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SpaceX Joins the FAA to Defend Starship Amidst Environmental Impact Controversy · Elon Musk Podcast

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  You're on The Cutting Edge. Thanks for supporting the show.
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  Hi everybody and welcome back to the Elon Musk podcast.
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  And in today's episode, we're navigating the turbulent space
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  of the recent legal and environmental fallout from the
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  maiden Starship launched a lawsuit targeting Elon musk's
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  SpaceX and the Federal Aviation Administration initiated by
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  environmental activists and cultural heritage nonprofits, is
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  sent to have a new Ally on the defense.
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  Now, first and foremost, it was just the Federal Aviation
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  Administration that was being sued.
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  His activist and now SpaceX is part of the defense.
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  The lawsuit was sparked by the fiery outcome Starships.
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  Maiden First Flight last month, a stark reminder of the
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  explosive risks tied to pioneering Cosmic Adventures.
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  Now on Friday SpaceX filed, a motion asking federal judge Carl
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  Nichols to permit it to Rally beside the FAA in defense
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  against the plaintiffs, which include a variety metal groups
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  and Heritage Advocates, surprisingly according to court
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  documents. The plaintiffs Do Not object to
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  spacex's intervention now this response isn't entirely
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  unexpected. Jared Margolis senior attorney
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  at the center for biological diversity and the plaintiffs
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  lead counsel commented that intervention by the applicant
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  and cases concerning the permits is pretty standard in the
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  plaintiffs have accused the FAA of being lacks in their duty to
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  conduct comprehensive Environmental Studies on
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  spacex's activities. Now they contend that the
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  organization should have scrutinize the environmental
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  impacts. Launching the world's largest
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  rocket, the Starship from SpaceX is Starbase nestled on the Gulf
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  Coast near Brownsville Texas. And these concerns have
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  Amplified following the explosion of the first test
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  flight, raising questions about the environmental hazards
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  associated with such incidents. Now, according to the
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  plaintiffs, the preventive measures prescribed by the FAA
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  for SpaceX are insufficient to circumvent, significant negative
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  effects on a dangerous species, their habitats.
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  And the Types who hold the land and Wildlife as sacred in its
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  filing on Friday SpaceX address the potential repercussions of
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  faces if the environmental activists win the lawsuit.
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  These extend beyond Financial strains to include undermining
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  National interest and impeding scientific benefits associated
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  with the Starship SpaceX warrant quote.
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  If the court were to rule in plaintiffs favor, the fááá's
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  decision could be set aside and further licensing of the
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  Starship super-heavy program could be Nificantly delayed.
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  Moreover, the plaintiffs are pushing for the FAA to conduct
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  an environmental impact study, a process that could considerably
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  postpone spacex's Starship operations and Texas SpaceX in
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  its motion. Also stated that, the FAA does
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  not adequately represent the company's interest in the
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  lawsuit, citing that the government agency has a direct
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  economic interest in the case, which the government does not
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  share. Now, the FAA refrained from
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  commenting on this ongoing litigation the space, The stakes
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  are incredibly high. At this point in an accompanying
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  declaration to the motion SpaceX Chief Financial Officer.
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  Brent Johnson, detailed the potential damages to the
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  company. If the lawsuit doesn't swing in
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  their favor Johnson emphasize, the SpaceX has invested more
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  than three billion dollars into developing, the Starbase
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  facility and the Starship System since July of 2014.
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  And just this year, the company plans to funnel about two
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  billion dollars in the Starships development, As per Elon musk's
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  comments after the first fully stacked launch attempt now,
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  highlighting spacex's future, missions Johnson, share that the
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  company already has a robust pipeline of contracts from
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  Starship missions. This includes a major NASA
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  contract worth up to 4.2 billion dollars.
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  For lunar Landings and several agreements with high-profile
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  individuals for private space flights, and those are valued in
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  the hundreds of millions of dollars now.
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  Moreover, the starship The linchpin for the company's
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  starlink satellite internet business, which currently serves
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  over 1.5 million customers. Now, losing the lawsuit, as
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  Johnson pointed out when not only hamper SpaceX is business
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  but also disappoint hundreds of thousands of people awaiting an
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  upgraded, starlink constellation.
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  Now, such a loss would also compel the company to
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  substantially reduce its investment in the Starbase
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  facility, affecting local employees and communities and
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  the Maiden Starship launches. Aftermath featuring a debris
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  strewn launch pad in a landscape scarred by an impromptu.
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  Fire raised alarm Bells about the potential environmental toll
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  on the Starship, launch was an awe-inspiring spectacle
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  celebrating the gargantuan 400-foot, tall Rockets climb for
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  over three minutes yet. It was underscored by engine
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  failures, extensive damage to ground infrastructure and an
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  eventual midair detonation in the followed extended far,
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  beyond the scorched Earth of the launch site.
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  The Of the explosion carved. A crater in the ground and
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  Scattered debris into nearby tanks, towers and equipment, and
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  raise the dust cloud riddle, with particulate matter,
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  reported to reach as far away as six miles from the launch pad.
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  Now, perhaps most worrying for the local ecology, the test
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  flight also sparked a 3.5 acre forest fire.
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  Now, Phil Metzger Earth, a planetary scientist affiliated
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  with the University of Central. Florida is currently
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  investigating the composition of the particulate matter samples.
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  Oscar shared with CNBC that the amount of concrete blowing
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  around, could have obliterated the rocket on the launch pad,
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  suggesting the SpaceX had dodged a bullet with a launch mascara
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  commented. It could have been much worse
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  than it was. I think they made a mistake by
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  taking a risk in launching off the concrete surface.
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  Trying to do it that way one time.
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  But it was like a 70% success, they clear the tower test it,
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  the first stage and got a lot of good data found a problem with
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  the staging and We'll be able to have that fixed and have a
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  better outcome in the next test. Yet the environmental
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  consequences of the Launchpad, debris and midair rocket
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  explosion extend far beyond, just property damage endangered
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  species inhabiting or migrating through the area where
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  potentially affected a factor, not overlooked by the US fish
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  and wildlife service, and independent researchers were
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  currently examining the environmental impacts of the
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  Starship. Test flight and explosion but
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  even amidst the contentious environmental lawsuit SpaceX is
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  Motion outlined the scientific advantages that the Starship
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  could bring to the table for all of humanity.
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  According to SpaceX the Rockets, unparalleled capabilities will
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  allow scientists to focus on previously, impossible,
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  scientific missions. And pursue the fastest, easiest
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  way to get their missions from concept.
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  To execution, the sheer capability of Starship could
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  revolutionize space. Exploration SpaceX emphasized
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  for instance, with its large capability and capacity,
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  Starship could economically. Put large, telescopes and heavy.
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  Scientific experiments in orbit and cargo people and even
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  colonies on the moon and the moons of other planets and other
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  planets. And despite this ongoing lawsuit
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  and environmental concerns space sex seems determined to continue
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  forging ahead. They're building up their star
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  base facility and their underscoring, the need for a
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  fine balance between rapid technological advancement and
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  Environmental Protection. And as this case, continues to
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  unfold this Ade we'll watch the legal environmental and business
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  implications, and their potential impact of the feature
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  of this gigantic rocket. The gigantic facility that in
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  Boca, Chica Starbase Texas, and all of commercial space flight
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  for the future. Now, I want to take a second to
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  Thanks to your support. Thank you, tremendously from the
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  thank you for checking us out. And if you've been here for a
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  while, thank you for sticking around, I do appreciate you.
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