SpaceX plans orbital refueling test, paving way for moon and mars missions

By early next year, SpaceX could be ready to attempt an ambitious orbital refueling test involving two Starships. This demonstration, scheduled for March 2025, aims to showcase Starship’s potential for deep space missions, particularly supporting NASA’s Artemis mission to the Moon, reports a Kazinform News Agency correspondent.

In a recent interview with Spaceflight Now, Kent Chojnacki, NASA’s Human Landing System deputy manager, shared that this in-flight refueling test is a significant milestone for Starship and a critical step for SpaceX’s collaboration with NASA. SpaceX secured a $53.2 million contract with NASA in 2020 to test in-orbit refueling with Starship. During its third test flight, SpaceX successfully transferred 10 metric tons of liquid oxygen within Starship. However, this upcoming test will be far more complex, requiring two Starships to launch a few weeks’ apart, rendezvous in low Earth orbit, dock, and then transfer propellant from one to the other before undocking and deorbiting.

“Once you’ve done that, you’ve really cracked open the opportunity to move massive amounts of payload and cargo outside of the Earth’s sphere,” Chojnacki said. NASA sees in-flight refueling as essential for “long-term cryogenic fluid management,” which is crucial for sustainable lunar operations and crewed Mars missions.

SpaceX is also developing a Starship variant to land humans on the Moon by September 2026 as part of the Artemis 3 mission. To support this, the company plans to launch up to 16 tanker Starships into orbit to dock with a fuel depot, which will then refuel the Human Landing System Starship for its lunar journey.

While Starship development has faced delays, recent progress includes the Super Heavy booster’s controlled catch by a launch tower and the upper stage’s successful splashdown. Despite these advances, SpaceX still faces challenges to get Starship fully operational in orbit for NASA’s timeline.

Earlier, Kazinform News Agency reported that Elon Musk, the founder of Tesla and SpaceX, might be appointed in the new Trump administration to potentially lead a newly formed commission focused on government efficiency.