Elon Musk has revealed new details of SpaceX‘s Starship space craft, which the company is building to ferry people to the moon and Mars.
The SpaceX boss shared an image on Twitter on Thursday, showing an aerial view of two massive tanks designed to hold fuel for the rocket. He also replied to a post by a space photographer, confirming that a major update on Starship’s progress can be expected in September.
Earlier this month, Mr Musk described the development of Starship as the “top priority” for SpaceX.
A prototype of the Starship craft was unveiled last year and has since gone through several iterations as it undergoes flight and launch tests.
Earlier this year, a dramatic explosion occurred during a cryogenic pressure test at SpaceX’s development facility in Boca Chica, Texas.
The stainless steel Starship craft will eventually be capable of carrying up to 100 people on missions around the Solar System.
There is no set launch date for the first mission, though Mr Musk has previously expressed his hope of launching the first humans to Mars before 2025.
He has also frequently expressed his intention to one day travel to Mars himself, claiming that making humanity a multi-planetary species is essential to its long-term survival.
The first Starship cargo missions could launch as early as 2022, which would carry materials needed to begin establishing a human colony on Mars.
Last week, Mr Musk revealed that SpaceX is building “spaceports” to receive and launch rockets travelling between Earth, the moon and Mars.
A SpaceX job posting stated that an “offshore operations engineer” would be needed to develop rocket launch systems for future missions.
“SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not,” the post stated.
“Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.”
