50y ago today - The largest explosion in space history as the Soviet N1 Moon rocket Tyuratam collapses back to its launch pad shortly after liftoff.
"On July 3, 1969, on the very eve of the Apollo-11 Moon landing, Soviet engineers made their second clandestine attempt to fly their giant Moon rocket. However, the mission ended just seconds after liftoff with a colossal explosion, effectively knocking down the USSR in the Moon Race, just days before NASA astronauts walked on the lunar surface."
The second launch of the N1 rocket