Elon Musk
Over the past weekend, SpaceX founder Elon Musk tweeted these photos showing the rapid progress being made at Starbase, Texas for Starship's first orbital test flight.
In these two images, engineers are shown installing the 29 methane-fueled Raptor engines that will power Super Heavy Booster 4...which will lift Starship out of Earth's atmosphere.
It remains to be seen when SpaceX's giant Mars rocket will see its inaugural flight to low-Earth orbit...as the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) continues to conduct an environmental impact study pertaining to Starship heading into space for the first time. It may take months for the FAA to grant its approval for launch.
Once the Starship Super Heavy combo does rocket away from its Texas launch site and heads toward the Kármán line and beyond, this will be a watershed moment in human spaceflight.
Not only will its role as the Human Landing System on Artemis 3 move that much closer to reality, but humanity's goal of journeying to Mars within our lifetimes will also be in reach thanks to Starship. Mars est.
Elon Musk
29 Raptor engines and 4 grid fins have been installed on Super Heavy ahead of first orbital flight pic.twitter.com/XHkCZ9VYK4
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) August 3, 2021
No comments:
Post a Comment