SpaceX Prepared for Thrilling Orbital Fueling Trial with Starship
By the start of the next year, SpaceX might be all set for two of its Starships to connect in orbit, aiming for a daring refueling experiment that could unveil the spacecraft's potential in deep-space missions.
In a recent chat with Spaceflight Now, Kent Chojnacki, who's the deputy manager for NASA's Human Landing System program, disclosed that the propellant trial for Starship in flight is scheduled for March 2025. This orbital demonstration is a significant milestone for Starship and plays a vital role in SpaceX's capacities to fulfill NASA's Artemis mission to the Moon.
Under a $53.2 million agreement with NASA, signed back in 2020, SpaceX is assigned to utilize Starship as fuel-transfer tanks in space. During its third test flight, SpaceX transferred approximately 10 metric tons of liquid oxygen from Starship's header tank to its main tank while it was in orbit. The forthcoming showdown, however, requires a larger volume of the launch vehicle. Two Starships will ascend to low Earth orbit around a three to four-week gap, the spacecraft will meet and dock in orbit, and one will pass propellant to another. Post the demonstration, the two Starships will unplug from one another and descend from orbit.
As stated by Chojnacki during the interview, "Once you've done that, you've truly unlocked the opportunity to shift enormous amounts of payload and cargo beyond Earth's sphere." The in-flight propellant transfer tests are expected to conclude during the summer.
SpaceX's goal with in-space refueling is to innovate technologies essential for managing long-term cryogenic fluids, crucial for establishing a lasting presence on the Moon and enabling crewed missions to Mars, according to NASA when the agreement was signed.
SpaceX is designing a variant of Starship for landing humans on the Moon in September 2026 as part of NASA's Artemis 3 mission. To prepare for the Moon mission, SpaceX is anticipated to dispatch between eight and sixteen propellant tanker Starships into low Earth orbit in quick succession. Each of the tankers will carry around 100 to 150 tons of liquid oxygen and liquid methane and will dock with a more substantial fuel depot. The orbiting depot will then connect with the Human Landing System Starship, filling its most significant 1,200-ton fuel tanks. After refueling, the Starship lander will continue its voyage toward the Moon.
There has been a concern about SpaceX's Starship development for NASA's Moon missions progressing at a sluggish pace, but the company has lately made some strides with its launch vehicle. In October, the Super Heavy's 232-foot-tall (71 meters) booster landed gracefully towards a unique launch tower, which caught the massive launch vehicle in its arms to conclude its fifth test flight. Meanwhile, Starship's upper stage executed its flight with a controlled splashdown in the Indian Ocean. For Artemis, the Human Landing System of Starship's upper stage must be competent in carrying out a pinpoint landing on the lunar surface.
SpaceX still has a few steps before the company can launch a Starship to orbit and keep it there, let alone orchestrate two of them for a challenging fueling maneuver. The company is under pressure to adhere to its contractual commitments with NASA as the space agency advances towards turning its Artemis aspirations into reality, and it's uncertain whether Starship will be ready to fulfill its obligations by early next year.
After completing the in-flight propellant transfer tests during the summer, SpaceX's goal is to use this technology for managing long-term cryogenic fluids, paving the way for establishing a lasting presence on the Moon and enabling crewed missions to Mars. In the future, advances in space technology could allow SpaceX to utilize multiple Starships for refueling each other in orbit, thus significantly increasing the capability to transport payloads and resources into deep space.
