Elon Musk extends sympathy to China as rocket explodes seconds after launch

China’s Long March 7A rocket exploded 85 seconds after liftoff from the Wenchang Space Launch Site in Hainan on Monday while carrying a satellite, according to Peoples Gazette.

State news agency Xinhua attributed the failure to a “flight anomaly” under investigation, which could prompt checks on other launches sharing components or operations.

Elon Musk commented on the incident, saying “rockets are insanely hard” and wishing China “a speedy recovery.” The rocket’s only prior failure occurred during its March 2020 maiden flight, after which it completed several successful missions before Monday’s explosion.