The SpaceX’s Starship/Super Heavy vehicle launch was the biggest news of the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) this year. The launch, which took place in Boca Chica, Texas, on October 13th, demonstrated the Super Heavy booster's ability to return to the launch site and be “caught” by mechanical arms attached to the launch tower. This was a major step towards the rapid reusability SpaceX envisions for the vehicle. The launch was a significant event for the company, as it demonstrates its capabilities and a growing gap with the rest of the industry.
For NASA, the launch was a sign that development of the HLS version of Starship was on track for Artemis 3, which remains officially scheduled for no earlier than September 2026. “Just yesterday, SpaceX has a very successful fifth launch as they develop this very large rocket,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said during an October 14th plenary session. “This was another one of the steps in the iteration of developing that.”
The success of the launch was welcomed by companies that plan to use Starship for other missions, from launching large payloads like commercial space stations into low Earth orbit to commercial missions to the moon.
However, the Starship test flight prompted different reactions from European companies and agencies as the continent emerges from a “launcher crisis” with the successful inaugural launch of Ariane 6 in July and the return to flight of Vega C in early December.
“Congratulations to SpaceX, what an incredible feat of engineering! Mars, here we come,” Rocket Factory Augsburg stated in a social media post on October 14th. “At the same time, the coin has a second side: it shows and confirms that Europe has completely lost touch. Can it still catch up? No chance. At least not the way things are going at the moment.”
Josef Aschbacher, director general of the European Space Agency (ESA), said he was “fascinated” by the launch from an engineering perspective. “I then have to think, what does it mean for Europe, and to see what would be the change in the landscape and the ecosystem, and what do we need to do.”
He acknowledged that Europe cannot compete head-to-head with Starship but could instead take advantage of broader changes in the space economy enabled by Starship. “How do we position ourselves in this ecosystem that is developing now?” he said. “You can imagine that if Starship brings 100 tons into space frequently, this will change everything out there in space, how things are constructed and how space is being utilized.”
Starship, as well as SpaceX’s reuse of Falcon 9 boosters, have made it clear to many that reusability is essential for future launch vehicles. S. Somanath, chairman of the Indian space agency, noted in the October 14th plenary that the Indian government recently approved development of the Next Generation Launch Vehicle (NGLV) that will provide increased payload performance over existing rockets and with a reusable booster. He estimated NGLV will take six years to develop.
“I think all of you realize that reusability is mandatory for launchers,” he said.