SOUTH PADRE ISLAND: SpaceX’s massive Starship rocket soared into the golden skies of Texas on Monday before successfully crashing, as the US company vies to silence critics who doubt Elon Musk’s startup can deliver NASA’s lunar projects on time.
On its 11th test trip, the massive rocket lifted off from SpaceX’s launch facility in south Texas shortly after 6:25 p.m. local time (11:25 p.m. GMT) on Monday, according to a live video broadcast that also drew resounding applause from engineering teams.
Its rocket booster, known as Super Heavy, landed in Gulf waters as planned, while the upper stage, also known individually as Starship, cruised into space and conducted tests, charting a similar path to the last successful mission in August.
It flew into the Indian Ocean a little over an hour after takeoff, after dropping fake satellites as on its previous flight. No recovery of the vehicle was planned.
NASA plans to use the gigantic Starship – the world’s largest and most powerful rocket – in its efforts to return astronauts to the Moon. It’s also key to Musk’s zealous vision of taking humans to Mars.
The billionaire SpaceX founder said during the pre-launch webcast that he plans to look outward rather than inward, as he did before: It’s “much more visceral,” he said.
Monday’s test mission was to be the last of this iteration of Starship prototypes. The next flight will launch a new model, Version 3, SpaceX said.
The space technology company could claim its two most recent flights as victories.
But these followed a series of spectacular explosions that raised fears that Starship might not ultimately live up to its promises – at least not in the time frame hoped for by lawmakers and the scientific community.
The US space agency’s Artemis program aims to return humans to the Moon as China pursues a rival effort that targets 2030 at the latest for its first crewed mission.
US President Donald Trump’s second term in the White House has seen the administration press NASA to accelerate its progress – efforts to which Starship is key.
Musk’s company has a multibillion-dollar federal contract to develop a modified version of Starship as a lunar lander.
“Second Space Race”
The Artemis III manned mission is scheduled for mid-2027 – but a NASA security advisory committee has warned it could be “years late”, according to Space Policy Online.
And former NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine recently told a Senate committee that “unless something changes, it is very unlikely that the United States will meet China’s timeline.”
Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy has insisted that the United States will always win the “second space race,” telling reporters last month that “America has led in space in the past, and we will continue to do so in the future,” while rejecting the idea that China could get there first.
Previous tests of the massive Starship rocket have resulted in upper stage explosions, including twice over the Caribbean and once after reaching space. In June, the upper stage exploded during a ground test.
Musk identified developing a fully reusable orbital heat shield as the most difficult task, noting that it took nine months to refurbish the space shuttle’s heat shield between flights.
Another hurdle is proving that Starship can be refueled in orbit with super-cooled propellant — an essential but untested step for the vehicle to carry out deep space missions.
NASA’s Aerospace Security Advisory Committee has highlighted “threats” to ensuring the vital transfer can be carried out, with its member Paul Hill saying the timetable is “significantly challenged”.
