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The '''Big Falcon Rocket''' (officially shortened to '''BFR''') is a [[private equity|privately-funded]], [[Reusable launch system|fully-reusable]] [[launch vehicle]] and [[spacecraft]] system in [[New product development|development]] by [[SpaceX]]. In November 2018 the second stage and ship was renamed by [[Elon Musk]] to ''Starship'', while the first stage was given the moniker "Super Heavy". The overall space vehicle architecture includes both launch vehicle and spacecraft, as well as ground infrastructure for rapid [[rocket launch|launch]] and [[reusable launch system|relaunch]], and [[zero-gravity]] [[propellant depot|propellant transfer technology]] to be deployed in [[low Earth orbit]] (LEO). The payload capacity to Earth orbit of at least {{convert|100,000|kg|lb|abbr=on}} makes BFR a [[super heavy-lift launch vehicle]]. However, if the pattern seen in previous iterations holds,
SpaceX has been developing a super heavy-lift launch vehicle for many years, with the design (and [[nomenclature]]) of the vehicle undergoing several revisions over time. Before 2016, the vehicle was referred to as the '''Mars Colonial Transporter''' (MCT), then in 2016 [[Elon Musk]] presented the vehicle as the [[ITS launch vehicle]], forming a core part of Musk's comprehensive vision for an [[SpaceX Mars transportation infrastructure|Interplanetary Transport System]] (ITS).<ref name=nsf20180809/><ref name="ars20160918">{{cite news | author=Eric Berger | url=https://arstechnica.com/science/2016/09/spacexs-interplanetary-transport-system-will-go-well-beyond-mars/ | title=Elon Musk scales up his ambitions, considering going "well beyond" Mars | work=[[Ars Technica]] | date=18 September 2016 | accessdate=19 September 2016}}</ref> In September 2017, the design changed to a much smaller {{cvt|9|m|adj=on}}-diameter vehicle and was renamed BFR.<ref name=sn20170929/><ref name=sfn20170929/>
The launch vehicle design is dependent on the concurrent development work on the [[Raptor (rocket engine family)|Raptor rocket engines]], which are [[Cryogenics|cryogenic]] [[Liquid rocket propellant#Methane|methalox]]-fueled
The BFR system is intended to completely replace all of SpaceX's existing space hardware (the [[Falcon 9]] and [[Falcon Heavy]] launch vehicles, and the [[Dragon spacecraft]]), initially aiming at the Earth-orbit [[Space launch market competition|launch market]], but explicitly adding substantial capability to support [[Beyond Earth orbit|long-duration spaceflight]] in the [[cislunar]] and [[Exploration of Mars|Mars transport flight]] environments.<ref name="musk20170929"/><ref name=nsf20180809/><ref name="Dent20170929"/>
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==History==
The development of the BFR, as unveiled in 2017, got started in 2012, when in March, news accounts asserted that a Raptor upper-stage engine had begun development, although no details were released at that time.<ref>{{cite news | author=Zach Rosenberg | title=SpaceX readies upgraded engines | url=http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/spacex-readies-upgraded-engines-369600/ | accessdate=17 January 2018 | work=Flightglobal | date=16 March 2012 | quote=SpaceX is in the midst of a variety of ambitious engine programmes, including the Merlin 2, a significant modification of the Merlin 1 series, and the Raptor upper stage engine. Details of both projects are tightly held.}}</ref> In October 2012, Musk publicly stated a high-level plan to build a second reusable rocket system with capabilities substantially beyond the Falcon 9/[[Falcon Heavy]] launch vehicles on which SpaceX had by then spent several billion US dollars.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/spacex-aims-big-with-massive-new-rocket-377687/ | title=SpaceX aims big with massive new rocket | date=15 October 2012 | author=Zach Rosenberg | accessdate=28 October 2015 | publisher=Flight Global}}</ref> This new vehicle was to be "an evolution of SpaceX's Falcon 9 booster ... 'much bigger'." But Musk indicated that SpaceX would not be speaking publicly about it until 2013.<ref name="dn20121213">{{cite news | url=http://news.discovery.com/space/alien-life-exoplanets/mars-colony-spacex-121126.htm | title=Huge Mars Colony Eyed by SpaceX Founder | date=13 December 2012 | accessdate=14 March 2014 | publisher=Discovery News | dead-url=usurped | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141115083758/http://news.discovery.com/space/alien-life-exoplanets/mars-colony-spacex-121126.htm | archive-date=15 November 2014}}</ref><ref name="sdc20121123">{{cite news
