Elon Musk Unveils Complete Starship for Mars Colonization... "The Most Powerful Rocket Ever" [Reading Science]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] Elon Musk's space exploration company, SpaceX, has unveiled the complete version of the world's longest rocket, Starship, which will be used for Mars colonization.

On the 10th (local time), Musk posted a photo on his Twitter account showing the 120-meter-long 'Starship-SN20' assembled and mounted on the launch pad at SpaceX's spaceport near Boca Chica in southern Texas.

This rocket consists of a 50-meter-long Starship connected to a 70-meter 'Super Heavy' booster. It is 9 meters longer than the Saturn V rocket used by NASA during the moon landing in the 1960s. It boasts the longest length among all space rockets developed by humanity. The Starship is a reusable rocket powered by six Raptor engines, while the Super Heavy booster is equipped with 29 Raptor engines. With such thrust, it is designed to carry tens of tons of cargo, escape the atmosphere, and fly for six months to reach Mars.

The Starship is made of stainless steel and is a reusable rocket intended for deep space exploration such as the Moon and Mars. In particular, Musk has the ambition to build a city on Mars that can house millions of people by 2050, with Starship as the main transportation method. Initially, it is scheduled to carry astronauts for NASA's Artemis program, a lunar landing exploration project planned around 2025. The Starship unveiled this time is the 20th prototype produced by SpaceX. However, development has faced difficulties, including four explosions during test launches.

SpaceX plans to launch this 120-meter-long, record-breaking rocket for its first orbital test flight within this year. However, the exact timing is uncertain. Recently, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) began an investigation due to environmental pollution issues related to the fuel used by Starship. The FAA is expected to complete the investigation and announce the conclusion by the 28th of this month.