SpaceX gets US approval to test new Starfall capsules for space manufacturing
SMRTR summary
A pizza-box-shaped capsule the size of a small car could soon be dropping out of orbit and splashing down in the Pacific Ocean. That's the vision behind Starfall, SpaceX's secretive new reentry vehicle, revealed through recently released FAA documents.
The circular capsules, just over three meters wide and less than a meter tall, would launch aboard a Falcon 9 or Starship rocket, spend time in orbit, then parachute back to Earth carrying up to 1,000 kilograms of cargo.
The goal? To build what the documents describe as "a self-sustaining manufacturing economy in space," taking advantage of microgravity and vacuum conditions only accessible in orbit.
SpaceX plans to make these capsules mass-producible, which could position the company as a direct competitor to startups like Varda Space Industries that have actually relied on SpaceX rockets to launch their own competing reentry vehicles.
Two test flights off the California coast could be coming soon.
SMRTR provides this summary for quick context. The original article belongs to Interesting Engineering.
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