In June 2013, Musk stated that he intended to hold off any potential [[initial public offering]] of SpaceX shares on the stock market until after the "[[Mars Colonial Transporter]] is flying regularly."<ref>{{cite news | author=Steve Schaefer | title=SpaceX IPO Cleared For Launch? Elon Musk Says Hold Your Horses | url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/steveschaefer/2013/06/06/with-tesla-and-solarcity-soaring-elon-musk-talks-down-spacex-ipo-plans/ | accessdate=10 June 2013 | newspaper=Forbes | date=6 June 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | author=Chris Ciaccia | title=SpaceX IPO: 'Possible in the Very Long Term' | url=http://www.thestreet.com/story/11943630/1/spacex-ipo-possible-in-the-very-long-term.html | accessdate=10 June 2013 | newspaper=The Street | date=6 June 2013}}</ref>
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In August 2014, media sources speculated that the initial [[flight test]] of the Raptor-driven super-heavy launch vehicle could occur as early as 2020, in order to fully test the engines under orbital spaceflight conditions; however, any colonization effort was reported to be "deep into the future".<ref>{{cite news | author=Alan Boyle | title=Coming Soon From SpaceX's Elon Musk: How to Move to Mars | url=http://www.nbcnews.com/science/space/coming-soon-spacexs-elon-musk-how-move-mars-n280311 | accessdate=8 January 2015 | work=NBC News | date=5 January 2015 | quote=The Mars transport system will be a completely new architecture. Am hoping to present that towards the end of this year. Good thing we didn't do it sooner, as we have learned a huge amount from Falcon and Dragon.}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | author=Chris Bergin | title=Battle of the Heavyweight Rockets -- SLS could face Exploration Class rival | url=http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2014/08/battle-heavyweight-rockets-sls-exploration-rival/ | accessdate=30 August 2014 | website=NASAspaceflight.com | date=29 August 2014}}</ref>
In early 2015, Musk said that he hoped to release details in late 2015 of the "completely new architecture" for the system that would enable the [[colonization of Mars]]. Those plans were delayed,<ref>{{cite news | author=Chris Heath | title=How Elon Musk Plans on Reinventing the World (and Mars) | url=https://www.gq.com/story/elon-musk-mars-spacex-tesla-interview | accessdate=12 December 2015 | work=GQ | date=12 December 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite conference
In September 2016, at the 67th annual meeting of the [[International Astronautical Congress]], Musk unveiled substantial details of a design for a much larger transport vehicle, {{convert|12|m|sp=us}} in diameter, the [[ITS launch vehicle]], aimed specifically at the interplanetary transport [[use case]]. At the time, the system architecture was referred to as the "Interplanetary Transport System" (ITS)<ref name=ars20160918/><ref name=nsf20180809/> and included detailed discussion of the overall [[SpaceX Mars transportation infrastructure|SpaceX Mars transportation mission architecture]]. This included the launch vehicle (the very large size 12-meter core diameter, vehicle construction material, number and type of engines, thrust, cargo and passenger payload capabilities) but also on-orbit propellant-tanker refills, representative transit times, and various portions of the Mars-side and Earth-side infrastructure that SpaceX would require to support a set of three flight vehicles. The three distinct vehicles that made up the 2016 ITS launch vehicle concept were the:<ref name=musk20170929/><ref name="NYT-20160927">{{cite news | author=Kenneth Chang | title=Elon Musk's Plan: Get Humans to Mars, and Beyond | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/28/science/elon-musk-spacex-mars-exploration.html | date=27 September 2016 | work=[[New York Times]] | accessdate=27 September 2016}}</ref>
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* [[ITS launch vehicle#Interplanetary spaceship|ITS spaceship]], a second-stage and long-duration in-space spacecraft
* [[ITS launch vehicle#ITS tanker|ITS tanker]], an alternative second-stage designed to carry more propellant for refueling other vehicles in space
The talk included presentation of a larger systemic vision, aspirationally hoping that other interested parties (whether companies, individuals, or governments) would utilize the new and significantly lower-cost transport infrastructure that SpaceX hoped to build in order enable a [[Colonization of Mars|sustainable human civilization on Mars]].<ref name=nsf20180809/><!-- nsf20180809 quote: "Musk's presentations showed that SpaceX would like to be the transportation company enabling the colonization of Mars, reducing the firm's expenses and risk. This, however, will mean that it must rely upon third parties to figure out the difficult logistics of creating and growing a colony on Mars. However, this may change as Musk has been noted in the past to grow impatient with the slow progress of others, and to undertake the tasks he sees as required himself." --><ref>{{cite news
In July 2017, Musk indicated that the architecture had "evolved quite a bit" since the 2016 articulation of the Mars architecture. A key driver of the updated architecture was to be making the system useful for substantial Earth-orbit and cislunar launches so that the system might pay for itself, in part, through economic spaceflight activities in the near-Earth space zone.<ref>{{cite AV media
