Ever since it was launched back in 2002, SpaceX has been striving to make space travel cheaper and more accessible for humanity. Under the eccentric leadership of billionaire visionary Elon Musk, it has conducted several successful tests that have been designed exclusively to carry crews into orbit, be it the Falcon Heavy launch, or the more recent Starhopper test. However, the company’s latest revelation is easily its most awe-inspiring one so far.
Addressing the press and his passionate crew of SpaceX employees in Cameron County, Texas this past Saturday night, Musk unveiled the immense prototype of Starship, a reusable spacecraft that can carry humans to orbit and return safely to Earth. Heaving with pride, he described the 50-meter, 200-ton spaceship as the “most inspiring thing that I’ve ever seen.”
After stating Starship’s unique design features, Musk wasted no time in laying out his plans for the spacecraft. He intends to initiate production of an entire fleet of Starship vehicles, and in his typical ambitious manner, he hopes to be able to “reach orbit in less than six months.”
The most important aspect of all SpaceX vehicles is their reusability; in the sense that they are all capable of reaching orbit and then returning to Earth before launching into orbit again. This not only cuts down on the cost of space travel, but makes it even more effective in the long run.
Discussing what he hoped Starship would be able to achieve in this regard, Musk said, “This thing is going to take off, fly to about 65,000 feet — that’s about 20 kilometers — and come back and land. In about one to two months. It is really gonna be pretty epic to see that thing take off and come back.”
And it is indeed going to pretty epic. For while the world is plagued with a multitude of problems, the knowledge that we might just become a space-faring civilization someday is enough to make us look forward to the future. After all, in Musk’s words, being out there among the stars is one of the things that should make us glad to be alive.
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