Through that sky below: Booster reuse is where aerospace engineering makes gains

On the same day that Portugal can see with the naked eye a comet passing by, leaving a luminous trail in the highlands, the world can watch, through a screen, another historic achievement, which also shoots a beam of light across the sky. But, unlike the passage of a star, which will not be visible again for 80,000 years, the launch of a Starship rocket and the return of its propellant to the base will have to be repeated again and again in the future of spaceflight.

At least that's what Elon Musk, 53, the world's richest man and owner of Space Shotwell in North America, and the company's president and chief operating officer, dreams of. She was left speechless, her sentiment (“I don't know what to say.”) , literally).

Ricardo Conde, President of the Portuguese Space Agency, highlights the “achievement of technology for space sustainability”. Europe still has a lot to learn from the United States on this matter.

It should be noted that Musk's intention is to transform the spacecraft into the first private service to reach the Moon and Mars and establish a permanent presence and colonies on these planets. And so you can see, the historical landmarks were only reached without a crew inside the ship.

But let's get to the parts, because there's no shortage of records in this story, which sounds like something out of a sci-fi movie from the last century. First of all, the spacecraft that took off from Boca Chica, Texas, at 7:25 a.m. local time, has an unprecedented overall size. It is 120 meters long and 120 meters long SupporterIt is located in the base called Super Heavy, contains 33 engines, and extends over a distance of 70 metres. They both weigh five thousand tons. Its capacity is 700 times greater than that of an Airbus.

However, what seemed impossible – catching the fuel that began its return the moment it crossed the air barrier – was achieved in the first attempt, with the help of the mechanical arms of the 140-meter-high Mazilla launch tower, without further damage.

A milestone in accuracy

restoration Supporter It's really routine, since we're talking about one of the most expensive parts of the rocket, but not with re-entry into the launch tower, vertically, as it exited. By not being destroyed upon return, the propellant can be reused, significantly reducing operating costs. “This is a milestone in navigation accuracy, because it is a moving bomb and everything leads to failure,” says Riccardo Conde, who dedicates his career to the industrial and corporate space sector.

Another goal of making the ship land in the Indian Ocean in a controlled manner, before exploding, was also successfully achieved, thanks to an improved heat shield that reduced the effects of re-entry into the atmosphere. All through the Starlink communications system, which for the first time was able to maintain communication with the orbital module during reentry.

If SpaceX can land the Super Heavy, it will be down to experience gained with the Falcon 9, although the Starship now quadruples the payload capacity of its predecessor. It will be repeated again when a future Starship 3 release is completed. Ordinary people will wonder what meaning can be drawn from these developments? A greater number of Starlink satellites will be allowed per launch, something SpaceX wants to take advantage of to be able to deliver 1 Gbps (gigabits per second) around the world, a speed comparable only to fiber-optic communications.

However, some doubts have been raised about Musk's idea that he wants the spacecraft and other ships of its kind in the near future to function almost like airplanes, which can take off shortly after landing.

Riccardo Conde, for example, wonders what state he is in Supporter After all the vibrations he went through. “Is it really reusable? It doesn't seem to me that after that landing, the propellant was ready to be filled with propellant and launched back into space, with another spacecraft on top.”

Trips to the moon and Mars

When it comes to missions to the Moon and Mars, the head of the Portuguese Space Agency only envisions these facilities on an automated level, especially taking advantage of the method of lifting, landing and maneuvering the vehicle in more rugged environments.

But what is certain is that NASA intends to use Starship as part of the Artemis program, which aims to establish a long-term human presence on the moon.

In the distant future, Musk wants this spacecraft to make long trips to Mars, which should take about nine months. “We can expect to have two or three people in each cabin, which means about 100 passengers on each trip to Mars,” Musk explained.

Less fanciful and more practical ideas envision that these spacecraft could often be used to launch large telescopes, such as the Hubble Telescope, the size of a bus, or the James Webb Telescope, which is three times larger. They can also be used to transport heavy materials to build space stations, and eventually the infrastructure for human presence on the moon, without leaving a trace in the sky.