SpaceX Tuesday...

[Beati Dogu]

I'm pretty sure construction workers aren't the sort of snowflakes who get offended by a movie reference.

[RobDickinson]

SpaceX is trying to buy out the residents at Boco Chica village because launching huge rockets is apparently disruptive..


https://www.businessinsider.com.au/spacex-texas-sp...

[Beati Dogu]

I think they tried that originally a few years back, but they locals didn't want to leave then either.


Here's a video of the Starship construction progress in Florida:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uYvk0C4OFQ

The electricity company has been moving and burying power lines to create clearance for its eventual move by truck.

SpaceX is also building a site nearer to the cape for their operations center & likely for construction use too. Looks like they're clearing the land & creating run off ponds for that now.

https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/status/1171855...

Edited by Beati Dogu on Wednesday 18th September 22:03

[jonny142]

Working around the clock , One of the fins went on Yesterday , (You can rewind back up to 12 hrs )

Live 24hr feed from the Boca Chica Complex

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-aDOpyUmfL4

[Flooble]

I still don't really get it - why would you pay overtime (and risk burning out your guys) when you have no need to. Why are SpaceX in such a tearing hurry?

[Beati Dogu]

Rapid prototyping & incremental design improvement is just how they operate. Like they're on a wartime schedule.



It's not a new way of doing things, but in the previously cosy world of rockets, SpaceX has certainly been a market disruptor.

[Zoobeef]

I imagine that as technology moves on so quickly you have to build and test things quickly. Otherwise you just end up dithering around with out of date tech like the SLS.

[Flooble]

Beati Dogu said:

Rapid prototyping & incremental design improvement is just how they operate. Like they're on a wartime schedule.

I get that, but you can prototype and increment without working weekends, or late into the night. As you say, it's like they are on a wartime schedule where the only thing to do is work. They were welding through the night the other week by floodlight, which is both costly and inefficient.

[MartG]

Flooble said:

Beati Dogu said:

Rapid prototyping & incremental design improvement is just how they operate. Like they're on a wartime schedule.

I get that, but you can prototype and increment without working weekends, or late into the night. As you say, it's like they are on a wartime schedule where the only thing to do is work. They were welding through the night the other week by floodlight, which is both costly and inefficient.

As it's being built outdoors, maybe they just have to do as much as they can while weather permits

[Beati Dogu]

The deadlines are insane, so they must feel the overtime and bonus payments are justified. Elon Musk is giving a presentation on Starship from Boca Chica on Saturday (28th), so he'll be wanting some visible progress as a backdrop.

Apparently they work everyone pretty hard. Some people can't take it for long and leave, but no doubt the experience looks good on their CV. The vending machines at the Hawthorn factory are free at least (which is something straight out of Silicon Valley incidentally).


BTW, check out this unofficial render of the Starship launch stand at Pad 39a in Florida.

https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/wp-content/uploads...

[Flooble]

Beati Dogu said:

The deadlines are insane, so they must feel the overtime and bonus payments are justified. Elon Musk is giving a presentation on Starship from Boca Chica on Saturday (28th), so he'll be wanting some visible progress as a backdrop.

Apparently they work everyone pretty hard. Some people can't take it for long and leave, but no doubt the experience looks good on their CV. The vending machines at the Hawthorn factory are free at least (which is something straight out of Silicon Valley incidentally).


BTW, check out this unofficial render of the Starship launch stand at Pad 39a in Florida.

https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/wp-content/uploads...

Interesting how little infrastructure there is in the render, compared with the existing pad. I guess that's why you called it a "stand".

Yeah, those deadlines are entirely artificial (it's not like we're launching an Armageddon-style emergency rescue mission) so it strikes me as a silly way to run things, as you say people can't take the pace and leave.

[annodomini2]

Flooble said:

Beati Dogu said:

Rapid prototyping & incremental design improvement is just how they operate. Like they're on a wartime schedule.

I get that, but you can prototype and increment without working weekends, or late into the night. As you say, it's like they are on a wartime schedule where the only thing to do is work. They were welding through the night the other week by floodlight, which is both costly and inefficient.

You've also to allow for culture, there's a US cultural thing of if you're not working lots of hours then you're not working hard

[Beati Dogu]

Yes, good point.

Apparently they’ve brought over many of the construction guys from Florida to work on the Boca Chica rocket now. They may be joining the base, mid section and nose as early as this Wednesday.

Latest changes show truncated fins that will no longer double as landing legs. No sign of a fixed tail fin as yet either. Perhaps it’s not needed for stability and is clearly no longer required for landings.

It will have smaller, separate (retractable?) legs instead - like the renders for the Blue Origin New Glenn rocket by the looks of it. The front canard wings are larger I think too.

[Zad]

It is going to end up looking like this isn't it...



The rocket plumes and smoke on Thunderbird 1 are looking surprisingly realistic!

[Beati Dogu]

Don't show Elon that, he'll want to launch from under a retractable swimming pool.

[eharding]

Beati Dogu said:

Don't show Elon that, he'll want to launch from under a retractable swimming pool.

Don't forget the retractable palm trees. He's totally going to have retractable palm trees, isn't he.....

[Zad]

eharding said:

Don't forget the retractable palm trees. He's totally going to have retractable palm trees, isn't he.....

[Eric Mc]

The flattening palm trees were related to Thunderbird 2.

[Leithen]

It will be a bit concerning if there are visible strings.

[RobDickinson]

Starship 1 is having its 2 halves mated today, its crane central at boco