Space Just Got a Little Closer

There’s a world beyond our own, and to better understand it, we must explore it. For the better part of a decade, several companies have been developing technologies to explore the universe and make life multiplanetary. In the last few weeks, two of those companies have significantly advanced this mission and goal. SpaceX launched Starship 7, and Blue Origin achieved its first successful reusable rocket launch with New Glenn. Additionally, we were excited to witness the launch of two Moon landers, Blue Ghost by Firefly Aerospace and Resilience by ispace, both carried by SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket on January 15, 2025, aiming to expand our presence and knowledge of the lunar surface

Starship 7 successfully launched carrying a mock payload of replica Starlink satellites, and while the booster safely returned to Earth, caught in the 30-story mechanical arms, unfortunately stage 2 did not survive reentry.

Preliminary indication is that we had an oxygen/fuel leak in the cavity above the ship engine firewall that was large enough to build pressure in excess of the vent capacity.

Apart from obviously double-checking for leaks, we will add fire suppression to that volume and…

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 17, 2025

An oxygen and fuel leak in the cavity above the ship engine firewall created a pressure build-up which ignited and resulted in a rapid unexpected disassembly. SpaceX expects to adjust the design and launch Starship 8 within the month.

This rapid turnaround is one of SpaceX’s primary goals. In order to get to Mars, Starship must successfully launch repeatedly within a two year timeframe to prepare for the next time that Earth and Mars are close enough to make launching to Mars fuel and resource efficient.

This means SpaceX must rapidly iterate and push the ship to its limit so that eventually we can send humans to other planets.

This window is known as the Hohmann transfer. We need to launch when Mars is approaching Earth in its orbit, specifically when Mars is at about 44 degrees ahead of Earth in their respective orbits around the Sun. This happens approximately every 26 months, when the relative positions of Earth and Mars align in such a way that the transfer orbit can be initiated. The spacecraft can then coast along an elliptical path, taking advantage of the gravitational pull of the Sun. The trip duration is roughly 6 to 8 months, depending on exact launch and arrival conditions.

An educated guess, SpaceX is on target to successfully launch a Starship to Mars in this two-year, and depending on how subsequent iterations go we may see humans on the Martian surface before 2030.

Blue Origin, founded by Jeff Bezos in 2000, is dedicated to making space travel more accessible and sustainable with a vision of preserving Earth by expanding human presence into space. Their initiatives include developing reusable rockets like New Shepard for suborbital flights and New Glenn for orbital payloads, alongside projects like the Blue Moon lunar lander and the Blue Ring spacecraft platform for in-space logistics. Their mission is to build a road to space that benefits Earth by moving heavy industries off-planet, with significant milestones including the first crewed New Shepard flight in 2021 carrying Bezos himself.

Recently, Blue Origin achieved a key milestone with the inaugural flight of their New Glenn rocket on January 16, 2025, successfully deploying the Blue Ring Pathfinder satellite into orbit. However, the first stage booster failed to land due to harsh sea conditions. Despite this, the mission was deemed successful. Blue Origin continues to develop new technologies like the BE-4 and BE-7 engines, aiming for increased launch frequency and further lunar missions with the Blue Moon lander, all while navigating the challenges of space technology development and market competition.

Their vision includes facilitating human expansion into space to preserve Earth, with projects like the Blue Moon lunar lander for NASA’s Artemis program, showcasing their interest in lunar missions and beyond. Although they haven’t announced specific Mars missions, their technological developments, including reusable rockets, in-space logistics platforms like Blue Ring, and the New Glenn rocket, suggest a broader plan for multiplanetary travel.

In terms of satellite launches, Blue Origin has secured contracts with a variety of clients. They are set to launch satellites for Telesat’s LEO broadband constellation, AST SpaceMobile’s direct-to-cellular service, and Amazon’s Project Kuiper, which aims to provide global broadband internet. Additionally, they have deals with the U.S. government for national security launches and NASA’s ESCAPADE mission to Mars, demonstrating their capability and intent to significantly contribute to both commercial and governmental space endeavors.

On January 15, 2025, Firefly Aerospace launched its Blue Ghost lunar lander, marking its first mission to the Moon under NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program. The mission, named “Ghost Riders in the Sky,” includes 10 NASA-led science experiments and technology demonstrations. Blue Ghost is scheduled to land on the lunar surface after approximately 45 days, aiming for the Mare Crisium (“Sea of Crises”).

Alongside Firefly’s Blue Ghost, ispace launched its Resilience lander as a secondary payload on the same SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. This is ispace’s second attempt at a Moon landing after the failed Hakuto-R Mission 1 in 2023. Resilience is expected to take a longer trajectory, aiming to land several months after launch, carrying a mix of customer payloads, including a micro rover for sample collection.

The sustainable lunar space company ispace, founded in 2010 by Takeshi Hakamada, is a Japanese company aiming to provide transportation services and resource mapping on the Moon. Initially part of the Google Lunar XPRIZE, ispace launched its first mission, Hakuto-R Mission 1, in 2022, which failed to land softly on the Moon. Learning from this, they launched Hakuto-R Mission 2 on January 15, 2025, named “Resilience,” targeting the Mare Frigoris with various scientific and commercial payloads. Future plans include Mission 3 in 2026 and beyond, focusing on frequent, cost-effective lunar missions, with ispace leveraging global partnerships and Japanese manufacturing expertise to advance lunar exploration despite the high risks and costs involved.

The world of space is vast but in the last century humans have made significant advancements in making a mark on the expanse of nothingness around us. Stay tuned, it only gets better from here.