The rocket ship that could deliver humans to Mars in a decade will orbit next month.
Elon Musk stated that the projected launch of his $3 billion (£2.4 billion) Starship, a spaceship that potentially revolutionises long-distance space travel, is scheduled for March.
In what is known as a “wet dress rehearsal” last month, the 395-foot-tall rocket and its accompanying vehicle reached a critical milestone by being fueled and fully stacked for the first time.
Now, the internet entrepreneur has disclosed that his business SpaceX will attempt to launch its massive Starship rocket into Earth orbit for the first time in a matter of weeks, assuming the vehicle passes a few more tests.
Musk stated on Twitter: “If remaining tests are successful, we will attempt a Starship launch next month.”
“Success is by no means assured, but excitement is assured.”
However, there are reasons to take the vow with a grain of salt.
The billionaire’s overambitious aims have delayed Starship’s orbital launch by months.
The damp dress rehearsal was unquestionably a step in the right direction.
It contains several of the tasks SpaceX engineers will execute on launch day. Injecting liquid oxygen and methane fuel into the Super Heavy first stage and Starship upper stage.
The crucial trip, which will launch from Texas and send the spacecraft around the Earth once before splashing down in the Pacific Ocean near Hawaii, will serve as an early stepping stone in Musk’s plan for Starship to transport people and cargo to the moon and Mars.
Currently, no spaceship is capable of transporting humans to the Red Planet, but the development of Starship could change that.
Multi-planetary species
Musk wants to make humans a “multi-planetary species” by colonising Mars and building cities there.
The tech guru’s long-term goal for Starship is for it to potentially transport people to destinations in the “greater Solar System”. Including gas giants like Jupiter or one of its potentially habitable moons.
Humans would be more likely to survive a global disaster on numerous planets in our solar system.
The spacecraft can carry 100 passengers to the Red Planet on a nine-month mission 250 times farther than the moon.
Musk and SpaceX have been tight-lipped about the majority of Starship’s specifications, including photographs of the interior. However, the 51-year-old has claimed that he plans to place 40 cabins in the cargo area at the front of the upper stage.
‘If you wanted to cram people in, you could have five or six each cabin,’ remarked the CEO of Tesla, SpaceX, and Twitter.
However, I believe that two or three persons per cabin would be the norm. With a total of approximately 100 passengers on every voyage to Mars.
The Starship’s only target is not the Martian surface, though.
NASA stated in April 2021 that it has picked SpaceX’s next-generation vehicle as the first crewed lunar lander for its Artemis III mission which is scheduled to land the first woman and person of color on the moon in 2025.
The Starship HLS, also known as the Starship Human Landing System, will feature SpaceX’s Raptor engines and take design cues from the Falcon and Dragon vehicles.
It will have a big interior and two airlocks for moonwalks.
However, 2025 will not be the first moon landing by the Starship HLS. NASA wants an uncrewed test landing before sending humans back to the moon.
In addition to transporting satellites into low-Earth orbit, Starship may also be used for space tourism.
Trip around the moon
Musk has previously promised the Japanese online retail entrepreneur Yusaku Maezawa a trip around the moon. At the end of last year, Maezawa announced an eight-artist crew for dearMoon.
It is currently scheduled for later this year. However, because Starship has not yet conducted a successful orbital launch, this date is likely to be pushed back.
Musk estimates the Starship project’s development cost at $2 billion (£1.6 billion) to $10 billion (£8 billion).
Later, he stated that it would likely be “closer to two or three [billion] than to 10.”
From the 2009-retired Falcon 1 to the Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy, and Super Heavy, the booster portion alone has developed.
The origins of the Super Heavy trace back to November 2005, when Elon Musk first expressed his intention to develop a rocket he then referred to as the BFR or Big F***ing Rocket.
Since then, several SpaceX launch vehicles have been developed, all in preparation for the Super Heavy.
