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SpaceX Moves Starship Booster and Ship to Launch Pad · Elon Musk Podcast

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  Hey everybody, welcome back to the Elon Musk Podcast.
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  This is a show where we discuss the critical Crossroads, the
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  Shape, SpaceX, Tesla X, The Boring Company, and Neuralink.
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  I'm your host, Will Walden. Today's episode is about
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  Spacex's Starship and Boca Chica's Starbase, Texas.
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  Now, SpaceX is swiftly progressing with its Starship
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  program done at Boca Chica Starbase.
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  And there are preparations for the upcoming third flight test
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  happening right now. Now, this follows A substantial
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  successful orbital test in November.
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  And this is the next step, IFT 3 Now.
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  The gap between Spacex's first and 2nd Starship test flight
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  spanning 8 months was largely due to regulatory and
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  environmental compliance, specifically with the Federal
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  Aviation Administration, the FAA and the Fish and Wildlife
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  Service, the FWS. The delay involved the
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  construction of a new water dilute system, essentially for
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  mitigating the intense thrust of the Rockets. 33 Raptor 2
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  engines. Now the necessity of the water
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  dilute system became evident after the first Test flight in
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  April result in insignificant damage to the launchpad its
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  implementation. Subsequent approval by the FWS
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  paved the way for the successful November test, which achieved
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  critical milestones like engine stability and stage separation
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  despite the loss of both vehicles during that flight.
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  With the water deluge system now operational, SpaceX is well
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  positioned to shorten the lead time for its third test flight
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  and the transportation of the Starship booster and spacecraft
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  to the launch site. And the ongoing evaluation of
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  the second test rocket, including its electrical systems
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  and its fuel tanks, indicate readiness for imminent testing
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  phases in the next few weeks. Now a recent Spin Prime test on
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  the second stage Starship aimed at ensuring fuel and oxidizer
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  delivery to the engines marks a precursor to the more crucial
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  static fire test and success in these tests will be critical for
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  the Rockets readiness for the upcoming launch of IFT 3.
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  Now the movement of the Starship Super Heavy booster to the
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  launch site is another positive indicator for progress.
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  This contrast with the three month delay after the first Test
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  flight, highlighting Spacex's efforts to streamline the
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  testing in the launch processes, especially considering Spacex's
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  Starship role in NASA's Artemis program for lunar exploration.
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  And now the transport and the assembly of Ship 28 and Booster
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  10 at the launch site, coupled with a proposed condensed
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  testing schedule, reflects Spacex's objective for a more
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  efficient test campaign. These developments are very
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  crucial for upcoming missions, including those under NASA's HLS
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  initiatives as the human Landing system for the Artemis program
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  and Spacex's launchpad and infrastructure.
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  They've undergone significant upgrades post the second flight
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  test. CEO Elon Musk's affirmation of
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  the pads minimal damage and the ongoing refurbishments indicate
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  a focus on enhancing the site's resilience and the turn around
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  capabilities of the launches. Now, besides the pad
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  improvements, the orbital tank farm has received major upgrades
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  too, including additional subcoolers, pumps, and
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  horizontal tanks. And these enhancements aimed to
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  significantly reduce propellant loading times, further
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  optimizing launch procedures. Now, looking forward, though,
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  SpaceX has several vehicles lined up for future test
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  flights. Ships 293031 to 32 along with
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  boosters 11/12/13 and 14 are in various stages of preparation.
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  Elon Musk's announcement regarding the transition from
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  version one to version two of Starship hints and improvements
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  in reliability, fuel capacity and reducing dry mass and this
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  will be better for performance inefficiency of Starship going
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  forward. The new High Bay construction at
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  the production site as well it's not just about the Rockets
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  alongside the Star Factory is set to significantly boost the
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  production rate of Starship vehicles.
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  The factory will mirror the layout of the existing Mega Bay
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  One, featuring multiple work stands and turntables for
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  efficient and easier assembly. Now, as SpaceX prepares for the
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  third Starship test flight, the 2nd test success involving a hot
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  staging sequence and lasting over 8 minutes, it's a really
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  high benchmark for I FT3. The upcoming test is expected to
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  follow a similar profile including propellant transfer
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  demonstration which is a critical aspect of the future
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  HLS missions for the Artemis 3 mission and the Artemis four and
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  five etcetera HLS missions for NASA now.
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  The upcoming test will incorporate major updates from
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  Flight 2 though such as electronic thrust vector control
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  or TVC hot staging and an upgraded flight termination
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  system. The FTS and a key focus will be
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  demonstrating propellant transfer in space now.
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  This is going to be the first time this will ever happen in
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  such a large rocket. Pre launch procedures will
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  involve positioning the ship atop the booster called stacking
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  Use the Meccazilla chopstick arms, a unique feature of
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  Spacex's launch infrastructure which is unlike anything else
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  out there. Usually a rocket is taken out to
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  the launchpad horizontal and raised up slowly to the vertical
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  position and ready for launch. Now this system is designed for
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  both assembly and future landings in recovery of the
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  Starship and also the booster. These arms, those mechazilla,
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  will catch the booster and will catch the Starship on its way
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  back down to Earth to land. It's incredible technology if it
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  works and we're not going to see a Mechazilla landing or a catch
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  if you will, probably until either late next year.
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  They may actually be building another launch stand right now
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  that they will be using just for catching of these vehicles so
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  they don't blow up the initial launchpad that they have there
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  right now. It's got to be a wild here for
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  SpaceX at Starbase. Now in preparation for the
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  upcoming launch, SpaceX has implemented several enhancements
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  to the launchpad at stage zero. These include a water cooled
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  steel plate and refurbished hold down points and these will be
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  aimed at protecting the pad from the intense forces and the heat
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  generated during the launch. Now these improvements also
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  coupled with the absence of traditional flame trenches, is a
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  breakthrough in space travel because they can build these
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  things kind of anywhere. Now, SpaceX will be continuing
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  with the IFT 3 flight possibly early next year, according to
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  Cathy leaders, who's the lead of Starbase at Boca Chica, Texas,
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  the star factory down there. So we're gonna keep our eye on
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  this story and please stay tuned For more information and more
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  coverage from Starbase. Thank you for tuning into the
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  show today. I really do appreciate your
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  support. If you could take a second and
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  and each other. I'll see you tomorrow.