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SpaceX's Starship Program Enters a Critical Testing Phase · Elon Musk Podcast

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  Hi everybody, and welcome back to the Elon Musk podcast.
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  In this episode, we're turning our attention to the recent
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  strides made as SpaceX is Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas.
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  This is a particular focus on the ongoing testing phase of the
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  Starship program down there. Now from the static fire
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  testings of the Raptor engines to the implementation of the new
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  water deluge system, we'll be discussing how these key
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  operations contribute to the program's ambitious objectives
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  of an orbital test flight, hopefully sometime in 2023 or
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  maybe early 2024. And we're also going to explore
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  the journey of Booster Nine. It's recent trials on the
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  orbital launch mount, the OLM, and what these developments
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  signify for the future of the Starship.
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  Now before we get into the details, we're taking a quick
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  commercial break, but don't go anywhere because there's plenty
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  more Starship news coming up. And remember, your continued
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  support is what helps us keep this show free and helps us
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  continue doing this. So we'll be right back.
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  So stay tuned. Just last week, Spacex's
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  ambitious Starship program shifted gears and ventured into
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  a critical phase of testing with a focus on Booster 9, the water
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  deluge system, and other core aspects of the program's
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  operations of Spacex's Starbase, Texas.
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  Now the significant recent activities have cleared the path
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  for an intensive period of evaluations commencing with
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  static test firings of the Raptor engines facilitated by
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  the water deluge system and an array of large test windows were
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  publicized beginning on Friday. Indicative of an ambitious
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  testing schedule, the agenda comprises 2 separate events, a
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  spin prime test, a necessary precursor to a static fire test
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  involving and as yet unspecified number of engines.
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  And on Thursday, July 20th, SpaceX hoisted Booster 9 out of
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  the orbital launch mount following its transition from
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  the production vicinity of Starbase to the orbital
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  launchpad. This monumental move was made
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  feasible by the significant amount of work undertaken at the
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  OLM and Launchpad area ahead of the proof test on the booster
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  earmarked for the forthcoming Starship launch.
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  Now Sunday, July 23rd marked another significant milestone as
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  Booster Nine was filled with liquid oxygen and liquid
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  nitrogen in the methane tank. Both tanks reach full capacity
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  during the testing of the booster on the OLM, the first
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  instance since Starship's eventful made in flight on April
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  20th. Now the test adopted an extended
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  holding period where cryogenic fluids were allowed to remain in
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  the tanks where the booster underwent AD tanking process
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  that spans several hours. Once the test had concluded,
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  workers open an access door at the base of the liquid oxygen
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  tank for inspection. Simultaneously, while the team
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  inspected the liquid oxygen tank on Booster 9, the groundwork for
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  the subsequent key phase of the boosters testing regime was
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  being laid. The water deluge system, which
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  had been successfully tested at partial pressure earlier in the
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  month, was ready for a full pressure examination.
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  The full pressure test on July 28th met the mark as an outpour
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  of water jetted from steel plates underneath the OLM.
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  The system was designed to release water in an angle to
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  avoid the Raptor analysis. Now this water release endured
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  for a span of about 8 to 10 seconds, as was followed by an
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  audibly potent release of pressure from the water tank
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  farm located behind the launch tower.
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  So inside the system the holes are geometrically arranged to
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  form a hexagon matching the positions of the outer 20 Raptor
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  engines on the booster. Now ship 28 was relocated to the
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  former Massey's gun range, though now on SpaceX testing
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  ground on Friday, July 21st for proof testing using cryogenic
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  fluids. Concurrently, Booster 10 made
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  its exit from Massey's and arrived at the Rocket Garden
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  adjacent to the production site. In the early hours of Saturday,
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  July 22nd, a visible frost line on Ship 20 eights, liquid oxygen
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  and methane tanks suggested the successful loading of cryogenic
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  fluids. On July 28th.
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  The ship, furnished with fins, tiles and a payload Bay, is
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  anticipated to be transported back to the production site for
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  the installation of its Raptor engines.
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  Future plans for Ship 28 include coupling with Booster 10 for the
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  third Starship test launch now. The extensive production and
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  testing out or taken at Starbase has not been limited to ships
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  and boosters though. Smaller test components have
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  been employed to scrutinize various features and tolerances
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  of these vehicles. Ship 24.2 is one of those.
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  Test rigs is designed to evaluate the payload based
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  system ahead of its utilization to deploy full size Starlink
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  Version 2 satellites and another recent test article features a
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  hot staging ring nestled between an aftering for the ship and top
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  section of a booster. This was transported to Massey's
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  on Sunday, July 30th for structural testing and the hot
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  staging ring will be incorporated into Booster 9 and
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  subsequent vehicles to streamline the stage separation
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  procedure during flight because it didn't work very well on the
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  original integrated flight Test #1.
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  Now the separation, that is, there was no hot staging ring in
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  the first Test. Now while preparations for Ship
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  20 gates flight continue, Ship 25 has had missing tiles
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  installed and has been affixed to a crane for a future lift.
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  It's going to fly a top Booster 9 for the upcoming second
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  Starship test flight Now, as ships 25 and 20 under go at
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  preparations for future flights, other vehicles such as Ship 30
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  have commenced construction. And to make room for these new
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  endeavors, older ships like Ship 27 and Ship 15 have gone the way
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  of the Dodo. They're gone.
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  They've been dismantled in the latter, a landmark vehicle and
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  Starships journey, being the first full vehicle with fins to
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  successfully complete a landing, was disassembled on Wednesday,
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  July 26, and despite the ships boosters and the orbital launch
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  site drawing the most attention, the production facilities of
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  Starbase are undergoing significant upgrades as well.
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  The final sections of a new processing high Bay are being
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  installed on the existing structure.
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  It's anticipated that this new facility will soon commence
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  vehicle processing. The expansion of the Star
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  Factory, the planned replacement for the current factory tents,
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  is underway too. Another building on site appears
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  to house stacks of full size Starlink V2 satellites,
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  preparing them for future launches.
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  It's yet to be determined whether Ship 28 will have the
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  honor of deploying the spacecraft first, or if it'll be
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  a ship later on. Now when the Days to come static
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  fire test of Booster 9 is scheduled, This critical test,
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  potentially involving possibly all 33 engines, will stress test
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  the deluge system and steel plates as well as the redesigned
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  OLM and a spin prime test preceding the static fire is
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  also on the cards. And in an attempt to shield the
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  launchpad and Starship from a potential rock tornado, SpaceX
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  is heavily reliant on an upside down shower head, so to speak.
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  As Elon Musk has said, this system is integral to the goal
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  of achieving rapid reusability of the launchpad, which is vital
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  for Starlink version 2, Artemis lunar missions, Mars missions
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  and other applications of the Starship system in the future.
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  Hey, thank you so much for listening to the show today.
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  If you could take a second and hit the follow or subscribe
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  button on whatever podcast platform you're listening on
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  right now, it's free and it's easy and it helps us out
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  tremendously. And we can continue bringing you
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  these Starship updates. So thank you so much for that.
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  Also, please take care of yourselves and each other and I
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  will see you in the next one.