This year will be a turning point in humanity’s relationship with the Moon. Humanity will begin to lay the foundations for a permanent presence on the surface of the Moon, paving the way for natural satellites to become industrial hubs that will lead us to Mars and Earth. Beyond.
The development of the moon economy can be summarized into three important factors. It’s the ability to get there, the means to refuel for the return trip, and the profitable enterprises operating on the lunar surface. And in 2025, technologies in all three areas will finally begin to take shape.
Private space exploration giants SpaceX and Blue Origin have been locked in a race to reach the moon for nearly a decade. SpaceX’s newest rocket, Starship, is at the center of this effort. Starship certainly has the bulk of its predecessor, the Falcon 9, at nearly twice the height (121 meters vs. 70 meters) and three times the width (9 meters vs. 3.7 meters), but it also Designed to change the way you think about the universe. trip. Unlike traditional rockets, which are used once and then discarded, Starship can be reused for multiple flights and can even be refueled in orbit. The increased power will allow it to deliver around 100 tons of payload to the moon in a single flight. This is roughly equivalent to all payloads sent to the moon in history combined, but it could be sent there in just one flight.
While conventional rockets can only deliver about 0.1 percent of their total takeoff weight to the moon, Starship, with its refueling capabilities, can deliver about 2 percent. Imagine this. If a traditional rocket were a moving truck, it would be like using an 18-wheeler to deliver a single suitcase. With Starship, the cost per ton of payload delivered to the lunar surface will be significantly lower, making lunar missions more affordable.
Directly behind is Blue Origin’s Blue Moon lander. Blue Moon may be smaller than Starship, with a capacity of almost three tons, but it was designed to provide the heavy equipment and infrastructure that will transform the moon from a barren outpost into a thriving industrial base. I am. Together, these vehicles lay the foundation for the early lunar economy.
In 2025, SpaceX plans to demonstrate Starship’s suite of capabilities, including the ability to refuel and reuse in orbit, which will reduce lunar transportation costs and make the moon more accessible than ever before. becomes easier. This is part of an ongoing series of orbital flight tests, starting in 2023 and continuing through 2024, with an expected completion date in 2025.