Several environmental and wildlife groups have filed a lawsuit against the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) over SpaceX's recent launch of its giant rocket from Texas.
The Starship rocket flew 39 kilometers high before exploding over the Gulf of Mexico on April 20, causing environmental groups to sue the FAA for not fully considering the environmental impacts of the Starship program near Boca Chica Beach in South Texas. The plaintiffs have asked the court to throw out the FAA's five-year license granted to SpaceX.
The FAA has declined to comment, stating that it does not comment on ongoing litigation. The agency is overseeing the accident investigation and has grounded all SpaceX Starships until it is certain that public safety will not be compromised.
The launch of a full-size Starship is the first of its kind, with the company planning to use it to send people and cargo to the moon and, ultimately, Mars. However, environmental groups such as the Center for Biological Diversity, American Bird Conservancy, Surfrider Foundation, Save RGV (Rio Grande Valley), and the Carrizo/Comecrudo Nation of Texas believe that it is crucial to protect life on Earth while looking to the stars in this modern era of spaceflight. They argue that federal officials should defend vulnerable wildlife and frontline communities, rather than give a pass to corporate interests that want to use treasured coastal landscapes as a dumping ground for space waste.
The launch pad is on a remote site on the southernmost tip of Texas, just below South Padre Island and approximately 32 kilometers from Brownsville. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reported last week that large concrete chunks, stainless steel sheets, metal, and other objects were hurled thousands of feet from the pad, causing a plume of pulverized concrete to send material up to 10.2 kilometers northwest of the pad.
SpaceX founder and CEO, Elon Musk, said his company could be ready to launch the next Starship in six to eight weeks with the FAA's approval. He has promised to make improvements to the next Starship before it flies. The self-destruct system will need to be modified so that the rocket explodes immediately, rather than 40 seconds or so afterward, as was the case with this inaugural run. Musk said changes are being made at the launch pad to avoid what he called a "dust storm and rock tornado" at the next launch.