Flown aluminum fragment recovered from the wreckage of SpaceX F9R Dev1 prototype which exploded over McGregor, Texas, on August 22, 2014. The piece measures 4.75″ x 1.75″ x 2″ and demonstrates the shearing and twisting forces that the spacecraft encountered during its failure, descent to Earth, and impact. Accompanied by a letter of provenance from Steve Jurvetson of Future Ventures, in part: "SpaceX F9R Dev 1 was the test vehicle for mastering the art of propulsive vertical landing of a rocket, revolutionizing the cost economics of space launch through reusability. On Aug 22, 2014, we were at the SpaceX McGregor, Texas test facility for a board meeting and witnessed the final F9R flight. It was the first flight with three engines going, and a lot more fuel than prior flights. It arched over and something was clearly wrong. Then BOOM! I suggested to Elon that we should go out to the debris field for post-flight analysis… and artifact collecting. Someone tried to cheer Elon up with a quote about learning coming from life's failures. Elon replied: 'Given the options, I prefer to learn from success.' The SpaceX video 'How Not to Land an Orbital Rocket Booster' uses videos I took on site…I personally collected this torn metal component from the wreckage of F9R's final flight, while the fires were still burning. It bears witness to the forces involved, and Elon's adage that 'rockets are hard.'"
