Starship Summary
What's going on at Starbase? Find out from Elon Musk himself as he takes a tour around the rocket factory with Tim Dodd (The Everyday Astronaut): view.|
Overview: It’s been about two and a half years since hardware first appeared at SpaceX’s test site in Boca Chica. Since then, progress has been rapid passing through development of test vehicles culminating in a high-altitude flight of a full-sized vehicle. However, no vehicle has been launched for over a year as SpaceX focuses on orbital flight. In that time SpaceX has concentrated on development of the full stack which includes the booster and the ship. Completion of the launch tower and integration of the two vehicles is largely complete with critical final testing in progress. A major requirement for an orbital launch has been FAA approval but this has now been granted subject to conditions. A delay in granting this has allowed SpaceX to move to later versions of the two vehicles. Booster 7 for example has 33 Raptor version 2 engines. As things stand, Elon Musk has indicated that the first orbital flight could take place as early as September. In response to the potential protacted delay at Starbase, Elon Musk has restarted construction work at the Roberts Road facility at Cape Canaveral which is intended for regular Starship launches once the testing phase has been completed. As at June 2022 the launch tower there was under construction. In addition, Deimos, one of the oil rigs SpaceX has purchased has left the port of Brownsville to begin the process of conversion to an offshore launch platform. Phobos, the other rig is already in the process of conversion. |
Starship News by Month September - Events: Booster 7 six and seven engine static fire tests. August - Events: Both Ship 24 and Booster 7 begin engine testing with new raptor 2 engines. July - Events: Booster 7 testing explosion. June - Events: FAA Review of Starbase is Complete! May - Events: April - Events: March - Events: February - Events: Starship fully stacked for Elon Musk's presentation.....view. January - Events: Continued testing of Ground 0 infrastructure and construction at the build site. November - Events: Ship 20, first 6 raptor static fire test. October - Events: Ship 20 completes first static fire of a Raptor Vacuum Engine. September - Events: Ship 20 completes successful cryogenic proof tests. August - Events: Booster BN4 fully stacked, rolled out and installed orbital launch pad, Ship 20 rolled out and temporarily stacked on BN4, testing of a 3.6mm steel GSE test tank. July - Events: Booster BN3 rollout, cryo testing and 1st ever static fire of a Super Heavy booster, launch tower fully stacked, launch table moved to the orbital test site and installed on the mount. June - Events: Booster BN2.1 proof testing May - Events: Starship prototype SN15 makes first soft landing April - Events: Starship prototype SN15 rollout and testing March - Events: Starship SN11 explodes during failed landing in the fog. Starship SN10 achieves a controlled landing but explodes soon after February - Events: Starship SN9 makes 10km test flight with controlled but heavy landing destroying the vehicle January - Events: Starship SN9 static fire November - Events: Starship prototype SN8 completes triple raptor static fire testing October - Events: SN8 first Starship prototype fully stacked with first firing of raptor engines September - Events: Test tank SN7.1 burst test to destruction, Starship SN6 completes successful 150m hop August - Events: Starship SN5 completes groundbreaking 150m hop July - Events: Starship SN5 prepared for hop test June - Events: Starship SN7 tank tests, prototypes SN5 and SN6 construction May - Events: Starship prototype SN4 explodes on the launch pad during testing |
At the Boca Chica sub-orbital launch site: There has been no launch activity since Starship SN15 took to the skies on 5th May 2021 rising to 10 kilometres before making a soft landing on the pad bringing to an end a series of failed landing attempts. With SN15 retired, SpaceX concentrated on design improvements first with a test tank BN2.1 and then the fully stacked booster BN3. The first static firing of raptor engines on a booster took place in July 2021. A month later saw the introducion of booster BN4 intended to be the first booster to carry Starship into orbit. It was extensively tested but the raptor engines never fired. However, the introduction of Ship 20 allowed the first stacking of ship and booster. In October and November Ship 20 carried out static firing of its engines including its 3 vaccuum engines. Into 2022 there was a lull in activity at the launch site at SpaceX