NASA Confirms Spacex Starship In-Space Refueling Demo Planned for Next Year

NASA has confirmed that SpaceX is on track to demonstrate in-space refueling of its Starship spacecraft by next year. This pivotal advancement is deemed critical for leveraging the vehicle's potential in future lunar missions, allowing for the safe transportation of humans to and from the Moon.

Amit Kshatriya, NASA's Deputy Associate Administrator for the Moon to Mars Program, share the update during a session with the NASA Advisory Council’s Human Exploration and Operations Committee on April 26.

He disclosed that SpaceX had achieved a significant milestone towards Starship refueling during its latest test flight on March 14.

"On Flight 3, they did an intertank transfer of cryogens, which was successful by all accounts," - Amit Kshatriya, NASA's Deputy Associate Administrator for the Moon to Mars Program

While neither SpaceX nor NASA provided detailed updates immediately following the flight, the confirmation of the successful demonstration underscored the importance of the achievement.

The next major milestone, involves a planned demonstration in 2025 where two Starship spacecraft will dock in orbit, with one transferring propellants to the other. This step, has already cleared a flight system review, marking a significant stride forward in the overall mission architecture.

During this demonstration, a "target" Starship will launch first and enter orbit, followed by a "chaser" Starship three to four weeks later. The two spacecraft will then dock, with propellant transfer taking place before they undock and descend back to Earth.

There is still work to be done before this milestone can be achieved. Understanding the dynamics of propellants in the tanks during maneuvers and ensuring effective propellant flow between docked spacecraft are among the challenges SpaceX will need to address.

Propellant transfer technology is integral to SpaceX's ambitions for Starship missions beyond Earth's orbit, particularly for the Human Landing System (HLS) version of Starship intended for lunar landings; as multiple Starship launches will be required to transfer propellant into a depot in low Earth orbit, which will then fuel the HLS Starship for missions to the Moon.

Despite the significance of this advancement, uncertainties remain regarding the exact number of refueling launches needed.

"Full & rapid reusability of booster & ship and orbital refilling of ship are the 2 fundamental technologies we aim to solve by the end of next year," - Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX

With SpaceX and NASA pushing the boundaries of space exploration, the prospect of in-space refueling of Starship stands as a crucial step towards realizing humanity's dreams of becoming a multiplanetary species.