The biggest super heavy has finally broken through orbital velocity.
Even though it more or less broke up on reentry, this is a milestone on the path to the commercialization of space travel. On the surface, this is just a really big rocket. When in truth, the success of super heavy rockets will open entirely new industries. Some mundane and some that we can’t imagine yet.
The most obvious starting point will be mining on our moon for helium-3 and other resources. This has been speculated on for decades, but is blocked by getting machinery and people to the moon to get the job done. By unlocking supply chain and opening revenue opportunities we’ll see a faster investment in space travel. This in turn will present R&D opportunities for countless industries. Novel zero-g pharma, lowered costs for rare earth minerals, and every aspect involved in rockets.
The narrative has been centered around getting to Mars and space colonization in general. By having a rocket ship that can carry 100 people or more, it then becomes economically reasonable to freight people and cargo. Think in terms of trains and long haul trucks. Massive rockets unlock supply chains in space. This is the critical missing piece in both industry and exploration.
-jm