The world famous rocket designed to carry people and cargo on the surfaces of the Moon
and Mars is now planned to be the next upcoming space station.
Yes….
The most powerful 120 metres tall space vehicle is being expected to work as a space destination
as well according to the US Space Agency, NASA.
SpaceX has been in great fame after the success of its FALCON 9 rocket.
The space exploration company has signed many contracts regarding the Starship.
Starship being their most advanced and the world's most powerful rocket to have ever
flown, is the way that the company reaches the top of the mountain in the world.
SpaceX already signed many contracts for its Starship to be used as a transportation vehicle,
with Vast, NASA and many more.
Starship has flown just once after its announcement and had failed badly due to its engine cut
offs resulting in a big explosion at the launch as well as in the mid air.
But, as per recent reports, we know that the Starship has been rebuilt with S25 ship and
B9 booster with many upgrades.
The overall starship is reusable and has a large space cabinet inside it which can be
pressurised in need to carry a crew.
The internal volume of the Starship is about 1000 metric cubes and it is unbelievable that
this is a bit more than the internal volume of the International Space Station or ISS.
This volume can easily carry upto 100 humans on the largest spacecraft.
Doesn't matter whether the Starship had its successful flight in the past or not…
it's pretty sure that it shook the entire space companies by its ideas and first Orbital
Flight.
And that's what happened…
The world's most famous space agency, NASA, has officially announced that SpaceX's Starship
can be used as a future space station.
Quite amazing!!
NASA announced that having the possible space of accommodating 100 people in the upper section,
the Spacecraft can be used as an in-space low earth destination which would also involve
the Super Heavy, as the lower booster, the Dragon Spacecraft, as the upper body and the
SpaceX's starlink Internet satellites.
This collaboration of NASA with SpaceX regarding the use of its Starship as a low earth space
station was not the only partnership that NASA announced on 15 June.
NASA has chosen seven companies for its Collaborations for Commercial Space Capabilities-2 or CCSC-2
program through unfunded Space Act Agreements.
These selected companies will receive technical expertise, assessments, and data from NASA
to support their development of new capabilities.
This initiative aims to facilitate collaboration between NASA and the private sector, enabling
the companies to enhance their space-related projects with the assistance of NASA's resources
and knowledge.
The collaboration included the 7 partnerships between NASA and other seven US space companies
with SpaceX being the first.
The other 6 companies are Vast, ThinkOrbital, Special Aerospace Services, Northrop Grumman,
Sierra Space and Blue Origin.
The collaboration serves many plans to be done in the future with benefiting the human
spaceflight missions and building a partnered low earth economy among the companies.
The operations that are ongoing over the International Space Station have come to an end by as soon
as 2030.
And due to this, NASA have been planning to find more and more long term orbital solutions
which can take the place of the ISS.
In 2019, NASA adopted a plan to help the organisation reach its objective of creating a "low Earth
orbit marketplace," in which NASA is just one of many clients and the private sector
takes the lead.
The new partnerships, which are a part of the CCSC-2 project's Collaborations for Commercial
Space Capabilities-2 effort, are unfunded Space Act Agreements.
This means that the private companies which are under this collaboration are not getting
any funds by the US Space Agency, NASA.
“It is great to see companies invest their own capital toward innovative commercial space
capabilities, and we’ve seen how these types of partnerships benefit both the private sector
and NASA,” said Phil McAlister, director of commercial spaceflight at NASA headquarters
in Washington DC.
“The companies can leverage NASA’s vast knowledge and experience, and the agency can
be a customer for the capabilities included in the agreements in the future.
Ultimately, these agreements will foster more competition for services and more providers
for innovative space capabilities.”
SpaceX has been awarded a CCSC-2 agreement to work on an “integrated low Earth orbit
architecture” involving both its Dragon and Starship vehicles to make the space station
more and more powerful and helpful.
And this is what we have been stating at the beginning of this video.
SpaceX is the first one in the collaboration and got an agreement to make a Space Station
out of its best space vehicles.
“This architecture includes Starship as a transportation and in-space low-Earth orbit
destination element supported by Super Heavy, Dragon, and Starlink,” the announcement
stated.
SpaceX has not even thought or discussed sending their Starship in lower Earth orbit to work
as a space station, but… many of the members in the industry are saying that starship has
a very large volume and it would be suitable to be modified as a commercial space station.
And if this happens…
the entire US space agencies will be shocked…
As not 1 or 2, there are many companies who have been working for many years to build
a commercial space station and launch it by this decade.
In a session of the Financial Times' Investing in Space conference on June 6, Chad Anderson,
founder and managing partner of Space Capital, remarked, "SpaceX's Starship is so large and
also so cost-effective that it could be a station itself."
He warned that it would bring down and disrupt the other commercial space stations' business
models.
It will be quite amazing to know what's going to happen next?
As NASA collaborated with 7 US Space companies, with one being SpaceX, the other 6 companies
were also given the tasks to accomplish.
Sierra Space, a subsidiary of Sierra Nevada Corporation, has been given the task of developing
advanced space transportation systems, in-space infrastructure, and expandable and customizable
space facilities.
Their goal is to establish a human presence in low Earth orbit by offering innovative
solutions for space exploration and utilisation.
In collaboration with NASA, Northrop Grumman is working on a project called the "Persistent
Platform."
This initiative focuses on creating a versatile and autonomous platform in low Earth orbit
that will facilitate commercial scientific research and manufacturing capabilities.
By taking advantage of robotic technology, the Persistent Platform aims to support various
scientific endeavours and enable commercial activities in space.
Special Air Force Service's Autonomous Manoeuvring Unit or AMU and Astronaut Assist-AMU are set
to revolutionise commercial in-space servicing and mobility applications.
These cutting-edge technologies will enable safer assembly, servicing, retrieval, and
inspection of in-space systems, making it easier for companies to establish a presence
in low Earth orbit.
With the demand for in-space services on the rise, the development of these technologies
is crucial for the growth of commercial in-space operations.
SAS is at the forefront of this exciting field, and their work is expected to have a significant
impact on the future of space exploration and commerce.
And the rest three, ThinkOrbital, Vast and ue Origin will do work for developing cutting
edge technologies for building a new commercial space station.
NASA will work more on focusing with VAST regarding its Haven-1 project and its artificial
gravity project in the commercial space stations.
VAST has already signed its contract with SpaceX as well for sending its Haven-1 space
station in the Lower Earth Orbit.
There are going to be quite amazing missions under the CCSC-2 program.
There is still a wait for the reply from SpaceX whether it is ready for sending Starship as
a LEO destination or not.
Let's discuss in the comments section whether SpaceX will send its Dragon Spacecraft and
the Super Heavy Booster as a lower Earth orbit mission or not.
Also take a look into the Huge Major Problem found With The Engines, just click on the
video.