Washington DC - The Federal Aviation Administration on Friday grounded SpaceX's Starship pending an investigation by Elon Musk's company into why the rocket's upper stage dramatically disintegrated in a fiery cascade over the Caribbean during its latest test flight.

According to official procedure, SpaceX will now be required to carry out a "mishap investigation" – including the identification of any corrective actions, which the FAA will review before determining whether the launch vehicle can return to flight.

Or, SpaceX may submit a request to return to flight before the probe is finished if it completes a filing that demonstrates it has taken preventative measures and that the mishap did not jeopardize public safety.

"The FAA is requiring SpaceX to perform a mishap investigation into the loss of the Starship vehicle during launch operations on Jan. 16," the agency said.

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"There are no reports of public injury, and the FAA is working with SpaceX and appropriate authorities to confirm reports of public property damage on Turks and Caicos."

It added that during the event, it briefly activated a Debris Response Area protocol to slow aircraft outside the area where the debris was falling or stop aircraft at their departure location.

"Several aircraft requested to divert due to low fuel levels while holding outside impacted areas."

Starship is the biggest, most powerful rocket ever built and is key to Musk's ambitions of colonizing Mars.

NASA meanwhile hopes to use a modified version of the rocket as a human lunar lander for its Artemis missions to return to the Moon.

Thursday's uncrewed launch was Starship's seventh orbital test, and the first involving a taller, upgraded version of the rocket.

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SpaceX, which dominates the commercial launch market through its workhorse Falcon 9 rocket, underscored its technical prowess by catching Starship's first stage booster in the "chopstick" arms of its launch tower for a second time.

But the triumph was short-lived when teams lost contact with the upper-stage vehicle. SpaceX later confirmed it had undergone "rapid unscheduled disassembly," the company's euphemism for an explosion.