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SpaceX Starship to Fly 9 times in 2024 · Elon Musk Podcast

• 0:01
  Hey everybody, welcome back to the Elon Musk Podcast.
• 0:05
  This is a show where we discuss the critical crossroads that
• 0:08
  shape SpaceX, Tesla X, The Boring Company, and Neuralink,
• 0:13
  and I'm your host, Will Walden. SpaceX has announced its
• 0:17
  intentions to carry out as many as 9 Starship missions in the
• 0:21
  next year, with spacecrafts expected to land all the way in
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  the Indian Ocean. These operations, which are set
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  to be launched from the Boca Chica Starbase, Texas site, are
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  detailed in an extensive environmental assessment by the
• 0:34
  Federal Aviation Administration or the FAA.
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  Now the FAA's report, which is 119 pages long, indicates the
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  possibility of up to five total losses of the starships which
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  would occur as they crash into the ocean at the highest speed
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  possible after re entering from orbit while still intact.
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  Of course, now these incidents termed over pressure events in
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  the document would be caused by the impact with water leading
• 1:00
  the structural compromise and subsequent combustion of the
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  liquid methane and oxygen on board.
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  In addition to these potential explosive landings, SpaceX is
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  also looking into the viability of controlled water landings,
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  wherein the spacecraft would softly approach the water
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  surface before tipping over as described by the FAA document.
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  Now, the FAA report points out that the starship's propellants,
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  liquid methane and oxygen, are not toxic, unlike some other
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  rocket fuels, which is an important consideration for
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  environmental safety. Now, the document also
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  acknowledges the chance the starships might break apart
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  during the RE entry process, adding another potential outcome
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  to these planned missions. Now SpaceX moves forward with
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  these plans and continues to receive the necessary
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  authorizations from the FAA. A large number of starships,
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  either whole or in pieces, will likely end up on the ocean floor
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  in a region between Australia and Madagascar.
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  Now, the FAA's environmental assessment details what could be
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  expected if Starship landings in the Indian Ocean do not go as
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  planned, predicting a field of debris primarily made-up of
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  heavy metals and some composite materials now.
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  The majority of this debris, especially the stainless steel
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  components, is expected to sink quickly due to its heavy nature
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  and material composition. However, some lighter pieces
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  might float or remain suspended before eventually sinking.
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  Now, in case of explosion upon impact, the resulting debris is
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  expected to be contained within a radius of about .5 nautical
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  miles from the point of impact, and the FAA has stated there
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  will be no attempts to retrieve or clean up the Starship
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  remains, whatever their condition after landing in
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  pieces or not. And the report also considers
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  the potential impact of these operations on marine life such
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  as sea turtles, fish, sharks, whales and others in the
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  intended landing zones. Now the FA as assessment
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  suggests that the direct impact on marine life from either
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  impact or breaking apart starships is highly unlikely,
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  thanks to the Ocean's vastness and the relatively small size of
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  the spacecraft components compared to, well, millions of
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  tons of water, and also they have to hit tiny fish, so it's
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  very unlikely. Now it's reasoned that although
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  debris hitting an animal underwater could cause harm or
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  death, the low frequency of Starship operations and the
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  natural underwater behavior of marine life makes such
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  occurrences highly unlikely. And on March 14th, 2024, a large
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  crowd gathered to watch a Starship launch from Spacex's
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  Boca CHIC facility. Marking an important moment for
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  this company, this launch was particularly notable.
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  As well known to be the most powerful rocket in existence, it
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  successfully reached orbit, a significant achievement for
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  SpaceX and everybody in the spaceflight community.
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  Now these developments and the planned future missions show
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  that SpaceX is working towards fully operational and fully
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  reusable large scale massive rockets that can take massive,
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  massive payloads the low Earth orbit to the moon, Mars and
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  beyond. Hey, thank you so much for
• 4:18
  listening today. I really do appreciate your
• 4:20
  support. If you could take a second and
• 4:21
  hit the subscribe or the follow button on whatever podcast
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• 4:27
  appreciate it. It helps out the show
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  tremendously and you'll never miss an episode and each episode
• 4:33
  is about 10 minutes or less to get you caught up quickly.
• 4:36
  And please, if you want to support the show even more, go
• 4:39
  to Atreoncom, Stage Zero, and please take care of yourselves
• 4:45
  and each other and I'll see you tomorrow.