The booster 7 prototype exploded in a huge fireball on Monday.

After seeming to suggest that the explosion was planned, Musk reversed himself and said that it was actually not good.

It's not good. A nearby camera was able to record the blast.

Nic Ansuini, a NASA SpaceFlight photojournalist, provided an up- close look at the damage.

Rocket Science

It doesn't seem like anything was completely destroyed by the explosion. There is no guarantee of the integrity of the booster.

There is a good view of the business end of Booster 7. Eric Berger is a senior space editor at Ars Technica.

Chris Bergin, managing editor of NASASpaceFlight, said that a lot of the Raptors 2 gang might be okay.

Puzzling

In the aftermath, Musk speculated that an oxygen rich environment might have been the cause of the explosion. We have many sensors to detect this. There's more to come.

He gave a preliminary assessment of the damage.

The base of the vehicle seems okay. About an hour ago, I was out there. The pads were shut down for safety. In the morning, will know more.

The goal is for the booster to power the spaceship. With setbacks like these, it might be a while before this thing is off-world. It hasn't yet completed its first test flight.

Area residents are unhappy as the company looks to downsize its research and development facility.