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Starship Development Thread October 2024 (self.spacex)

submitted 2 months ago* (last edited 1 month ago) by threelonmusketeers to c/spacex

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SpaceX Starship page

Portions of this thread copied from a Starship Dev thread on r/SpaceX.

FAQ

When next launch? (IFT-5) Booster catch is now NET October 13th, per SpaceX: Tweet, website, archive
When previous launch? (IFT-4)? Booster 11 and Ship 29 launched on 2024-06-06.
What was the result? Both booster and ship make it to landing burn and splashdown. Ship flaps took a beating on reentry, but remained in control of the vehicle.

Quick Links

Official SpaceX Starship Update Video (2024-04-06)

Road closures

Cameron County website - @bocaroad Mastodon bot

*As of 2024-10-31

2-hour road delays posted for Oct 2nd and 3rd between 00:00 and 03:00 for transport from factory to Massey's.
Road closures for “non-flight testing” are posted for Oct 7th (10:00 to 22:00), and for Oct 8th and 9th (08:00 to 20:00).
1-hour road delays are posted for Oct 6th and 7th between 00:00 and 03:00 for transport from Brownsville Port to Massey’s.
Oct 7th road closure (10:00 to 22:00) is scheduled.
Road closures for “flight testing” are posted for Oct 13th, 14th, and 15th, from 00:00 to 14:00. (And in the alternative, Sep 24th or 25th, likely erroneous)
Oct 13th 00:00 to 14:00 road closure is scheduled.
Road closure is amended to include the period from Oct 13th 14:00 to Oct 14th 14:00. (ViX 1, ViX 2)
2-hour road delays are posted for Oct 15th (12:00 to 15:00) and 16th (00:00 and 03:00) for transport from pad to factory.
Pad A: Booster transport stand finally arrives at the pad after an apparent delay the previous day. (ViX, NSF, Fediverse Starbase Tracker)
1-hour road delays are posted for Oct 21st (12:00 to 15:00) and 22nd (00:00 and 03:00) for transport from factory to pad. These are currently crossed out on the main page, so it possible that these have been cancelled.
1-hour road delays are posted for Oct 22nd (12:00 to 15:00) and 23rd (00:00 and 03:00) for transport from factory to pad.
Road closure is posted for Oct 23rd (18:00 to 00:00) for non-flight testing activities.
Road closures are posted for Oct 24th and 25th (08:00 to 20:00) for non-flight testing activities. Oct 24th closure is scheduled.
Oct 24th road closure is extended from 20:00 to 23:00.
1-hour road delays are posted for Oct 25th (22:00 to 00:00) and 26th (12:00 and 15:00) for transport from pad to factory.
2-hour road delays are posted for Oct 26th (00:30 to 03:30) and 27th (00:00 and 03:00) for transport from factory to Massey's.
Oct 25th road closure is revoked.
2-hour road delays are posted for Nov 1st (01:00 to 04:00) and 2nd (00:00 and 03:00) for transport from Massey’s to factory. (Presumably S33 rollback)

Vehicle Status

*As of 2024-10-31

Follow Ring Watchers on Twitter and Discord for more.

Ship	Location	Status	Comment
S20	Rocket Garden	Pending scrapping?
S26	Rocket Garden	Pending scrapping?	Static fire Oct. 20. No fins or heat shield, multiple mysterious changes. Completed 3 cryo tests, latest on Oct 10. Rolls to Massey's May 8th, cryo test May 24th, static fired Jun 3rd, rolls to rocket garden Jun 12th. Moves to Megabay 2 Aug 13th, raptors removed Aug 14th.
S30	Indian Ocean	Successful splashdown	2x cryo: Jan 3rd and Jan 5th. Engines installed ~Apr 9th. Static fired May 8th. Heatshield replacement completed by Jul 20. Static fired Jul 26th. Raptor replacement Aug 3rd. Spin prime Aug 6th. Full stack cryo tests Sep 23rd and Oct 7th. FTS installed Oct 9th. Launched Oct 13th, with on-target splashdown in Indian Ocean.
S31	Highbay	Resting	Cryo tested May 12th, suffers small electrical fire. Underwent repairs in the Highbay, rolls back to Massey's Jul 1. Cryo tested Jul 2nd and 3rd. Engines installed by Jul 26th. Rolls to Massey's Sep 6th. Partial (aborted) cryo test Sep 8th. Static fired Sep 18th.
S32	Rocket Garden	Pending scrapping?	Fully stacked, fore flaps installed but not aft flaps
S33	Massey's	Pending engine install	First V2 Starship. Nosecone spotted Jul 14th. Forward section spotted Jul 27th. Stacking completed Aug 23. Cryo tested Oct 29th (partial), 30th (full), and 31st (full).
S34	Starfactory	Stacking	Methane header tank spotted Aug 14th. Nosecone stacked on payload bay Sep 20th.
S35	Starfactory	Parts spotted	Parts spotted Sep 20th.

