THE first-ever orbital rocket launched from Europe has crashed into the ground and exploded moments after its take off. German startup Isar Aerospace’s uncrewed Spectrum rocket fell into the sea

It was the largest German rocket since V-2, the Nazi-era rocket that has often been described as having launched the space age and was the world’s first long-range guided ballistic missile. Isar Aerospace, the German company that developed the Spectrum rocket, insisted the failed flight had produced extensive data from which its team could learn.

The unmanned Spectrum rocket, an orbital rocket developed by German start-up Isar Aerospace, crashed and exploded 40 seconds after takeoff.