January 15, 2019
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Elon Musk unveils his 120-foot-tall 'Tintin' Starship for the first time
Elon Musk has revealed images of his fully-assembled 120-foot tall Starship hopper test rocket.
The maverick billionaire entrepreneur unveiled his retro-styled spacecraft which has drawn comparisons to sci-fi films of yesteryear. Twitter users pointed out the similarities of Musk's creation with the contraption Tintin used in the 1954 adventure 'Explorers on the Moon'. Others said the sleek design and prominent fins closely resemble spaceships depicted in 1950s/60s films, Wallace and Gromit and even Toy Story.
SpaceX founder Musk shared the first real images of the prototype from its Texas launch site and reassured his followers it is 'not a rendering'.
'This is for suborbital VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) tests. Orbital version is taller, has thicker skins (won't wrinkle) & a smoothly curving nose section,' Mr Musk explained. This particular model will be used to test short launches and landings.
Earlier this month, the billionaire said SpaceX was aiming to carry out test flights within four weeks, but admitted it could be as long as eight weeks when unforeseen issues are factored in.
Responding to questions from space enthusiasts, Mr Musk said that the first orbital prototype should be ready by June. The SpaceX founder also added that the real, finished version would '[obviously] have windows, etc.' This work is taking place at both SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California, and the company's test site in South Texas, near the border city of Brownsville, where the first flights will take place.
After its unveiling on social media the tech tycoon's Starship drew immediate comparisons to fictional rockets.
One user, known as John Drury, pointed out the similarities to the Toy Story rocket which is hope to 'the claw' and, briefly, Buzz and Woody. He tweeted: 'Lol wow. Reminds me of the rocket ship in Toy Story'
One twitter user also said: 'I love SpaceX and their people are amazing but it does look like a Wallace and Gromit rocket but I'm sure it will be immense'
The latest images provide a clearer view of the two components previewed by Musk at the end of last month, showing engineers in cherry-pickers at work on the nose cone and another large piece of the system. A large American flag can be seen plastered on the side of one of the huge metal cylinders.
The progress comes as SpaceX ramps up work on the test hopper ahead of planned flights later this year
Starship – previously known as BFR, Big Falcon Rocket, or the Big F***ing Rocket – is key to Musk's plans to send humans to Mars. Musk tweeted out the first photo at the end of December, captioning it simply, 'Stainless Steel Starship.'
In a series of tweets that followed, however, the CEO elaborated on the plans for the test vehicle.
The first crewed Red Planet mission for the rocket and 100-passenger Starship could come as early as the mid-2020s if development and testing go well, Musk has said
Just in December 2018, the SpaceX boss doubled down on his earlier claims that he would likely be among the interplanetary travellers who make the trip to Mars, despite there being a 'good chance' that he'll die there. Tickets on Elon Musk's spaceship to Mars will cost around $200,000 per person.
SpaceX shared new details about the 387ft rocket in September, saying it hopes to begin unmanned launch tests of the spacecraft in late 2019.
In the future, Starship will be able to carry out lunar missions as well as long-distance flights to Mars and beyond. The firm hopes to stage an uncrewed flight to Mars in 2022, then a manned flight in 2024. In between those missions, SpaceX has planned for a private mission with a passenger on board in 2023.
'We would like to put large cargo on the surface of the moon by 2022. And we have our eyes on the prize to send people to Mars in 2024,' SpaceX chief operating officer Gwynne Shotwell said recently.
Extracted from: www.dailymail.co.uk
