A major SpaceX explosion seems to have just destroyed Facebook's first-ever satellite

A major explosion during a SpaceX pre-launch test Thursday seems to have destroyed Facebook's first-ever satellite.

AMOS-6, a project of Facebook's Internet.org program, was built to deliver internet to the developing world. It was intended to ride a SpaceX Falcon 9 into orbit this Saturday, and would have been the first satellite the internet giant put in orbit. The rocket on the launchpad when an explosion rocked Cape Canaveral, Florida Thursday was a Falcon 9.

Ars Technica reporter Eric Berger tweeted that the explosion was the result of a launch pad anomaly, not a problem with the rocket - and that AMOS-6 was on board.

SpaceX confirmed that both the rocket and its payload were lost.

AMOS-6 would have provided internet coverage to Sub-Saharan Africa.

Here's an image of the blast site:

Here's Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook post announcing AMOS-6 last year:

 

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