An unmanned Antares rocket carrying supplies to the International Space Station exploded seconds after liftoff from a NASA launch pad in Virginia.
No one was injured on the ground after debris fell in flames over the launch site Tuesday evening.
The explosion was captured on NASA鈥檚 video stream, as well as dozens of amateur videos that were quickly shared on YouTube and social media.
The Antares rocket belongs to Orbital Sciences Corp., a private company contracted by NASA to deliver supplies to the ISS.
鈥淪omething went wrong and we will find out what that is,鈥� Frank Culbertson, executive vice-president at Orbital Sciences, told a news conference Tuesday night.
He said his company has 鈥渘o early indications of exactly what might have failed,鈥� but will conduct a thorough investigation, along with NASA.
Inside the Antares rocket was the Cygnus spacecraft, carrying 5,000 pounds of supplies for the six astronauts currently living on the space station.
The cargo ship was loaded with science experiments -- some of them developed by students 鈥� and hardware, spacewalk equipment and food.
Bill Gerstenmaier, the associate administrator of NASA鈥檚 Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, told reporters Tuesday that none of the cargo was 鈥渁bsolutely critical鈥� to the ISS crew, which has plenty of food and water and is in no danger.
In an earlier tweet, NASA said that the Orbital Sciences team 鈥渨asn鈥檛 tracking any issues鈥� before the launch.
NASA is paying the Virginia-based Orbital Sciences and the California-based SpaceX to send supplies to the space station. Until Tuesday, all of the previous Orbital Sciences and SpaceX missions had been successful.
Culbertson said the investigative team will begin collecting and cataloguing scattered rocket debris at daybreak Wednesday. He urged people who find debris on their property or elsewhere not to touch it, since the rocket contained hazardous materials.
He said space launches are a 鈥渞isky business,鈥� and everyone at Orbital Sciences takes their jobs 鈥渧ery seriously.鈥�
Once the cause of Tuesday鈥檚 disaster is determined, the company鈥檚 space delivery missions will resume, he said.
鈥淲e will fly again as soon as we can safely, with confidence.鈥�
With files from The Associated Press
