TEXAS, USA — Time is ticking when it comes to the progress of SpaceX's Starship.
A mission to orbit the moon in 2023 and a NASA contract to design and develop a human landing system for the Artemis program loom over the spacecraft that is still awaiting an initial orbital test launch.
The last time space lovers had the chance to see Starship fly was in May 2021 when SpaceX's SN15 prototype was the first to stick the landing instead of meeting a fiery demise.
Those watching saw the spacecraft climb to a six-mile altitude before belly-flopping and reorienting itself for a vertical landing. A small fire broke out upon landing but water cannons took care of the issue.
But excitement at the Boca Chica launch site has been quiet since, leaving inquiring minds wondering: What's next?
It appears SpaceX founder and billionaire Elon Musk is prepared to pull back the curtain and reveal just that.
On Twitter, Musk said a presentation on Starship will be coming on Feb. 10 at 9 p.m. ET.
The last time a peek inside the upcoming goals and aspirations for the spacecraft that looks to fly future Mars missions occurred was back in 2019.
"These test flights of Starship are all about improving our understanding and development of a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry both crew and cargo on long-duration interplanetary flights, and help humanity return to the Moon, and travel to Mars and beyond," SpaceX website reads.
SpaceX says Starship will be the world's most powerful launch vehicle as it represents part of a fully reusable transportation system designed to carry crew and cargo all the way to Mars and beyond.
No exact timeline has been given on when Starship will achieve such a feat but, if all stays on schedule, an initial orbital test launch could reportedly come as soon as February 2022.
The construction of an orbital launch pad for Starship is already underway at NASA's Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A.
Musk announced that work had begun at the "hallowed spaceflight ground," in December 2021, adding that "no place" was "more deserving of a Starship launch pad."
A Kennedy Space Center spokesperson told 10 Tampa Bay, at the time, that SpaceX and NASA signed a property agreement in 2014 allowing the company to develop the site for commercial use.
"It’s within the rights of their lease agreement to make launch infrastructure improvements within the boundaries of the pad," the spokesperson wrote in an email.
"Approval is only to build at this time," NASA added. "Launching and landings will involve another approval process."
