SpaceX Starship survives reentry through Earth’s atmosphere on fourth test. But do rocket launches provoke climate change?
Billionaire Elon Musk’s giant SpaceX Starship rocket survived a return to Earth on Thursday and landed in the Indian Ocean as planned during its fourth test mission after launching from the company’s Starbase launch site near Boca Chica Village on the Gulf Coast of Texas.
The spacecraft, consisting of the Starship cruise vessel mounted atop its Super Heavy rocket booster, survived its reentry through Earth’s atmosphere this Thursday morning. The craft had broken apart during its last attempt in March 2024.
“Despite loss of many tiles and a damaged flap, Starship made it all the way to a soft landing in the ocean,” mentioned SpaceX Chief Executive Officer Musk in a post on social media after the successful test attempt. The launch has been making headlines across the globe.
Much is riding on development of SpaceX Starship
Designed to be cheaper and stronger than SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, Starship – standing nearly 400 feet tall – represents the future of the company’s satellite launch and astronaut business. It is due to be utilised by NASA in the near future to land astronauts on the moon.
Much is riding on the development of Starship. NASA seeks to return astronauts to the lunar surface in 2026 and China plans to send its astronauts there by 2030. China has made a number of recent advances in its lunar programme.
But do rocket launches have an impact on the environment? Several people are already buying tickets to space. Companies like SpaceX and Virgin Galactic seek to make space tourism more and more common. But experts are concerned.
Impact of billionaire space race on the environment
This launch of a vibrant private space industry that is cultivating tourism could give rise to vast environmental costs, said Eloise Marais, an associate professor of physical geography at University College London, noted the Guardian in a report from July 2021.
Rockets require a huge amount of propellants to make it out of the Earth’s atmosphere. Those fuels emit a variety of substances into the atmosphere, including carbon dioxide and other chemicals. The carbon emissions from rocket launches are small compared to aircraft.
But rocket launches are increasing every year. Moreover, it has been estimated that a single rocket launch can produce up to 300 tons of carbon dioxide into the upper atmosphere where it can remain for several years, eventually posing numerous difficulties.
