Starbase, Tx - SpaceX Launch Infrastructure

[dubu]

Originally Posted by Obadno

Its not complex its just expensive.

thats the whole reason for SpaceX and others working on re-usable spacecraft to cut the Price per LB for launch.

Its why the best option would be a "Space Elevator" but we dont have the materials capable of engineering such a structure.

...... yet!

ya, thats the only way id go to space, im scared of flying. we have real tall skyscrapers, if those were in like colorado or something, i wonder how close to space you would be to space? if you had like six or the tallest skyscrapers close together then you could almost make a sky city. like in some video games.

they would be skyscrapers that no one lives in except at the top, you could stay there a few days then you are so close to space it would be easy to go to a space city in whatever way that it would be.

[Obadno]

[QUOTE=dubu;9449216]ya, thats the only way id go to space, im scared of flying. we have real tall skyscrapers, if those were in like colorado or something, /QUOTE]

Not even close! Low Eat orbit starts at about 2k Kilometers above the surface or about 1300 miles, or about 7 million feet.

Even if you stacked every 100 story building on earth on top of the tallest mountain in Colorado that gets us to about 37,000 feet or about .5% of the height to orbit

If we move the towers to Everest that gets us to 51,000 feet or so. a mere .7% of the way there.

[dubu]

thats far, but you could have a aircraft carrier up there in the town in the sky. it could throw the space craft, maybe it can be a electric space craft or something more advanced.

[mrnyc]

Originally Posted by Obadno

Its not complex its just expensive.

thats the whole reason for SpaceX and others working on re-usable spacecraft to cut the Price per LB for launch.

Its why the best option would be a "Space Elevator" but we dont have the materials capable of engineering such a structure.

...... yet!

the space elevator will always be twenty years off, like fusion and a.i..

[Wigs]

Originally Posted by mrnyc

the space elevator will always be twenty years off, like fusion and a.i..

Fusion sounds more realistic than "space elevator"
https://www.powermag.com/fusion-ener...han-you-think/

AI is getting scary. ask Elon Musk, Boston Dynamics, Google, etc.

[Obadno]

Originally Posted by mrnyc

the space elevator will always be twenty years off, like fusion and a.i..

The fears of true AI and Automation are overblown. robotics is sitll a long way off from replicating anything outside of repetitive manual tasks and travel.

AI is great for analysis and pattern recognition (terrifying for surveillance and freedom) but its not true "intelligence" its just further improvements on computational power that we already do.

I dont know if we will every get to a real AI, just very close imitations.

As for Fusion we are closer to that than AI. And Space elevators are impossible with current known materials.

[aaron38]

Originally Posted by Alpha

Boca Chica launch site is situated close to the Mexican border. Can there not trouble arise, when a rocket overflies Mexican territory?

Rockets don’t overfly land at all early in launch. A launch from Boca Chica will be due East over the ocean. Never south.

[aaron38]

First half is all construction

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[aaron38]

Happy New Year! Chopstick testing has started. Plus more construction updates.

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[aaron38]

Finally some dynamics in the launch tower. This is what it was built to do. Let's go!

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[Coldrsx]

The scale of those are just out of this world.

[aaron38]

Interesting things are about to happen. They're assembling the full stack this week. Elon presentation this Thursday, 2/10.
Booster lifted back onto the launch pad. Tower arm has now grabbed it.

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[aaron38]

Starship lift onto the booster using the chopsticks happened last night. Full Stack!


Lift starts at 9:30 mark in this video.
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[Coldrsx]

Overall update.

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[aaron38]

Starbase TX has a new tallest! The Wide Bay has surpassed the High Bay by a good margin.
Go to 7:46 in this video. Lots of good construction shots.


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[Gantz]

Are there any buildings in Brownsville taller than the launch tower?
This is gotta be the tallest structure for miles.

[KevinFromTexas]

The tallest building in Brownsville is a 14-story low-income housing development. It's probably close to 200 feet or so. Brownsville is about 22 miles southwest of the launch pad. The nearest high rises to the launch pad are just 6 miles away at South Padre Island. They have a bunch of 200 foot condo towers down there, a few 300 footers and even a 400 footer. I've seen aerial photos of South Padre Island with the launch pad tower in the background.

[aaron38]

The FAA just granted environmental approval to SpaceX for Starship orbital launches from Boca Chica. They have 75 actions to take, but most are minor like putting up signs and taking care of the sea turtles.
https://www.faa.gov/space/stakeholde...pacex_starship

Let's GO!!!

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[Coldrsx]

Awesome.

This might be the most fascinating thing in my lifetime to watch unfold.

[aaron38]

I haven't posted anything here for a while because there hasn't been any real construction news to report. But it looks like they're starting work on a new building. Not sure how big it will be, but they're drilling pilings. (3:11 mark)

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