ClassX Video Lessons Youtube Channel Primal Space Could SpaceX’s Starship replace traditional airliners?
In 1620, the Mayflower embarked on a 64-day voyage across the Atlantic, marking the beginning of a new era of exploration. Fast forward to 1919, and pilots Alcock and Brown achieved the first non-stop transatlantic flight from Canada to Ireland in under 16 hours. Today, millions of people travel from New York to London annually, completing the journey in just seven hours. Over the past 50 years, air travel has become more accessible due to advancements in safety and reduced costs.
SpaceX is exploring the potential of using their Big Falcon Rocket (BFR) for rapid Earth-to-Earth travel. In 2017, Elon Musk proposed that a spacecraft designed for Mars could also revolutionize travel on Earth. The concept involves transporting passengers to a floating launch site, where the BFR would launch, separate from its booster, and land at the destination. By exiting Earth’s atmosphere, the BFR could achieve speeds far greater than traditional airliners, potentially reducing travel times to under an hour for any global destination.
Before rockets can replace airliners, significant engineering, economic, and political hurdles must be addressed. Achieving a safety standard comparable to airlines is crucial. In 2017, the aviation industry had a mortality rate of 1 death per 60 million passengers. In contrast, spaceflight has seen 1 death per 31 astronauts, highlighting the need for improved safety measures.
Economically, the BFR must be cost-effective to compete with airlines. SpaceX aims to make ticket prices competitive with current air travel, but achieving profitability requires mastering rocket reusability. The Falcon 9, for example, is only partially reusable and costly to refurbish. In contrast, the BFR is designed for full reusability, potentially enduring hundreds of flights before needing maintenance.
For SpaceX to impact the airline industry, ticket prices for BFR flights must be between economy and business class rates. Additionally, gaining global governmental approval poses a significant challenge. Initial launches and landings at sea aim to mitigate risks and noise, but this limits travel to major coastal cities, leaving regional flights to traditional airliners.
The intense acceleration during BFR launches and landings, similar to roller coaster forces of 2 to 3 Gs, may not be suitable for everyone. This could exclude certain groups, such as the elderly or those with health conditions, who might prefer the comfort and affordability of current air travel options.
While the idea of rockets replacing airliners may seem ambitious, it’s worth noting that airplanes once faced similar skepticism. Early 20th-century aviation saw rapid advancements due to government incentives and wartime demands, leading to the safe and efficient air travel we know today.
SpaceX’s pursuit of BFR Earth travel is an exciting development in transportation. Whether it will meet the safety and economic standards of traditional airliners remains to be seen. What are your thoughts on this potential future of travel? Share your opinions and join the conversation as we explore the possibilities of space and beyond.
Research the evolution of transatlantic travel from the Mayflower to modern airliners. Prepare a presentation highlighting key innovations and their impact on travel time and accessibility. Consider how these historical advancements compare to SpaceX’s vision for rapid Earth-to-Earth travel.
Participate in a debate on whether SpaceX’s Starship could realistically replace traditional airliners. Form teams to argue for and against the feasibility, safety, and economic viability of rocket travel compared to conventional air travel.
Analyze SpaceX’s economic model for the BFR, focusing on cost-effectiveness and reusability. Compare it with the current airline industry’s economic strategies. Discuss the challenges SpaceX faces in making rocket travel competitive with air travel.
Engage in a workshop to design a conceptual model of a safe and comfortable passenger experience for rocket travel. Consider factors like acceleration forces, safety measures, and accessibility for diverse passenger groups.
Draft a policy proposal for international regulations governing rocket travel. Address safety standards, environmental concerns, and the integration of rocket travel into existing transportation infrastructures. Present your proposal to the class for feedback and discussion.
In the year 1620, the Mayflower set sail on a 64-day journey to cross the Atlantic Ocean, bringing the first Pilgrims from England to America. In 1919, pilots Alcock and Brown completed the first non-stop transatlantic flight from Canada to Ireland in under 16 hours. Today, 4 million people make the journey from New York to London each year, taking just 7 hours. Over the last 50 years, air travel has become accessible to almost everyone due to increased airline safety and reduced ticket prices.
In this video, we’re going to look at how SpaceX plans to use their Big Falcon Rocket (BFR) to transport humans around the world in record time. We will also compare the BFR to traditional airliners and explore whether orbital rockets could one day replace the aircraft we are all familiar with.
In 2017, SpaceX announced that they were seriously working towards using their BFR for Earth-to-Earth travel. Elon Musk suggested that if you build a ship capable of going to Mars, you could also use it to travel from one place to another on Earth. Their plan involves a boat that would take hundreds of passengers out to a floating launch site where a BFR would be waiting to take them to their destination. The BFR would launch, separate from its booster, and perform a propulsive landing at its new destination. By leaving the Earth’s atmosphere, the BFR could travel at much greater speeds than a traditional airliner, significantly reducing flight times. SpaceX predicts that the BFR could travel anywhere on Earth in under an hour and complete most international flights in under 30 minutes.
However, before we start launching humans around the world on the most powerful rocket ever built, there are some enormous engineering, economic, and political challenges that must be overcome. To reach a safety rating comparable to traditional airliners, the BFR would need to achieve a mortality rate of just 1 death for every 60 million passengers, a standard the aviation industry achieved in 2017. So far, the spaceflight industry has only achieved a rate of 1 death for every 31 astronauts, with 18 out of 564 people who have been into space having died. Although this rate is improving with each crewed mission, we still have a long way to go in terms of safety.