awaiting FAA approval for orbital flight. Both Ship 20 and Booster 4 would be retired without making a launch attempt. Improvements in design came with Booster 7 and Ship 24 and the introduction of the more powerfull and redesigned raptor 2 engines. With FAA approval granted in June, SpaceX pushed forward to get both ship and booster ready for the first orbital launch attempt. In August both Ship 24 and Booster 7 were at the launch site and were involved in their first static fires. Ship 24 was on a sub-orbital launch pad while Booster 7 was involved in the first static firing on the orbital launch mount. This activity increased the speculation that Starhip would launch sooner than later with SpaceX applying or a new launch licence. In surprise news SpaceX hasn't ruled out a return to pad of Booster 7 at the first attempt. The only option would be to use the catch arms which have already been used to stack the booster and ship to recover the booster. Modification to the catch arms are under way. |
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At the Boca Chica shipyard: At the shipyard, Starship SN16 was rolled out of the high bay and is now obsolete. Instead attention has turned to orbital testing with no further high altitude tests expected. Room in the high bay was been freed up with the departure of Booster BN3 for testing and stacking of Booster BN4. BN4 was fully stacked in early August and rolled out to the launch pad. Ship 20 was stacked and rolled out soon after, returning after stacking on Booster BN4 for fit-checks. It was later returned to the pad while BN4 returned to the high bay for more wiring and plumbing. BN4 returned to the orbital launch site on 8th September and work now concentrated on construction of Ship 21 and Booster BN5. By late October construction of Booster BN6 had started. |
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At the Boca Chica orbital launch site: By the end of 2021 the ground support infrastructure, termed Stage Zero, for orbital flight was essentially complete. In early August Booster BN4 was installed on the orbital launch pad with Ship 20 temporarily stacked for fit-checks soon after. In August work was progressing on tank farm and on the Quick Disconnect (QD) Arm. BN4 was returned to the orbital launch site on 8th September for more fit checks but removed on the 25th. Progress at the launch site has progressed with more work on the launch mount and on the tower. The latter received its quick disconnect arm (QD) on 23rd September then on 20th October the catch arm was installed too. Installation of the 8 GSE tanks with their cryo tank shells is now complete. |
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At the Boca Chica Gas Well Site: The gas well site is adjacent to the production facility and was created to assemble large parts of the infrastructure for the orbital launch site. Propellant production facilities are on this site and the GSE cryo tank shells have now been moved to the orbital tank farm. |
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At Pascagoula, Mississippi: SpaceX has aquired two oil rig drilling platforms with the intention of converting them to launch platforms for Starship. On 22nd January Starship Offshore Platform "Phobos" arrives in Pascagoula to begin its coversion. In mid-March work was progessing to remove the rig superstructure and by the end of July the deck was virtually clear....view. Almost all of the structures on the platform had been removed by the end of October. |
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In case you missed it: • Tim Dodd the Everyday Astronaut obtained an exclusive interview with Elon Musk at Starbase Boca Chica leaving space fans in awe at the progess made by SpaceX to get Booster BN4 and Ship 20 ready for flight. His youtube production in 3 parts can be viewed here.....Part 1....Part 2....Part 3. • Elon Musk offers update on SpaceX’s Starship mega-rocket....view. SpaceX founder Elon Musk detailed progress on the company’s next-generation Starship program Monday, saying the huge rocket could 'probably' attempt its first launch into Earth orbit next year, and adding that the Starship will fly hundreds of missions before SpaceX puts people on-board. • SpaceX Boca Chica - SpaceX is hiring a Spaceport resort developer for its Texas rocket factory....view. In a tweet, Elon Musk indicated that there will be a progression towards the 60,000 feet involving a series of altitude tests. Looking further ahead beyond that, SpaceX will need to develop and test a heat shield for orbital flight. • SpaceX eyes Summer 2021 for Starship’s orbital launch debut....view. |