Latest NASA Updates on Starship Refueling and Upcoming SpaceX Flight 4 of Starship

The NASA Advisory Council Human Exploration and Operations Committee recently provided updates on the Artemis I through IV missions, with a focus on SpaceX’s Starship system. The Starship will be the designated landing system for the Artemis III mission, which aims to return humans to the surface of the Moon in September 2026.

NASA officials expressed encouragement about SpaceX’s progress on the Starship system. SpaceX successfully completed a full-duration burn during ascent in its third integrated flight test. Additionally, full-scale qualification testing of the docking system that will connect the Starship with the crewed Orion capsule was recently performed. The docking system is critical for bringing the crew down to the surface of the Moon.

SpaceX has already analyzed the data from the March test flight and made a high number of corrective measures for the fourth flight test of the Starship. This launch is planned for as early as May but no later than the end of May.

Moving beyond the upcoming Starship flights, NASA discussed the technologies needed for a fuel depot in orbit and the in-orbit capabilities required to transfer fuel. They mentioned the need for a ship with at least three to four weeks of endurance in orbit, allowing for sufficient time for fuel transfer. To facilitate this, SpaceX plans to refuel a depot in low-Earth orbit (LEO) using tanker Starships, which will then be used to refuel the HLS Starship before it departs for the Moon.

To develop the necessary technologies for this operation, SpaceX and NASA are working together on a multi-phase operation called the Starship HLS Prop Transfer Demo. The most recent Flight 3 successfully demonstrated the transfer of liquids between two tanks on the same Starship. Additional steps, such as developing docking mechanisms, navigation, disconnects, and hot gas thrusters, are still in progress before conducting a Ship-to-Ship propellant transfer demo in 2025.

In preparation for the fourth Starship Flight Test, SpaceX is conducting final work on Ship 29 and Booster 11. Ship 29 is undergoing ongoing work on its thermal protection system, which especially important for withstanding the extreme heat during reentry. As for Booster 11, it is currently stored in the Mega Bay facility, awaiting its hot staging ring.

Cameron County has announced several road closures, potentially related to testing activities at Starbase. The fourth Starship Flight Test is scheduled for the first two weeks of May, pending the conclusion of a SpaceX-led mishap investigation from the previous flight.

Overall, NASA and SpaceX are making significant progress on the Starship system, with plans for crewed lunar landings and propellant transfer operations in the near future. These developments bring us one step closer to sustainable human presence on the Moon and beyond.