=== Unveiling ===
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Additionally, the BFR system was shown to theoretically have the capability to carry passengers and/or cargo in rapid Earth-to-Earth transport, delivering its payload anywhere on Earth within 90 minutes.<ref name=musk201803journal/>
By September 2017, Raptor engines had been tested for a combined total of 1200 seconds of test firing time over 42 main engine tests. The longest test was 100 seconds, which is limited by the size of the propellant tanks at the SpaceX ground test facility. The test engine operates at {{convert|20|MPa|bar psi|lk=in|abbr=on}} pressure. The flight engine is aimed for {{convert|25|MPa|bar psi|lk=in|abbr=on}}, and SpaceX expects to achieve {{convert|30|MPa|bar psi|lk=in|abbr=on}} in later iterations.<ref name=musk20170929/> In November 2017, SpaceX president and COO [[Gwynne Shotwell]] indicated that approximately half of all development work on BFR was then focused on the [[Raptor (rocket engine family)|Raptor]] engine.<ref name="sn20171121">{{cite news |first=Caleb |last=Henry |url=http://spacenews.com/spacex-aims-to-follow-a-banner-year-with-an-even-faster-2018-launch-cadence/ |title=SpaceX aims to follow a banner year with an even faster 2018 launch cadence |work=[[SpaceNews]] |date=21 November 2017 |accessdate=15 January 2018 |quote=Shotwell estimated that around 50 percent of the work on BFR is focused on the Raptor engines.}}</ref>
The aspirational goal in 2017 was to send the first two cargo missions to Mars in 2022,<ref name=musk201803journal/> with the goal to "confirm water resources and identify hazards" while putting "power, mining, and life support infrastructure" in place for future flights, followed by four ships in 2024, two crewed BFR spaceships plus two cargo-only ships bringing additional equipment and supplies with the goal of setting up the propellant production plant.<ref name="musk20170929"/>
In a subsequent announcement held at SpaceX's Hawthorne headquarters in September 2018, Elon Musk showed a redesign of the BFS with added three rear fins and two front canard fins. The revised BFR concept has seven identically-sized Raptor engines in the second stage. The second stage also has two small actuating fins near the nose of the ship, and three large fins at the base, two of which actuate, and all three doubling as landing legs.<ref name="teslarati_moonflight">{{cite news |author=Eric Ralph |title=SpaceX has signed a private passenger for the first BFR launch around the Moon |url=https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-private-passenger-bfr-moon-mission/ |accessdate=14 September 2018 |date=14 September 2018}}</ref> Additionally, an initial 2023 lunar circumnavigation mission was announced. The spaceship is to be used for a proposed [[private spaceflight|private]] [[dearMoon project|mission]] to fly [[space tourism|space tourists]] around the [[Moon]], sponsored by [[Yusaku Maezawa]] along with several artists of various disciplines.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.wired.com/story/spacex-will-send-yusaku-maezawa-and-artists-to-the-moon/|title=Elon Musk Says SpaceX Will Send Yusaku Maezawa (and Artists!) to the Moon|work=WIRED|access-date=2018-09-18|language=en-US}}</ref>
SpaceX also stated in the second half of the month that they were "no longer planning to upgrade Falcon 9 second stage for reusability."<ref name="sn2-181117">[https://spacenews.com/musk-hints-at-further-changes-in-bfr-design/ Musk hints at further changes in BFR design]</ref> The two major parts of the BFR launch vehicle were also given their own descriptive names in November: ''Starship'' for the spaceship/upper stage and "Super Heavy" for the booster stage "needed to escape Earth’s deep gravity well (not needed for other planets or moons)."<ref name="gw20181119">
{{cite news
=== Construction begins ===
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By early 2018, the first ship was under construction, and SpaceX had begun constructing a new permanent production facility to build the 9-meter vehicles at the [[Port of Los Angeles]]. Manufacture of the [[First article inspection|first ship]] was underway by March 2018 in a [[Tensile structure|temporary facility]] at the port,<ref name="sn20180312" /> with first [[Sub-orbital spaceflight|suborbital]] [[flight testing|test flights]] planned for no earlier than 2019.<ref name="sn20180312" /><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KORTP545vAc Falcon Heavy maiden flight press conference]</ref> The company continued to state publicly its aspirational goal for initial Mars-bound cargo flights of BFR launching as early as 2022, followed by the first crewed flight to Mars one [[synodic period]] later, in 2024,<ref name="sn20180312" /><ref name="sn20170929" /> consistent with the no-earlier-than dates mentioned in late-2017.
