How SpaceX's huge spacecraft for Mars has changed

SpaceX's Big Falcon Rocket (BFR) spaceflight system, which is colonizing Mars, has experienced a growth spurt.

Elon Musk, founder and CEO of SpaceX, said Monday (Sept. 17) during a webcast event at the company's headquarters in Hawthorne, California, that the duo of reusable spaceships would reach 118 feet tall. That's 11% higher than the previous design iteration, which the billionaire entrepreneur introduced in September 2017.

Most of this increase is due to the BFR spacecraft, which has been lengthened from 157.5 feet to 180 feet (48 to 55 m). And the spaceship has also changed significantly. For example, the 2017 iteration featured six Raptor engines, four of which were imperfect vacuum versions optimized for use in space. But now, SpaceX plans to place seven Raptors on the ship, all of which will be the same "sea level engines" that propel the massive BFR rocket. [The BFR in Images: SpaceX’s Giant Spaceship for Mars & Beyond]

In addition, the 100-passenger BFR will now have two mobile fins near the nose and two larger ones near the tail – changes that will help the vehicle reach safe landings such as the Earth and Mars. (The ship will fall like a paratrooper rather than flying like an airplane during its landings.) It will land vertically after slowing its descent by engine fire, as do the first SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets. that spaceships must land on airless bodies like the moon.

These two "winged" aft fins will also be used as landing pads, as well as a paw that is designed to look like a fin for symmetry and aesthetics, said Musk.

The 2017 version of the BFR spacecraft did not have any front fins and only featured two "delta wings" at the rear, which were not part of the landing leg system.

"I think this design is probably tied with the other," Musk said at the Monday night event. "It may be better – it's technically a bit more risky, because of the leg-coupling and the type of flapping wings." But I think it's the right decision in the world. I think it looks beautiful. "

He also cited the resemblance of the new design with the rocket used by the cartoon character Tintin in the 1954 adventure "Explorers on the Moon".

"I love the design of the Tintin rocket, so I kind of wanted to think about it," Musk said. "If in doubt, go with Tintin."