SpaceX and NASA on January 19 purposefully blew up a Falcon 9 rocket. The "in-flight abort" test was meant to assess the Crew Dragon escape system. The Crew Dragon is a spacecraft attached to the Falcon 9 that is designed to take human passengers to space. The planned explosion can be tied to the Apollo 1 accident in which three astronauts died during a preflight test. Some experts believe that the space race pressured NASA into cutting corners at the expense of safety while testing Apollo 1. This led to stricter regulations for space missions that still apply today.

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Why SpaceX Blew Up A Falcon 9 Rocket On Purpose