Starship Testing Is Not Over, Japanese Billionaires Cancel Commercial Projects To The Moon

The mission of the artist crew to the Moon was canceled by Japanese billionaires (photo: dock. DearMoon)

JAKARTA - Yusaku Maezawa, the Starship's first customer, canceled the DearMoon project to circle the moon. The cancellation of the project was announced suddenly through its official website on Saturday, June 1. DearMoon was a major project initiated by Maezawa in 2018. This mission was supposed to bring Maezawa and eight artists from various countries to fly around the moon. The plan, this mission will use a Starship made by SpaceX. The eight artists included in this project are Steve Aoki, TOP ex BigBang, Yemi AD, Rhiannon Adam, Tim Dodd, Karim Iliya, Brendan Hall, and Dev D. Joshi. Unfortunately, these eight artists failed to go to the moon due to Starship uncertainty. DearMoon said that this program was supposed to be launched by the end of 2023. However, Starship is not yet ready to be used to date. This spacecraft still has to undergo various kinds of testing. "Launching in 2023 becomes impossible, and with no clear schedule certainty in the near future, with a heavy heart Maezawa makes an unavoidable decision to cancel the project," wrote ZuMoon. Maezawa made clear on platform X, previously known as Twitter, that he had stopped the project. The billionaire said that he had made the crew members waiting for his mission for too long.

Regarding the dearMoon project cancellation.I signed the contract in 2018 based on the assumption that dearMoon would launch by the end of 2023.It’s a developmental project so it is what it is, but it is still uncertain as to when Starship can launch.

— Yusaku Maezawa (MZ) (@yousuckMZ) June 1, 2024

Regarding the dearMoon project cancellation.I signed the contract in 2018 based on the assessment that dearMoon would launch by the end of 2023.It's a developmental project so it is what it is, but it is still uncertain as to when Starship can launch.

"I can't plan my future in this situation, and I feel bad about making the crew members wait longer, so it's a difficult decision to cancel at this point," he wrote through his yousuckMZ account. After Maezawa canceled the project, several crew on social media voiced his disappointment. YouTuber Dodd said that he always imagined himself going to the Moon after signing the contract. "I have to let myself mourn this loss because this loss has become a big part of my life, my dream, and my vision. Going into space is not something I do actively in general," said Dodd through the Erdayastronaut account.

Dodd also admitted that he was very sorry to have signed the contract. The reason is, since the beginning of this mission looks very convincing and Dodd never thought that this mission would be canceled unilaterally because of time. "Had I known this could end within a year and a half after it was announced to the public, I would never agree. We had no prior knowledge of this possibility," he said. Not much different from Dodd, Photographer Rhiannon Adam also voiced his disappointment and criticized Maezawa for his decision. According to the only female crew on the MasterMoon mission, Adam said that this mission was canceled due to impairment. We were crossed out, apparently due to impassionability, said Adam. As someone with a critical brain, many of this makes no sense, especially with regard to the timeline. I never believe we will achieve it in 2023, or 2024. Adam explained that he and the rest crew are willing to wait until Starship is ready for use. However, Maezawa did not invite the crew to consult before cancel the project. I still doubt the integrity of this project, and feel exploited.