debris streaking over the northern Caribbean and forced airlines to divert dozens of flights.

Friday 17th January 2024: As previously advised, the incident is an active investigation led by the US FAA in liaison with UK and TCI counterparts. UK partners will also be liaising with the TCI Environmental Health Department,