Rockets occasionally explode without any physical injuries.
Orbital Sciences' Antares rocket is the latest, but certainly not the first, mishap in space exploration and cargo transportation.
Here are five other examples of unmanned rockets that did not perform as intended.
SpaceX test
SpaceX, one of NASA's leading private contractors, has a contract to send people into space. The company has conducted a number of different tests on various rockets. One such test involved a Falcon 9 Reusable rocket on Aug. 22.
The rocket blew up after an anomaly was found. The rocket was designed to be reused and company officials said the test was designed to push the limits of the rocket, according to Business Insider.
Russian Proton-M rocket failure
Russia intended to carry a communications satellite into space earlier this year on May 16, but the rocket veered off path and burned up in the atmosphere, according to CNN.
Russian rocket veers off course
Another Proton-M Russian rocket carrying three navigation satellites lost control and crashed on July 1, 2013. According to Reuters, the engines suddenly switched off. There were no reports of casualties, according to Reuters, but the the accident created a large spill of a highly toxic rocket propellant.
Titan IVA rocket self-destructs
A Titan IVA-20 rocket carrying a classified National Reconnaissance Office satellite self-destructed after its Aug. 12, 1998 launch. Electrical shorts probably caused the rocket to fail, according to an Air Force Space Command investigation. The failure cost more than $1 billion, but no one was hurt.
Delta II explosion
NASA lost an unmanned Delta II rocket on Jan. 17, 1997. The rocket was intended to carry a $40 million in U.S. Air Force navigational satellite but exploded almost immediately after liftoff. No one was injured.
