The United States stops SpaceX's Starship vehicle after a test flight explosion

The United States has halted the launch of SpaceX's giant Starship rocket while an investigation is conducted into what caused it to explode during its recent test flight.

The rocket's upper stage was severely damaged and disintegrated over the Caribbean Sea after its launch from Texas on Thursday, forcing flights to change course to avoid falling debris.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it was working with SpaceX and other authorities to confirm reports of damage to public property in the Turks and Caicos Islands. There were no reports of injuries.

Elon Musk's company has been asked to conduct an “unfortunate accident” investigation by the aviation regulator, which will review the findings before deciding whether Starship can return to flying.

The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed it had activated a “debris response zone” to briefly slow planes outside the area Where the debris was fallingOr preventing aircraft from leaving departure locations.

She added that several aircraft requested to be diverted due to low fuel levels while being held outside the affected area.

The spacecraft is the largest and most powerful rocket ever built, and is key to Musk's ambitions to colonize Mars.

Thursday's unmanned launch was Starship's seventh test mission, and the first to include a longer, upgraded version of the rocket.

SpaceX said before the test that Starship's upper stage, two meters (6.56 feet) taller than previous versions, was a “new-generation ship with significant upgrades.”

It was scheduled to make a soft landing in the Indian Ocean about an hour after its launch from Boca Chica, Texas.

The Starship system lifted off at 17:38 EDT (22:38 GMT) and the upper stage separated from its super-heavy booster about four minutes into the flight as planned.

But then SpaceX communications director Dan Huett reported in a live broadcast that mission teams had lost contact with the ship.

The super-heavy rocket was able to return to the launch pad approximately seven minutes after liftoff as planned, drawing a standing ovation from ground control teams.

SpaceX later confirmed that the upper stage underwent “rapid, unscheduled disassembly.”

In a post on his social media platform

The billionaire added, “Nothing so far indicates that the next launch will be postponed until next month.”

SpaceX's Starship spacecraft and Super Heavy rocket — collectively referred to as Starship — are 123 meters (403 feet) long and are intended to be fully reusable, the company says.

NASA hopes to use a modified version of the rocket as a human lunar lander on Artemis missions to return to the moon.

In the distant future, Musk wants the spacecraft to make long trips to Mars and back — a trip of about nine months in each direction.

Thursday's Starship test launch came hours after the maiden flight of the Blue Origin New Glenn rocket system, backed by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.

It was a big step forward for Bezos and his company, which had spent years getting to the point of sending a rocket into orbit.

Bezos and Musk both want to control the spacecraft market.