CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — A SpaceX rocket has failed for the first time in nearly a decade, leaving the company’s internet satellites in an orbit so low that they’re doomed to fall through the atmosphere and burn up.

The Falcon 9 rocket blasted off from California on Thursday night, carrying 20 Starlink satellites. Several minutes into the flight, the upper stage engine malfunctioned. SpaceX on Friday blamed a liquid oxygen leak.

Malfunction on upper stage of Falcon 9 was the company's first launch failure since 2015.{ai:summary}<p>The SpaceX rocket with 20 Starlink satellites malfunctioned causing them to fall through the atmosphere. SpaceX blamed a liquid oxygen leak in the upper stage engine for the first rocket failure in nearly a decade. #technology</p>

SpaceX rocket accident leaves Starlink satellites in too-low orbit

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