“Nobody Could Have Foreseen…”

"Musk and SpaceX did not accurately predict that their launchpad would be destroyed, nor that particulate matter would rain down on residents and habitat as far away as Port Isabel, a town about six miles from the launchpad" https://t.co/0hQkF7cJIc

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 25, 2023

A few days earlier:

My Autotrack software captures the moment that Starship lost control. Excitement was very much guaranteed. Great first attempt by the SpaceX team!

Tune in to hear our live reaction! @NASASpaceflight https://t.co/uutBwWSABz pic.twitter.com/in201JaOiU

— Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) April 20, 2023

Pad, tank farm and launch tower intact. Likely lots of good data on Raptor engine function. Flight termination system works.

5 (at least) engines dropped offline. Whatever caused the tumble/spin still tbd. Didn’t get stage sep or orbit.

Still a good test.

Space is hard. https://t.co/oDgAIEBAcR

— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) April 20, 2023

No, not exactly:

This is what happens to your launchpad when you think it would be funny to launch to the world's largest rocket on 4/20, instead of when it's ready.

It will probably be at least a year before the FAA will approve another Starship launch. pic.twitter.com/tXytW309a6

— Christopher David (@Tazerface16) April 21, 2023

And now, "particulate matter" as far away as Port Isabel. But Elmo is a genius, right?

what happened after it launched? pic.twitter.com/4wHAVEZVHg

— Best of Dying Twiter (@bestofdyingtwit) April 25, 2023

That was just yesterday. 4 days after the launch and disaster. But he's a genius. And "space is hard." Especially when you have so much of it between your ears.