Back in 2015, SpaceX had been scouting for manufacturing facility locations to build the large rocket, with locations being investigated in [[California]], [[Texas]], [[Louisiana]],<ref name=lat20180419/> and [[Florida]].<ref name="portauthorityboard20180419">{{cite AV media
In March 2018, SpaceX publicly announced that it would manufacture its next-generation, {{convert|9|m|ft|sp=us|adj=mid|-diameter}} launch vehicle and spaceship at a new facility the company is constructing in 2018–2019 on Seaside Drive at the [[Port of Los Angeles]]. The company had leased an 18-acre site for 10 years, with multiple renewals possible, and will use the site for manufacturing, recovery from shipborne landings, and refurbishment of both the booster and the spaceship.<ref name="ars20180319">{{cite news |url=https://arstechnica.com/science/2018/03/spacex-indicates-it-will-manufacture-the-bfr-rocket-in-los-angeles/ |title=SpaceX indicates it will manufacture the BFR rocket in Los Angeles |work=[[Ars Technica]] |last=Berger |first=Eric |date=19 March 2018 |accessdate=21 March 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/jurvetson/37659376821 |title=Fireside Chat with SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell |publisher=Flickr.com |date=11 October 2017 |accessdate=7 March 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.wired.com/story/spacex-gears-up-to-finally-actually-launch-the-falcon-heavy/ |title=SpaceX Gears Up to Finally, Actually Launch the Falcon Heavy |work=Wired |first=Robin |last=Seemangal |date=1 February 2018 |accessdate=7 March 2018 |quote=SpaceX is actively considering expanding its San Pedro, California facility to begin manufacturing its interplanetary spacecraft. This would allow SpaceX to easily shift personnel from headquarters in Hawthorne.}}</ref> Final [[regulatory authority|regulatory]] approval of the new manufacturing facility came from the Board of Harbor Commissioners in April 2018,<ref name="lat20180419">{{cite news |last=Masunaga|first=Samantha |url=http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-spacex-port-la-20180419-story.html |title=SpaceX gets approval to develop its BFR rocket and spaceship at Port of Los Angeles |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=2018-04-19 |accessdate=2018-04-21 }}</ref> and the [[Los Angeles City Council]] in May.<ref>{{cite news |last=Masunaga |first=Samantha |url=http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-spacex-bfr-council-20180508-story.html |title=All systems are go for SpaceX’s BFR rocket facility at Port of Los Angeles after City Council OKs plan |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=8 May 2018 |accessdate=24 May 2018}}</ref> By that time, approximately 40 SpaceX employees were working on the design and construction of BFR.<ref name=lat20180419/> Over time, the project is expected to have 700 technical jobs.<ref name=portauthorityboard20180419/> The permanent facility is expected to be a {{convert|203500|sqft|sqm|adj=on}} prefabricated{{citation needed|date=November 2018}} building that would be {{convert|105|ft|m}} tall.<ref>{{cite web |title=Regular Meeting, Planning & Strategy, Resolution |url=https://www.portoflosangeles.org/Board/2018/May%202018/05_03_18_Agenda_Item_1(b).pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612140316/https://www.portoflosangeles.org/Board/2018/May%202018/05_03_18_Agenda_Item_1(b).pdf |dead-url=yes |archive-date=12 June 2018 |website=Port of Los Angeles |accessdate=6 June 2018}} </ref>
The fully assembled launch vehicle is expected to be "transported by barge, through the [[Panama Canal]], to Cape Canaveral in Florida for launch."<ref name=lat20180419/><!-- other sources would be helpful, as some have previously indicated BFR flights from the south Texas launch site. -->
Nine months after starting construction of some parts of the first [[test article (aerospace)|test article]] carbon composite ''Starship'' low-altitude test vehicle, SpaceX CEO Musk announced that the "counterintuitive new design approach" he had been mentioning for a month was that the primary construction material for the rocket's structure and propellant tanks would be [[metal]];<ref name="musk20181208a">
{{cite news
Following a personal trip to the [[SpaceX South Texas Launch Site|South Texas Launch Site]] in [[Boca Chica, Texas]], Elon Musk revealed on 23 December 2018 that the first [[test article (aerospace)|test article]] ''Starship'' had been under construction there for several weeks, out in the open on SpaceX property. The "hopper" was being built from a [[300-series stainless steel|special alloy]] of [[stainless steel]]—not [[carbon composite]] as previously thought. According to Elon Musk, the reason for using this material is that "it’s [stainless steel] obviously cheap, it’s obviously fast—but it’s not obviously the lightest. But it is actually the lightest. If you look at the properties of a high-quality stainless steel, the thing that isn’t obvious is that at cryogenic temperatures, the strength is boosted by 50 percent."<ref>{{cite web |last1=D'Agostino |first1=Ryan |title=Elon Musk: Why I'm Building the Starship out of Stainless Steel |url=https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/rockets/a25953663/elon-musk-spacex-bfr-stainless-steel/ |website=popularmechanics.com |publisher=[[Popular Mechanics]] |accessdate=January 22, 2019 |language=English |date=January 22, 2019}}</ref> ''Starship'' would be used on the initial [[Flight test|test flights]] to characterize the vehicle and develop the landing and low-altitude/low-velocity reentry control algorithms. The initial vehicle will fly with three of the seven possible Raptor [[methalox]] engines installed, and the initial flight is expected no earlier than the first half of 2019.<ref name="trati20181224">
