Early on Thursday morning (July 7), a Minotaur II+ rocket from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base blew up shortly after takeoff on a test flight.
At 2:01 a.m. EDT (0601 GMT; 11:01 p.m. local California time on July 6), just 11 seconds after liftoff, the explosion happened. According to a brief press release provided by Vandenberg officials.
No injuries were reported, and "the debris was contained to the immediate vicinity of the launch pad," the release stated, adding that the cause will be determined by an investigative review board.
"We always have emergency response teams on standby prior to every launch," Col. Kris Barcomb, Space Launch Delta 30 vice commander and the decision authority for this launch, added in the statement. "Safety is our priority at all times."
The launch, which was originally scheduled for Thursday morning, actually happened on Wednesday night. Why the missile was launched earlier than anticipated is presently unknown.
The goal of the Minotaur II+ launch was to aid in the creation of a US re-entry vehicle. According to CBS News, the Air Force's LGM-35A Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) will eventually carry the Mk21A missile.
While missiles are self-guided munitions that travel through the air or outer space to their targets. A ballistic missile travels along a suborbital trajectory. An intercontinental ballistic missile can travel a substantial distance around the Earth to its target.
"The test launch was intended to demonstrate preliminary design concepts and relevant technologies in operationally realistic environments, according to Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center officials," CBS reported.
According to the center, which is in charge of the project, the Sentinel program is meant to take the place of the "aging" Minuteman III ICBM.
"Although certain components and subsystems have been upgraded since the Minuteman III ICBM system first became operational in the early 1970s, most of the system's fundamental infrastructure still uses the original equipment," Officials from the Nuclear Weapons Center provided an overview of the Sentinel ICBM program.
The 400 Minuteman III ICBMs currently stationed at Air Force stations in Wyoming, Montana, and North Dakota will be replaced when the new Sentinel ICBMs are available, according to Air Force officials.
In order to "support the new Sentinel weapon system," the description added, it is planned to update launch facilities, missile warning and communication systems, and other infrastructure and technologies. "The Minuteman III ICBMs will be decommissioned, which requires demilitarization and disposal activities."
