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SpaceX wants US Army to use its 18,000 mile-an-hour Starship rockets to transport troops & supplies in ‘minutes’

SPACEX is offering its Starship rocket to the US Army.

The company, which specialises in making space access easier, has suggested it could make tasks such as transporting men and materials overseas far quicker for the military.

 SpaceX is looking to work with the US Army
SpaceX is looking to work with the US ArmyCredit: AP:Associated Press

Elon Musk's company is also said to believe that its Starlink broadband satellites would be a useful resource for soldiers.

It plans to send a minimum of 12,000 satellites into Earth's orbit so they can provide cheap WiFi to the whole world.

SpaceX has previously been associated with the US army, having stated that it was a potential customer for the Starship rocket and Starlink broadband at a US Army conference earlier this year.

Starship is SpaceX's largest project to date and combines the Starship spacecraft and the Super Heavy rocket.

 Starship can travel at around 18,000 miles per hour
Starship can travel at around 18,000 miles per hourCredit: Getty Images - Getty

It can lift 110 tons of cargo into low earth orbit and has the potential to transport people and cargo between any two points on Earth.

It would essentially work like a ballistic missile.

The Starship would be launched, accelerate into low-earth orbit and shoot towards a landing pad at 18,000 miles an hour.

This would be faster than any current transportation system.

Once it had reached the area above its destination, Starship would then de-orbit and use its rocket engines for a safe landing.

According to Popular Mechanics, a Starship trip between Nebraska in the US and the United Arab Emirates would take about half an hour.

With speeds like this, the US army could easily send men and supplies to where they were urgently needed.

Starship can carry around 100 people at a time and could potentially carry tanks.

However, the Space Shuttle currently has a safety record of 1.5% so won't be trusted by the US Army anytime soon.

The Starlink satellite system is more likely to be up the Army's street for now.

Cheap WiFi all over the globe could be invaluable for troops but only if SpaceX can guarantee solid cybersecuirty.

What is Starlink?

Here's what you need to know about Elon Musk's satellites...

  • Starlink is a satellite project led by billionaire SpaceX CEO Elon Musk
  • Musk intends to put 12,000 satellites into the Earth's orbit so they can provide cheap WiFi to the whole world
  • SpaceX also intends to sell satellites for military, scientific and exploratory purposes
  • 60 of the Starlink satellites have been sent up to Space so far
  • The satellites are being launched on top of unmanned Falcon 9 rockets
  • How they will affect the night sky is causing concern as they look brighter than expected
  • It will take at least 12 trips to take all of the satellites into Space and they will be staggered at different heights above the Earth
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And, this stunning Earth ‘timelapse’ photo taken from space reveals huge field of thunderstorms, giant wildfires and bright city lights.

What do you think of the Starship rockets? Let us know in the comments...