{{cite news |last=Ralph|first=Eric |url=https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-elon-musk-starship-prototype-three-raptors-mirror-finish/ |title=SpaceX CEO Elon Musk: Starship prototype to have 3 Raptors and “mirror finish” |work=[[Teslarati]] |date=24 December 2018 |accessdate=24 December 2018 }}</ref><ref name=sn20181224/>
In January 2019, SpaceX changed course and said it would also build the second test vehicle—the ''Starship'' orbital prototype—in Texas, after having earlier said that it would be built in the Port of Los Angeles.<ref>{{cite news
=== Testing ===
Testing began at the [[subsystem]] level, as it does with most launch vehicles, with rocket engine component tests, followed by tests of the complete rocket engine in [[Rocket engine test facility|ground test facilities]]. [[Raptor engine]] component-level testing began in May 2014<ref name="mseigs20140421">
{{cite news |last=Guess|first=Natalie |title=NASA, SpaceX Cut Ribbon To Launch Testing Partnership |url=http://mseigs.com/nasa-spacex-cut-ribbon-to-launch-testing-partnership/ |accessdate=22 April 2014 |newspaper=MS EIGS |date=21 April 2014}}</ref>
with the first full-engine test in September 2016.<ref name="nsf20161003">
{{cite news
By September 2017, the development Raptor engine had undergone 1200 seconds of hotfire testing in [[Rocket engine test facility|ground-test stands]] across 42 main engine tests, with the longest test at that time being 100 seconds.<ref name=musk20170929/>
SpaceX indicated in November 2018 that they were considering testing a heavily-modified Falcon 9 second stage that would look like a "[[Falcon 9 second-stage mini-BFR test vehicle|mini-BFR Ship]]" and be used for [[atmospheric reentry]] [[flight testing|testing]] of a number of technologies needed for the full-scale spaceship, including a high-[[Mach number|Mach]] control surfaces.<ref name="sn20181107">
{{cite news
From as early as October 2017, the month after the BFR concept was unveiled, [[Flight testing|flight tests]] at the launch vehicle subsystem level of the Big Falcon Rocket were expected to begin with short suborbital hops of the full-scale reusable second stage—subsequently named ''Starship''—likely to be no more than few hundred kilometers altitude and lateral distance,<ref name=sn20171015c/> with initial test flights projected to be as early as 2019.<ref name="sn20180312">{{cite news |last=Foust |first=Jeff |url=http://spacenews.com/musk-reiterates-plans-for-testing-bfr/ |title=Musk reiterates plans for testing BFR |work=[[SpaceNews]] |date=12 March 2018 |accessdate=15 March 2018 |quote=Construction of the first prototype spaceship is in progress. 'We're actually building that ship right now,' he said. 'I think we'll probably be able to do short flights, short sort of up-and-down flights, probably sometime in the first half of next year.'}}</ref> By September 2018, it was clear that hops of the upper stage spaceship were to be conducted from the [[SpaceX South Texas Launch Site]] near [[Brownsville, Texas]].<ref name="SpaceX20180917"/>
SpaceX filed an application with the [[FCC]] in November 2018 for an experimental radio communications license to support the test flight program, with all test flights on that permit slated to remain under {{convert|5|km|ft|sp=us}} in altitude.<ref name="sn20181224">
{{cite news |last=Foust|first=Jeff |url=https://spacenews.com/musk-teases-new-details-about-redesigned-next-generation-launch-system/ |title=Musk teases new details about redesigned next-generation launch system |work=[[SpaceNews]] |date=24 December 2018 |accessdate=25 December 2018 }}</ref>
Both the test article ''Starship'' and the launch site were under construction in South Texas by late 2018<ref name=trati20181224/>
and the primary structure of the first test "hopper" was complete by 10 January 2019.<ref name="mw20190110">
