In a move that brings science fiction a massive step closer to reality, Elon Musk's SpaceX has officially presented its radical vision of ultra-fast terrestrial travel. According to the company's newly filed Form S-1 registration statement with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), "point-to-point terrestrial travel" is no longer just a hypothetical concept or an ambitious tweet: it has been formally categorised as a key "Future Market" for the aerospace giant.
Its next-generation Starship rocket could transport passengers from one side of the globe to the other in under half an hour, the company said.
“We plan to develop ultra-fast long-haul point-to-point Earth transport using Starship, enabling passengers and cargo to travel between major cities in a fraction of current transit times, revolutionising global logistics and passenger travel with unprecedented speed and efficiency,” the company said in the filing.
“This capability could reduce most international long-haul flights to under 30 minutes, enabling point-to-point travel to the furthest location in an hour or less,” it added.
The linchpin of this global transit revolution is the Starship programme. SpaceX describes Starship V3 as a fully reusable, super heavy-lift launch vehicle designed to deliver 100 metric tonnes to Earth's orbit while enabling "rapid turnaround times akin to commercial aviation."
“Starship is designed to deliver our next-generation satellites to orbit, long-haul point-to-point transportation on Earth, the cargo and crew necessary to develop a base on the Moon and a city on Mars for research and human spaceflight development,” the filing read.
The company intends to leverage breakthroughs from its deep-space initiatives, such as the “chopstick” mechanical arms used to catch returning boosters mid-air, to achieve unprecedented flight frequencies.
By eliminating the immense costs historically associated with rocket expendability, SpaceX claims Starship aims to "reduce the cost to reach orbit by 99% or more relative to the historical average launch cost." It is this dramatic cost reduction that SpaceX expects will make commercial, Earth-based rocket travel economically viable for the public.
The filing explicitly lays out a series of formidable hurdles that the company must clear before regular citizens can board a rocket to cross oceans.
“While we must surmount technological, economic and regulatory obstacles to fully capitalise on this opportunity—such as restrictions on supersonic flights over land in certain regions due to sonic booms, and the economic feasibility of shorter routes—we believe we are strategically positioned to take share of the terrestrial logistics and transportation market,” the company said.
ALSO READ: SpaceX Filing Reveals $4.28 Billion Loss, Musk's Tight Grip
Essential Business Intelligence, Continuous LIVE TV, Sharp Market Insights, Practical Personal Finance Advice and Latest Stories — On NDTV Profit.