An FAA environmental review approved SpaceX’s proposal for two Starfall reentry demonstrations. It has not been specified whether these demos will take place in one or two missions. The FAA said SpaceX intends to restore the vehicle, including the parachutes and heat shields, “to the maximum extent possible.”
The Starfall vehicle is cylindrical in shape, 10.2 feet (3.1 meters) in diameter and 2.5 feet (0.75 meters) tall. Starfall weighs approximately 4,600 pounds (2.1 metric tons), with a payload capacity of approximately 2,200 pounds (1 metric ton) for a total weight of 6,800 pounds (3.1 metric tons). The cargo-only Starfall is smaller than SpaceX’s manned Crew Dragon spacecraft, which is used to ferry astronauts to and from the International Space Station.
Take a closer look at the Starfall reentry vehicle.
Credit: SpaceX
Take a closer look at the Starfall reentry vehicle.
Credit: SpaceX
The first Starfall Demo mission will spend several hours in low-Earth orbit, but the vehicle could also fly on shorter suborbital trajectories after launching on a Falcon 9 or larger Starship rocket. This version of Starfall is unable to launch itself from orbit, instead relying on its launch vehicle to bring it back into the atmosphere. After separating from the missile carrier, the disc-shaped vehicle uses compressed nitrogen gas to guide the heat shield in the correct direction for re-entry.
So who can use something like Starfall? The US military is one of the obvious answers. The Pentagon is already working with SpaceX on the concept Rocket cargo or point-to-point deliverywill use a Starship to deliver large quantities of equipment and supplies to remote locations in less than an hour. A starship is a gigantic vehicle, about 20 stories tall and 30 feet wide, that must land on prepared sites. Starfall may be a more versatile option for a lighter delivery.
The military has also signed contracts with Blue Origin, Rocket Lab and Anduril to study and develop global cargo delivery technologies from space. Despite Starship still undergoing experimental flight testing, SpaceX may have an early advantage with the Starfall delivery vehicle.
Updated at 7:15am EDT after the launch of the Starfall Demo mission.