{{cite news |last=Murphy|first=Mike |url=https://www.marketwatch.com/story/elon-musk-shows-off-spacexs-massive-starship-test-rocket-2019-01-10 |title=Elon Musk shows off SpaceX’s massive Starship test rocket |work=[[MarketWatch]] |date=10 January 2019 |accessdate=12 January 2019 }}</ref> On 15 January 2019, SpaceX technicians separated the nose and tail sections of the ''Starship'' hopper so fuel and oxidizer tank bulkheads could start being installed on 21 January 2019.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-starship-hopper-tank-bulkhead-installation-launch-landing-pad-progress/|title=SpaceX fits Starship prototype with tank bulkheads as hop test pad progresses|last=Ralph|first=Eric|date=2019-01-22|website=TESLARATI.com|language=en-US|access-date=2019-01-23}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-starship-prototype-nose-raptor-removal-tank-install/|title=SpaceX separates Starship prototype's nose and tail to install giant propellant tanks|last=Ralph|first=Eric|date=2019-01-17|website=TESLARATI.com|language=en-US|access-date=2019-01-23}}</ref> Unfortunately on 23 January 2019, the ''Starship'' hopper<em>'s</em> nose section was toppled over by strong winds. According to Musk, the propellant systems needed for flight were undamaged but the nose section will take a few weeks to repair.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2019/1/23/18194398/spacex-starship-prototype-wind-damage-boca-chica-texas|title=SpaceX’s new test rocket topples over thanks to strong Texas winds|last1=Grush|first1=Loren|website=theverge.com|publisher=Vox Media, Inc.|language=English|accessdate=January 23, 2019}}</ref>
==Nomenclature==
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Beginning in mid-2013, SpaceX referred to both the architecture and the vehicle as the Mars Colonial Transporter.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/steveschaefer/2013/06/06/with-tesla-and-solarcity-soaring-elon-musk-talks-down-spacex-ipo-plans/ | title=SpaceX IPO Cleared For Launch? Elon Musk Says Hold Your Horses | author=Steve Schaefer | work=Forbes | date=6 June 2013}}</ref> By the time the large 12-meter diameter design was unveiled in September 2016, SpaceX had already begun referring to the overall system as the [[Interplanetary Transport System]] and the launch vehicle itself as the [[ITS launch vehicle]].
With the announcement of a new 9-meter design in September 2017, SpaceX resumed using the name "BFR".<ref name="sn20170929"/><ref name="sfn20170929">{{cite news
Notably, in the fashion of SpaceX, even that term ''super heavy'' had been previously used by SpaceX in a different context. In February 2018, at about the time of the first [[Falcon Heavy]] launch, Musk "suggested the possibility of a Falcon Super Heavy—a Falcon Heavy with extra boosters. 'We could really dial it up to as much performance as anyone could ever want. If we wanted to we could actually add two more side boosters and make it Falcon Super Heavy.'"<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/2/5/16975850/spacex-falcon-heavy-launch-elon-musk-tesla-questions | title=Here are four things we learned from Elon Musk before the first Falcon Heavy launch| date=2018-02-05}}</ref>
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== Description ==
The SpaceX next-generation launch vehicle design combines [[SpaceX Mars transportation infrastructure#Overview and major elements|several elements]] that, according to Musk, will make long-duration, [[beyond Earth orbit]] (BEO) spaceflights possible. The design is projected by SpaceX to reduce the per-ton cost of launches to low Earth orbit (LEO) and of transportation between BEO destinations. It will also serve all [[use cases]] for the conventional LEO [[Space launch market competition|market]]. This will allow SpaceX to focus the majority of their development resources on the next-generation launch vehicle.<ref name=musk20170929/><ref name=Dent20170929/><ref name="spacex-itsvideo201609-09:20">{{cite AV media
The fully [[reusable launch vehicle|reusable]] [[super heavy-lift launch vehicle|super-heavy-lift]] Big Falcon Rocket (BFR) will consist of two main parts: a reusable booster stage, named ''Super Heavy'' and a reusable [[second stage]] with an integrated payload section, named ''Starship''.<ref name=gw20181119/><ref name=musk20170929/><!-- the two major parts of the vehicle were named ''Starship'' and ''Super Heavy'' only in November 2018 -->
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Combining the second-stage of a launch vehicle with a long-duration spaceship will be a unique type of space mission architecture. This architecture is dependent on the success of orbital refueling.<ref name=musk201803journal/>
Major characteristics of the launch vehicle include:<ref name=nsf20180809/><ref name=musk201803journal/><ref name="sn20171015b"/><ref name="68IAC-trans">{{cite web |url=http://www.spacex.com/sites/spacex/files/making_life_multiplanetary_transcript_2017.pdf |title=Making Life Multiplanetary: Abridged transcript of Elon Musk's presentation to the 68th International Astronautical Congress in Adelaide, Australia |publisher=SpaceX |date=September 2017}}</ref><ref name="SpaceX20180917" />
* Both stages are designed to be [[Fully and rapidly reusable launch vehicle|completely reusable]], with the booster returning to land on the launch mount while the second-stage/spaceship will have the ability to return to near the launch mount. Both will use [[retropropulsive landing]] and the [[SpaceX reusable launch system development program|reusable launch vehicle technologies developed earlier by SpaceX]].
