有效载荷briefly caught up with Relativity’s Ellis to discuss the mission, scaling up production in Relativity’s new 1 million square foot facility, and Terran R. This interview was lightly edited for clarity and length.
What makes this mission different is that it’s focused on multiplanetary transport, not satellite launch services. But the same core capabilities for Terran R are required for both kinds of missions. That’s why we designed Terran R to be fully reusable. It’s a unique challenge for sure, but an important one we feel confident in tackling.
Relativity has yet to conduct an orbital launch attempt (though I know it’s coming soon). Do you worry that a Mars mission may distract the company from scaling up production?
How razor-focused are the Relativity and Impulse teams on making the next Mars window? Obviously, a slip and then having to wait a couple more years wouldn’t be ideal.
我们的启动窗口具有侵略性,但有可能 - 我们相信我们在实现它方面已经有着坚实的镜头。The partnership agreement is also in an exclusive arrangement until 2029, with launch windows occurring every two years, so we’ll have multiple launch options, as well as opportunities for repeatable commercial missions to Mars, making a serious business out of scheduled payloads to the Red Planet.