Daijiworld Media Network – Rome

Rome, Aug 12: In a first-of-its-kind agreement, SpaceX has signed a deal with the Italian Space Agency (ASI) to transport Italian science experiments to Mars aboard its Starship rocket. ASI President Teodoro Valente announced that the payloads will be part of SpaceX’s first commercial Mars flights, targeted for the November–December 2026 launch window.

The payloads will include a plant-growth experiment, a meteorological monitoring station, and a radiation sensor. The plant experiment will study crop growth during the six-month journey and in Mars-like conditions, aiding the development of future life-support systems. The meteorological module will record temperature, pressure, and other weather data on Mars, while the radiation sensor will track cosmic rays and solar particles during the flight and on the Martian surface to assess astronaut safety.

Starship, a massive two-stage fully reusable rocket designed for interplanetary missions, has so far completed nine suborbital test flights but has not yet reached orbit. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk cautioned that “a lot needs to go right” before the mission can succeed.

For SpaceX, the deal marks a milestone in turning Starship into a Mars transportation service, allowing countries to send payloads without developing their own rockets. Officials say this collaboration signals a new era in space exploration, where nations can purchase payload space on commercial rockets, accelerating Mars research and international cooperation.