*The full ''Starship''-Super Heavy stack will stretch {{cvt|118|m}}, {{cvt|25|m}} taller than the Statue of Liberty.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2018/09/27/spacexs-bfr-spaceship-rocket-elon-musk-space-travel/1430175002/|title=8 things Elon Musk wants you to know about SpaceX's monster BFR spaceship|work=USA TODAY|access-date=2018-09-27|language=en}}</ref>
=== First stage: ''Super Heavy'' ===
{{anchor|BFR|Big Falcon Rocket|Super Heavy}}
The first stage, or booster—also referred to as ''Super Heavy''<!-- was given the descriptor ''Super Heavy'' in November 2018; previously just the "BFR first stage" --><ref name=engadget20181120/>—of the SpaceX next-generation launch vehicle is {{convert|63|m|sp=us}} long and {{cvt|9|m}} in diameter. It is expected to have a gross liftoff mass of {{cvt|3,065,000|kg|lb}}<ref name="SpaceX20180917"/> It is constructed of stainless steel tanks and structure, holding [[Subcooled propellant|subcooled]] [[liquid methane]] and [[liquid oxygen]] ({{chem2|CH4}}/LOX) propellants, powered by 31 [[Raptor (rocket engine family)|Raptor]] rocket engines<ref name="pm20180207">[https://www.popularmechanics.com/space/rockets/a16672538/spacex-testing-new-rocket-bfr-next-year/ SpaceX Aims to Begin BFR Spaceship Flight Tests as Soon as Next Year]. Jay Bennett, ''Popular Mechanics''. 7 February 2018.</ref> providing {{cvt|61.8|MN|lbf}} total liftoff thrust.<ref name="SpaceX20180917"/><!-- "200-ton thrust" = 1993kN x 31 = 61,783 MN--> The booster is projected to return to land on the launch mount.<ref name=nsf20180809/><ref name=musk201803journal/><ref name="sn20171015b"/><ref name=68IAC-trans/>
[[File:BFR at stage separation (2).jpg|alt=Starship-Super Heavy separation.|thumb|Artistic rendition of ''Starship'' separating from Super Heavy during launch.]]
=== Second stage and spaceship: ''Starship'' ===
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! [[low Earth orbit|LEO]] payload
| {{cvt|100,000|kg|lb|disp=preunit|+}}<ref name="sx20160920">{{Cite web | url=https://www.spacex.com/mars | title=Mars| date=2016-09-20}}</ref>|| ||
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! Return payload
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===
The construction of the "''Starship'' test flight rocket"<ref name=mw20190110/> was begun in early December 2018 and the external frame and skin was complete by 10 January 2019. Constructed outside in the open on a SpaceX property just two miles from [[Boca Chica Beach]] on the [[Gulf of Mexico]] in [[South Texas]], the rocket rapidly came together in less than six weeks. Originally thought by watchers of construction at the [[SpaceX South Texas Launch Site]] to be the initial construction of a large water tower, the stainless steel vehicle was built by [[welder]]s and construction workers in more of a [[shipyard]] form of construction than traditional [[aerospace manufacturing]]. The vehicle is {{convert|9|m|sp=us}} in diameter and {{convert|39|m|sp=us}} tall.<ref name="ars20190108">
{{cite news |last=Berger|first=Eric |url=https://arstechnica.com/science/2019/01/elon-musk-is-really-really-excited-about-his-starship/ |title=Here’s why Elon Musk is tweeting constantly about a stainless-steel starship |work=ars Technica |date=8 January 2019 |accessdate=12 January 2019 }}</ref><ref name=trati20181224/>
The test article will be used to [[flight test]] a number of subsystems of the ''Starship'' and will be used to expand the [[flight envelope]] as this radically unusual reusable ''Starship'' second stage and spaceship continues in design, build and test for the next several years.<ref name=ars20190108/><ref name=sn20171015c/> <ref name=sn20180312/>
Testing will commence at the [[SpaceX South Texas Launch Site]] near [[Boca Chica, Texas]],<ref name="SpaceX20180917"/> with the [[maiden flight|initial]] test flight of the low-velocity prototype anticipated by February or March,<ref>{{cite tweet
All test flights of the "test hopper"<ref name=ars20190108/> will be low altitude, under {{convert|5|km|ft|sp=us}},<ref name=sn20181224/>
In addition, a ''Starship'' orbital prototype, also referred to as the "Starship Mk I orbital design," is under construction in [[San Pedro, California]].<ref name="musk20181222">[https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1076611280700530688 Starship Mk I orbital design], SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, Twitter, 22 December 2018, accessed 12 January 2019.</ref> Planned for high-altitude and high-velocity testing, it is expected to be completed by
The orbital prototype will be taller than the suborbital hopper, have thicker skins, and a smoothly curving nose section.<ref name="bi20190111">
