SpaceX has been given the green light to build its BFR (or as Elon Musk calls it, the Big F***ing Rocket) in Los Angeles.
Mayor Eric Garcetti revealed during his annual State of the City speech today that the firm would bring the BFR to life at the Port of LA.
The huge rocket is a key player in SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s plan of making humans a ‘multi-planetary’ species, and one day developing a colony on Mars.
SpaceX has been given the green light to build its BFR (or as Elon Musk calls it, the Big F***ing Rocket) in Los Angeles. It will take satellites to orbit, crew and cargo to the ISS and lead manned missions to the moon and Mars. Pictured is an artist’s impression of BFR on the moon
‘Officially announcing that @SpaceX will start production development of the Big Falcon Rocket in the @PortofLA,’ Garcetti tweeted after today’s speech, calling the system by its more family-friendly name.
‘This vehicle holds the promise of taking humanity deeper into the cosmos than ever before.’
The BFR, consisting of a spaceship and the booster, will stand at a staggering 106 meters tall (347.7 feet).
The news comes just days after Musk gave SpaceX fans a rare glimpse of the parts used to build the massive rocket that could one day send humans to the moon and Mars.
The billionaire tech mogul shared a photo on Instagram showing off the main body tool used to build the BFR. The massive device is used to build the rocket’s fuselage, or upper stage.
Garcetti tweeted after today’s speech, opting to use the PG version of the rocket’s name. The BFR, consisting of a spaceship and the booster, will stand at a staggering 106 meters tall (347.7 feet)
It’s essentially a turning mandrel around which ultra-light carbon fiber is woven to form the main section of the BFR.
In the photo, Musk cleverly placed a Model 3 sedan next to the main body tool to illustrate its enormous size.
The Tesla chief doesn’t typically show off the hardware use to make his rockets and, in particular, SpaceX hasn’t shown many photos of the BFR being constructed.
Musk in 2016 displayed the BFR’s fuel tank, which can store up to 1,200 tons of liquid oxygen, as well as some video footage of the rocket’s raptor engines.
At nearly 348 feet tall, the BFR is a truly gigantic spaceship, towering over the 229-feet-tall Falcon Heavy rocket.
Pictured is the massive ‘main body tool’ around which ultra-light carbon fiber is woven to form the main section of the ‘Big F***ing Rocket’ (BFR), a vessel that could ship humans to Mars
Musk in 2016 displayed the BFR’s fuel tank (pictured), which can store up to 1,200 tons of liquid oxygen. It’s made of carbon fiber that can withstand incredibly high pressures
WHAT IS ELON MUSK’S ‘BFR’?
The BFR (Big F***ing Rocket) will complete all missions and is smaller than the ones Musk announced in 2016.
The SpaceX CEO said the rocket would take its first trip to the red planet in 2022, carrying only cargo, followed by a manned mission in 2024 and claimed other SpaceX’s products would be ‘cannibalised’ to pay for it.
The rocket would be partially reusable and capable of flight directly from Earth to Mars.
Once built, Musk believes the rocket could be used for travel on Earth – saying that passengers would be able to get anywhere in under an hour.
The spaceship will take off and land vertically, powered by 37 ‘raptor’ engines, to produce a liftoff thrust of 5,400 tons, lifting a total mass of 4,400 tons.
As expected, Musk has set out an aggressive timeline for when the BFR will be ready for takeoff.
‘We are building the first Mars, or interplanetary ship, and I think well be able to do short trips, short up and down flights, by first half of next year,’ Musk said at the South by Southwest technology and culture festival in Austin, Texas, last month.
‘Although sometimes, my timelines are a little, you know…,’ he joked.
Musk first revealed his plans for a future moon base back in September. Pictured is an artist’s rendering of what a potential moon base could look like
SpaceX boss Elon Musk (pictured) said the successful launch of the world’s most powerful rocket, the Falcon Heavy, has given him confidence that the BFR can come to fruition
However, the target may not be too crazy, as SpaceX president Gwynne Shotwell has said first test flights could take place in 2019.
Orbital tests could be held in 2020 and, by 2022, SpaceX could deliver the first cargo to Mars, Musk has said.
The rocket will take satellites to orbit, crew and cargo to the International Space Station and even lead manned missions to the moon and Mars.