CNN interrupted for breaking news - and it's devastating for Elon Musk

's Anderson Cooper interrupted the usual broadcasting to announce a devastating blow for after SpaceX Starship took off. The presenter aired "breaking news" and revealed that in just 30 minutes, the rocket lost control after encountering issues in orbit.

He stated: "We have some breaking news on the SpaceX launch," as a clip from the ninth Starship played. Cooper continued: "This is a live image from the SpaceX rocket. "They have lost control of it in space, it is now rolling, we are told... it's not expected to survive re-entering." There had been hopes of a successful mission. However, this test flight marks the third time SpaceX Starship has failed in a row.

Musk had intended to release a series of mock satellites after lift-off, but the plan was abandoned after its payload door failed to open fully.

The vessel had been mounted atop a Super Heavy booster that was being reused for the first time ever and although that was supposed to ensure a soft landing, it ended up slamming into the Gulf of Mexico.

SpaceX hopes that Starship will one day be used to ferry people and cargo to Mars, but this latest setback plunges Musk's ambitions into doubt.

The failed launches earlier this year sparked disruptions across dozens of flights across the US, and the project was grounded for two months while investigations took place.

Despite this, the billionaire described the latest test flight as a "big improvement" and vowed to accelerate the pace of future launches.

Musk also revealed that the next three flights will take place every three to four weeks.

On X, the company added: "With a test like this, success comes from what we learn, and today's test will help us improve Starship's reliability."

NASA revealed it needs SpaceX to make huge advances with Starship over the next 12 months as the US agency tries to fulfil an ambition of landing astronauts back on the moon.

In addition to a live stream of the takeoff, footage posted on social media showed Musk watching the test flight unfold from a control centre while wearing a T-shirt with the slogan "Occupy Mars."