Booster	Location	Status	Comment
B12	Megabay 1	Post-flight inspection	Cryo x2, Static fire Jul 15th. Full stack cryo tests Sep 23rd and Oct 7th. FTS installed Oct 9th. Launched Oct 13, returned to launch site for successful chopstick catch. Moved to Megabay 1 Oct 15th.
B13	Megabay 2	Resting	Cryo tests Apr 26th (methane tank) and Apr 29th (LOX tank). Static fired Oct 24th.
B14	Megabay 1	Cryo testing	Stacked Apr 26th, Cryo tested Oct 4th and 5th.
B14.1	Sanchez	Resting	Multiple catch simulation "slap tests" performed on Jun 26th and 27th.
B15	Build Site	Assembly	Potential aft end, common dome section, aft tank section, and forward dome spotted.
B16	Build Site	Assembly	Parts spotted
B17	Build Site	Assembly	Parts spotted

Resources

LabPadre Channel | NASASpaceFlight.com Channel
NSF: Booster 7 + Ship X (likely 24) Updates Thread | Most Recent
NSF: Boca Chica Production Updates Thread | Most recent
NSF: Elon Starship tweet compilation | Most Recent
SpaceX: Website Starship page | Starship Users Guide (2020, PDF)
FAA: SpaceX Starship Project at the Boca Chica Launch Site
FAA: Temporary Flight Restrictions NOTAM list
FCC: Starship Orbital Demo detailed Exhibit - 0748-EX-ST-2021 application June 20 through December 20
NASA: Starship Reentry Observation (Technical Report)
Hwy 4 & Boca Chica Beach Closures (May not be available outside US)
Production Progress Infographics by @RingWatchers
Raptor 2 Tracker by @SpaceRhin0
Acronym definitions by Decronym
Everyday Astronaut: Starbase Tour with Elon Musk, Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3
Everyday Astronaut: 2022 Elon Musk Interviews, Starbase/Ship Updates | Launch Tower | Merlin Engine | Raptor Engine
Everyday Astronaut 2024 Elon Musk Interviews: Starfactory tour | Pad tour and post-IFT-4 interview

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[–] threelonmusketeers 5 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago)

Starbase activities (2024-10-15):

Oct 14th addendum: First section of B16 is spotted at Starfactory. (ViX)
Pad A: Overnight, booster transport stand moves toward launch mount. (ViX)
Booster quick disconnect retracts, chopstick stabilizer pins engage. (LabPadre, ViX)
B12 is lifted from the launch mount onto the transport stand. (LabPadre, ViX 1, ViX 2, Starship Gazer, Priel, Evans 1, Evans 2 (pi engine), Evans 3 (pi engine closeup), NSF, clwphoto1)
B12 moves from the launch site to the build site. (ViX, LabPadre, Starship Gazer, Priel, Evans 1, Evans 2, NSF livestream, NSF 1, NSF 2 (chine closeup), NSF 3, NSF 4, Mary, Beyer, Gisler 1, Gisler 2 (chine damage), Gisler 3, Gisler 4, Gisler 4, Doherty, Gomez 1, Gomez 2. clwphoto1, Fediverse Starbase Tracker 1, Fediverse Starbase Tracker 2)
Crews back at the launch mount and chopsticks. (Gisler 1 (B12, not B11), Gisler 2)
The Raptor work platform moves to the Pad A launch mount. (ViX)
Pad B: The CC8800-1 crane's derrick is raised (ViX). Contract until January (Gisler)
Build site: Ship 30's transport stand returns to the rocket garden. (ViX)
Following Pez dispenser integration with S34, the Pez jig moves from Megabay 2 towards Starfactory. (ViX)
B12 enters Megabay 1. (ViX)
B16's common dome and A2 sections move from Starfactory to Megabay 1. (ViX)
S33 nosecone in Megabay 2 (Space Sudoer). Elon comments on new flap design.
Sanchez activities. (Gisler)

Starbase activities (2024-10-16):

Oct 15th methane delivery tally: 5
Pad A: Overnight, crews back at the launch mount and chopsticks. (LabPadre, ViX, clwphoto1)
Workers back on ship quick disconnect. (clwphoto1)
Pad B: The LR11000 crane rises. (ViX)
Build site video tour.
RGV Aerial post a photo of S31 in the Highbay.

IFT-5:

More photos from SpaceX.
Landing burn slowmo from Cosmic Perspective.
Landing as viewed from helicopter. (Doug Kelly)
Post-catch RGV Aerial flyover photo.

Maritime:

Expedition is still working offshore, likely to locate the hotstage ring impact site and look for species impacts. Map from TheSpaceEngineer.

Other:

Ship catch scheduled for "hopefully early next year", Elon Time.
Elon on aspirational marginal cost per ton: "Full & immediate (no mandatory refurbishment) reusability with low cost propellant (almost 80% liquid oxygen, no helium pressurant) will mean a marginal cost per ton ~100 times better than Falcon, which is already >10 times better than the Shuttle."
Brief video from the top floor of Megabay 2. (Steve Jurvetson)