Elon Musk receives test permits for Starship rocket: It will carry humans to the Moon and Mars!

SpaceX has moved one step closer to the seventh test flight of its massive Starship rocket.

The company received the necessary approval from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) this week.

The FAA's issuance of a launch license to SpaceX follows the company's recent tests conducted with the first-stage booster equipped with Super Heavy rocket engines and the upper-stage Starship spacecraft.

TEST DATE ANNOUNCED

The next step will be to place the Starship spacecraft onto the Super Heavy booster and begin preparations for launch from the Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas.

SpaceX, led by Elon Musk, has not yet announced an official date for Starship's seventh test flight. However, according to recent reports based on NASA documents, the launch is expected to take place on January 11.

COULD GO TO SPACE SOONER

Now that SpaceX has received the launch license for the seventh flight, it could launch the 120-meter-tall rocket into space earlier than planned.

MECHANICAL ARMS TO BE USED AGAIN

As with Starship's fourth, fifth, and sixth test flights, the spacecraft is planned to perform a controlled landing in the Indian Ocean approximately one hour after launch.

Additionally, as a critical test for the Super Heavy booster, an attempt will be made to catch the booster using massive mechanical arms.

SpaceX achieved this significant milestone on the first attempt during Starship's fifth test flight, but did not achieve the same result in the sixth test conducted last month.

Once Starship is fully tested and certified, NASA and SpaceX aim to send the vehicle to the Moon, Mars, and further points in the solar system to transport crew and cargo.

Starship's first major mission will be to land NASA astronauts on the Moon for the first time since 1972 using a modified version of the craft.

However, this mission, known as Artemis III, has faced various delays and is currently scheduled for 2027.