Not only will the BFR need to be the safest rocket ever built, but it will also need to be the cheapest to operate to compete with the commercial airline industry. Airlines like United, Delta, and American rely heavily on international flights for a large percentage of their revenue. If SpaceX can make the ticket price for a BFR ride low enough, they could start to impact the traditional airline industry, as well as the logistics industry, which could benefit from delivering cargo 25 times faster than an airliner.
To challenge the commercial airline market, SpaceX will need to master the art of rocket reusability. The average price for an economy ticket from New York to Shanghai is around $550. According to Musk, the BFR will have a similar capacity to the Airbus A380, accommodating around 850 passengers. Given a similar ticket price, SpaceX would collect around $467,000 per flight. However, at that price, SpaceX would struggle to make a profit once they factored in the costs of fueling and launching a rocket of that size. This is where the importance of reusability comes in.
The Falcon 9 currently costs around $37 million to manufacture, which is considerably cheaper than an A380, but only 75% of the Falcon 9 is reusable and still requires costly refurbishment, only to be retired after about 10 flights. In contrast, an aircraft like the Airbus A380 typically has a lifespan of around 27 years and can make about 35,000 flights before being retired. If airplanes were discarded after just a few flights, there wouldn’t be a market for commercial air travel. Unlike the Falcon 9, the BFR is designed to be fully reusable and able to endure hundreds of flights before any refurbishment is needed.
For a flight like New York to Shanghai, the ticket price for a BFR ride will need to be somewhere between economy class and business class for SpaceX to make a profit. One of the biggest challenges will likely be obtaining government approval. Getting governments around the world to cooperate and approve something so complex and risky is not going to be easy. To protect the population from falling rockets and to reduce noise disturbance, the BFR will initially launch and land at sea. This presents another obstacle for BFR passenger transport, as it would only be able to travel between major coastal cities, leaving traditional airliners to handle smaller regional flights.
Another concern regarding BFR Earth travel is the intense acceleration that passengers will experience during launch and landing. Elon Musk mentioned that the G-forces would be similar to a roller coaster ride at around 2 or 3 Gs. This could rule out a significant portion of the population, such as the elderly, pregnant women, and those with heart conditions, who may prefer the more comfortable and cheaper options currently offered by airliners.
While the idea of rockets replacing airliners may seem far-fetched to many, it’s important to remember that similar skepticism surrounded the advent of airplanes. To understand our current position in aviation, let’s reflect on the early days of flight. In the early 20th century, airplanes were rudimentary and often built in garages. The government recognized the potential of airplanes for mail delivery and began offering contracts and prize money for the fastest, highest, and furthest flights. This spurred advancements in airplane technology, leading to safer and larger aircraft capable of carrying more mail, and eventually, people.
Throughout the first and second World Wars, the demand for advanced airplanes surged, leading to rapid technological development, including the introduction of jet-powered aircraft in 1943. Fast forward to today, and air travel is one of the safest forms of transportation, with airplanes capable of flying 9,000 miles while carrying 850 passengers at a time.
While the concept of traveling around Earth in a rocket faces many challenges, it is exciting to see such an ambitious idea being pursued. What do you think of BFR Earth travel? Will it come to fruition, or will it struggle to meet the safety standards of traditional airliners? Let me know in the comments below. If you enjoyed this video and would like to support Primal Space, please visit Patreon.com/PrimalSpace, where we will be doing a giveaway of a Saturn V Lego set once we reach 50 patrons. Make sure you’re subscribed to join the discussion as we continue to learn more about all things space. Thank you for watching, and I’ll see you in the next video.
Engineering – The application of scientific and mathematical principles to design and build structures, machines, and systems. – Engineering students often work on projects that require them to apply theoretical knowledge to practical problems.
History – The study of past events, particularly in human affairs, and how they influence the present and future. – Understanding the history of engineering innovations helps students appreciate the evolution of technology.
Travel – The movement of people or goods from one place to another, often involving the use of vehicles or infrastructure. – The development of efficient travel systems is a key focus in transportation engineering.
Rockets – Vehicles or devices propelled by the expulsion of gas or liquid, used especially in space exploration. – The engineering behind rockets has advanced significantly since the early days of space travel.
Safety – The condition of being protected from or unlikely to cause danger, risk, or injury. – Safety is a paramount concern in the design of engineering systems, especially in the aerospace industry.
Economics – The branch of knowledge concerned with the production, consumption, and transfer of wealth. – Engineering projects must consider economics to ensure that they are financially viable and sustainable.
Airlines – Companies that provide air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. – Engineering advancements have greatly improved the efficiency and safety of modern airlines.
Accessibility – The quality of being easy to obtain or use, particularly for people with disabilities. – Engineers must consider accessibility in their designs to ensure inclusivity for all users.
Design – The process of creating a plan or convention for the construction of an object or system. – In engineering, design is a critical phase where creativity and technical knowledge come together.
Innovation – The introduction of new ideas, methods, or products to improve systems or solve problems. – Innovation in engineering often leads to breakthroughs that can transform industries and societies.
