In a major update for the Starship program given this month, SpaceX chief Elon Musk revealed the firm's plans for future rockets, the fourth test flight, Starship test objectives for 2024 and SpaceX's plan to establish a self sustaining society on Mars. SpaceX's third Starship test took to the skies last month, and after it successfully fired the fourth test flight's booster's engines in Texas earlier this week, Musk outlined in his presentation that key test objectives for 2024 will see SpaceX try to catch the first stage at the launch tower.

在本月发布的 Starship 计划的重大更新中，SpaceX 首席执行官埃隆·马斯克透露了该公司未来火箭的计划、第四次试飞、2024 年 Starship 测试目标以及 SpaceX 在火星上建立一个自给自足的社会的计划。 SpaceX 的第三次星际飞船测试上个月升空，本周早些时候在德克萨斯州成功启动了第四次试飞的助推器发动机后，马斯克在演讲中概述了 SpaceX 2024 年的关键测试目标将努力赶上第一阶段的目标。发射塔。

He added that missions to Mars should take six re fueling flights to load the second Starship rocket with enough fuel, and SpaceX will try to catch its rockets as soon as it is comfortable 'landing' or crashing them in virtual towers in the ocean.

他补充说，前往火星的任务应该进行六次加油飞行，为第二艘星舰火箭装载足够的燃料，一旦火箭能够舒适地“着陆”或将其撞入海洋中的虚拟塔中，SpaceX 将尽力捕获它们。

SpaceX Likely To Reuse Second Stage Starship In 2025 Says Musk

Musk's latest Starship talk marked a rare presentation where he dived into some details of what his company plans to do once it reaches Mars. Specifically, he outlined that landing sites on Mars must be as low as possible in elevation terms to provide Starship with sufficient atmosphere to slow itself down. They will also need to be located close to the Martian equator due to the need for ample sunlight to power up the Mars camp.

马斯克称 SpaceX 可能会在 2025 年重复使用第二级星际飞船 马斯克最新的星际飞船演讲是一次罕见的演讲，他深入探讨了公司计划在抵达火星后做什么的一些细节。具体来说，他概述了火星着陆点的海拔高度必须尽可能低，以便为星际飞船提供足够的大气层以减慢自身速度。由于需要充足的阳光来为火星营地供电，因此它们还需要位于火星赤道附近。

For now, SpaceX should test the full Starship stack for the fourth time next month. According to Musk, key test objectives will see teams try to 'land' Starship on the ocean as if there was a virtual launch tower present. If the rockets can successfully orient themselves, then the next step will be to bring them back to Boca Chica, Texas, to be caught by the launch tower.

目前，SpaceX 应该在下个月第四次测试完整的 Starship 堆栈。据马斯克称，关键的测试目标是团队尝试将星际飞船“降落”在海上，就像存在虚拟发射塔一样。如果火箭能够成功定位自己，那么下一步将是将它们带回德克萨斯州的博卡奇卡，并被发射塔捕获。

The SpaceX executive revealed that for the Super Heavy booster, the subsequent test flight following a successful virtual catch will see a return to the tower. In contrast, SpaceX will test the second stage Starship twice before making a similar attempt.

这位 SpaceX 高管透露，对于超重型助推器，成功进行虚拟捕获后的后续试飞将返回塔楼。相比之下，SpaceX 在进行类似尝试之前将对第二级星际飞船进行两次测试。

He believes that there's an 80% to 90% chance that the booster will be recovered this year while recovering and re-using the ship will take longer since it will require "at least two consecutive successes of a given design that land them at a specific point in the ocean, or smash into a specific point in the ocean," before SpaceX tries to bring it back to the launch site to prevent excessive debris.

他认为今年有 80% 到 90% 的机会回收助推器，而回收和重新使用这艘船将需要更长的时间，因为它需要“给定设计至少连续两次成功，使它们降落在特定的位置”。 ”，然后 SpaceX 尝试将其带回发射场以防止产生过多碎片。

Since catching the rocket at the tower carries the risk of destroying the tower, SpaceX is building new towers. Two towers will be built in Florida and an additional one in Texas to ensure that testing cadence remains uninterrupted in case of accidents. Operational Starship launches should take place in Florida, and SpaceX plans to build six boosters this year, with all towers being built by next year.

由于在塔上捕获火箭存在摧毁塔的风险，因此 SpaceX 正在建造新的塔。佛罗里达州将建造两座塔，德克萨斯州将建造另一座塔，以确保在发生事故时测试节奏不会中断。星际飞船的发射应该在佛罗里达州进行，SpaceX 计划今年建造六座助推器，所有塔楼将于明年建成。

Another key detail in the presentation was the number of flights for the Mars missions. To load Starship with fuel, the second stage ship will dock with a tanker in Earth orbit, and according to Musk, six re-fuelling launches should be sufficient for a Mars flight. As for the Starship ship for NASA's lunar missions, it will feature landing legs and eliminate its flaps and heat shield - making it unsuitable for a return journey to Earth.

演示中的另一个关键细节是火星任务的飞行次数。为了给星际飞船装载燃料，第二级飞船将与地球轨道上的一艘加油机对接，根据马斯克的说法，六次加油发射应该足以进行火星飞行。至于用于美国宇航局月球任务的星舰，它将配备着陆腿并取消其襟翼和隔热罩 - 使其不适合返回地球。

For return missions from Mars, Musk believes that most people who sign up for a Martian journey will not return to Earth, but the long term design goal of the Starship program is to make such journeys possible. SpaceX will build a significantly greater number of ships than boosters, since most of the ships are likely to be reused on Mars for resources.

对于从火星返回的任务，马斯克认为，大多数报名参加火星之旅的人都不会返回地球，但星舰计划的长期设计目标是让这样的旅程成为可能。 SpaceX 将建造比助推器数量多得多的飞船，因为大多数飞船可能会在火星上重复利用以获取资源。

SpaceX will test the crucial ship to ship proepllant transfer for Starship next year, and key features of the presentation included details for the Raptor 3 engine and new Starship variants. The Raptor 3 will have integrated cooling channels, no heat shield and secondary plumbing integrated into the pump and the chamber jacket. This will provide it with higher thrust and a simplified design, also contributing to mass savings according to the executive.

SpaceX 将于明年测试 Starship 的关键船对船推进剂转移，演示的主要内容包括 Raptor 3 发动机和新 Starship 变体的详细信息。 Raptor 3 将具有集成冷却通道、无隔热罩以及集成到泵和腔室护套中的辅助管道。这位高管表示，这将为其提供更高的推力和简化的设计，也有助于节省质量。

As for Starship 3, it will be roughly 500 feet tall and feature thousands of design upgrades. "Starship 3 will cost less per flight than Falcon 1," since it's fully reusable Musk added, with SpaceX potentially being able to bring the cost to orbit down to $2 million.

至于 Starship 3，它将大约 500 英尺高，并具有数千项设计升级。马斯克补充道，“星际飞船 3 号每次飞行的成本将低于猎鹰 1 号”，因为它完全可重复使用，而 SpaceX 有可能将入轨成本降至 200 万美元。