So far, the Saturn V rocket developed by Wernher von Braun (1912-1977) for the US space agency NASA was the largest and most powerful space travel launch system: 111 meters high – almost 20 meters higher than the Statue of Liberty in New York. Fully fueled and loaded, the Saturn V, which was developed for Apollo lunar missions, weighed 3,000 tons.
As of this week, Saturn V no longer tops the record list. The US space company SpaceX has assembled the tallest rocket of all time. For the first time, the Starship was mounted on the super heavy booster. With a height of 120 meters, Starship towers over the Saturn V by nine meters.
In its Boca Chica development center in southern Texas, SpaceX has shown for the first time what a rocket with the Starship on top will look like. Starship is the name of both SpaceX’s large rocket project and the top tier, which will also serve as a spaceship. Equipped with 29 Raptor engines, the spaceship was mounted on a super heavy booster.
Musk: “Dream come true”
SpaceX boss Elon Musk (50) is very enthusiastic. “Spaceship completely layered,” jubilates Musk on Twitter – and shows pictures of this achievement in engineering.
Musk speaks of a “dream come true” – even if the “stacking”, the assembly on top of each other of Starship and Super Heavy, does not yet come to the first test flight.
The components are separated again. Once the required system has been developed, the components are tested together during an initial orbital flight. SpaceX plans to set further milestones in the development of the system this year. (kes)