The Starship rocket booster SpaceX plans to use for an inaugural flight to orbit will "probably" return to its launch mount in Texas next week following a testing explosion on Monday, the company's chief executive, Elon Musk, told Reuters.

"Damage is minor, but booster will be transferred back to the high bay for inspections, returning to the launch stand probably next week," Musk said in an email.

The booster, the towering first half of SpaceX's next-generation Starship rocket system, was undergoing pre-launch tests on a stand on Monday when its engine section burst into flames, sending a shock wave miles across the South Texas facility.