{{cite news |last=Kanter|first=Jake |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-released-a-photo-spacexs-test-hopper-rocket-2019-1 |title=Elon Musk released a photo of his latest rocket, and it already delivers on his promise of looking like liquid silver |work=[[Business Insider]] |date=11 January 2019 |accessdate=13 January 2019 }}</ref>
==Applications==
The Big Falcon Rocket launch vehicle is designed to replace all existing SpaceX vehicles and spacecraft: Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launch vehicles, and also the Dragon capsule. SpaceX estimates that BFR launches will be cheaper than the existing fleet, and even cheaper than the retired [[Falcon 1]], due to full reusability and precision landing of the booster on its [[launch mount]] for simplified launch logistics. SpaceX intends to fully replace its vehicle fleet with BFRs during the early 2020s.<ref name="nsf20170929">{{cite news
BFR is planned to execute five diverse flight [[use case]]s:<ref name=nsf20170929/><ref name="nsf20180809">
{{cite news |last=Gaynor|first=Phillip |url=https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2018/08/evolution-big-falcon-rocket/ |title=The Evolution of the Big Falcon Rocket |work=[[NASASpaceFlight.com]] |date=9 August 2018 |accessdate=17 August 2018 |quote= }}</ref>
* legacy Earth-orbit [[Space launch market competition|satellite delivery market]]
* [[Beyond Earth orbit|long-duration spaceflight]]s in the [[cislunar]] region
* [[Exploration of Mars|Mars transportation]], both as cargo ships as well as [[human spaceflight|passenger-carrying transport]]
* long-duration flights to the [[outer planets]], for cargo and astronauts<ref>{{Cite tweet
* commercial passenger travel on Earth, competing with long-range aircraft.<ref>{{cite AV media
===Lunar flyby tour===
{{main|DearMoon Project}}
[[File:BFR passing the Moon.jpg|alt=Artistic rendition of the BFS firing all 7 of its engines while passing by the Moon|thumb|Artistic rendition of the
In September 2018, SpaceX announced that it signed a contract to fly a group of private passengers around the Moon aboard the BFS.<ref name=teslarati_moonflight /> This lunar flyby will be crewed by [[Yusaku Maezawa]],<ref name="Sep 2018 presentation">[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zu7WJD8vpAQ First Private Passenger on Lunar BFR Mission]. Press conference streamed live at YouTube by SpaceX. 17 September 2018.</ref> who will invite 6 to 8 artists to travel with him around the Moon in 2023.<ref name="DearMoon">[https://dearmoon.earth/ "Dear Moon"]. Accessed: 17 September 2018.</ref> The expected travel time would be about 6 days.<ref name="Sep 2018 presentation"/><ref name="DearMoon"/>
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{{main|SpaceX Mars transportation infrastructure}}
SpaceX plans to eventually build a crewed base on Mars for an extended surface presence, which they hope will grow one day into a self-sufficient [[Colonization of Mars|colony]].<ref name="Eric Ralf">[https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-first-mars-bound-bfr-spaceships-martian-habitats/ "SpaceX wants to use the first Mars-bound BFR spaceships as Martian habitats"]. Eric Ralph, ''TeslaRati''. 27 August 2018.</ref><ref name="Rayne 2018">[https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/mars-2024-elon-musk "We're going to Mars by 2024 if Elon Musk has anything to say about it"]. Elizabeth Rayne, ''SyFy Wire''. 15 August 2018.</ref><ref name="ars20160928">{{cite news
Any Mars expeditions would refuel ''Starships'' in low Earth orbit before [[Trans-Mars injection|departing for Mars]]. Early ships would be left on Mars to house equipment, store propellant, or provide spare parts. Eventually, once humans travel to Mars, at least one of the reusable Starships from earlier flights would be capable of being refueled to provide a redundant spare spacecraft for a return journey to Earth.<ref name="Crunch 2017">[https://techcrunch.com/2017/09/28/everything-spacex-revealed-about-its-updated-plan-to-reach-mars-by-2022/ "Everything SpaceX revealed about its updated plan to reach Mars by 2022"]. Darrell Etherington, ''TechCrunch''. 29 September 2017, accessed 14 September 2018.</ref><ref name="Eric Ralf"/><ref name="Wooster 2018"/><ref name="Rayne 2018"/> <ref name="Wooster 2018">{{cite video |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1Cz6vF4ONE |author=Paul Wooster |title=SpaceX's Plans for Mars |work= 21st Annual International Mars Society Convention |agency= |publisher=Mars Society |date=29 August 2018 |accessdate=2 September 2018}}</ref>
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