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The Space X Starship is already at the gates of heaven

We have been talking about the Starship for a few years now, the Space X launch propellant and spacecraft set that, if the plans of said company and NASA do not go awry, will be the protagonist of the second great age of space exploration. manned by humans. With the goal being on the Moon for this decade and on Mars for the next, it is quite possible that this ship will be the great protagonist of some of those episodes.

When I say that we have been talking about it for years, it is important to clarify this, it is not a criticism, that is, I am not affirming or implying that this is going too slowly. In any case, I say that it is going at the speed at which we are already accustomed in almost everything that has to do with leaving our planet, as we have recently recalled, for example, with the commissioning of the James Webb, a work engineering teacher but who, during her feat, has been constantly accumulating delays and increases in the budget.

Yes, it is true that Space X’s plans regarding the Starship were somewhat more ambitious, at least in terms of time, since back in September 2019 the company stated that its goal is for the ship to reach Earth orbit in just six months since then. Obviously the arrival of the pandemic has had a lot to do with part of the delay, but on the other hand, we have what I was saying before, almost everything related to space exploration, and even more so if it involves innovation, is usually subject to long delays.

The Space X Starship is already at the gates of heaven

But it is never too late if happiness is good, as the proverb reminds us, and according to what we can read on Cnet, after the numerous tests that have been carried out since 2020, it seems that Starship’s first voyage into space, powered by the Super Heavy propellant, is getting closer. So much so that SpaceX is already reviewing some of the final items on its checklist, and launch could therefore take place over the next few weeks.

This is a litmus test, never better said, because we must remember that it will be the first time that the Super Heavy engine (on this occasion a fully functional prototype of it) activates a whopping 33 engines, capable of vertically raising the Starship, let’s remember, a beast almost 120 meters high and that can weigh up to 5,000 tons with its maximum load. Engines, as you already know, are a singularly critical element in space vehicles, due to the performance they must provide and, at the same time, the conditions they must withstand in a completely safe manner.

If all goes well with the test that is going to be carried out soon, it is expected that the US authorities will grant Space X the necessary authorizations so that, finally, the Starship can be used commercially. And while waiting for the aforementioned space exploration missions, its first task will almost certainly be to put the Starlink satellites into orbit, something for which the company already requested authorization about a year ago.

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