+

Cookies on the Business Insider India website

Business Insider India has updated its Privacy and Cookie policy. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the better experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we\'ll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on the Business Insider India website. However, you can change your cookie setting at any time by clicking on our Cookie Policy at any time. You can also see our Privacy Policy.

Close
HomeQuizzoneWhatsappShare Flash Reads
 

Elon Musk just announced a new name for the 387-foot-long SpaceX rocket he wants to send to Mars

Nov 20, 2018, 21:23 IST

Advertisement
Elon Musk and SpaceX's Big Falcon Rocket is designed to carry up to 100 people and deliver 150 tons of cargo to Mars.SpaceX; NASA; Mark Brake/Getty Images; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

SpaceX has long been touting a rocket in the works that wants to be the first to put people on Mars, and all that hype now comes with a new name.

Elon Musk, the company's CEO, took to Twitter late Monday night to reveal the new name of the 387-foot SpaceX rocket. Up until now, the rocket has been operating under the name Big Falcon Rocket - dubbed BFR, and also referred to by many (including Musk) as the "Big F-----g Rocket."

But now, the rocket is named Starship.

The spacecraft technically consists of two parts: the spaceship that holds people and cargo, called Starship, and the booster that launches the rocket to Mars, called Super Heavy.

Advertisement

SpaceX's BFR project has made headlines for what Musk sees as the rocket's end goal: to eventually bring humans to Mars. Last month, Musk said in an interview that SpaceX is eyeing 2024 for the launch.

Read more: Elon Musk says SpaceX is on track to launch people to Mars within 6 years - here's the full timeline of his plans to colonize the red planet

Final designs for the rocket, released in September, present a fully reusable booster and fully reusable spaceship, designed to hold 100 people or 150 tons of cargo. Musk estimates the rocket will cost between $2 billion and $10 billion to create.

The planned dimensions of SpaceX's Big Falcon Rocket.Olivia Reaney/Business Insider

To help understand the magnitude of what Musk and his thousands of employees at SpaceX are trying to accomplish, Business Insider created an interactive size-comparison graphic.

Advertisement

Next to the rendering of the rocket shown below, you'll see a series of familiar objects at the rocket's base. (Some are so small that you may have to scroll down a bit.) Toggle through the 20 comparisons by clicking "next" or "back" to get a sense of the rocket's scale:

 

You are subscribed to notifications!
Looks like you've blocked notifications!
Next Article