Wiki Super Heavy/Starship - General Development Discussion

[HVM]

Here is the whole series:

There is multiple new, even crazy sounding, stuff there (like stage separation without pushers and so on). But one thing that I feel from this is; urgency, not only from Elon but all everyone else working in there. Before it was; window for Mars is open now, but no-one know when it ends. Now it is; "this is the window". All that is not necessary for orbital flight is on the back burner.

My jaw hit the floor when macho construction head gives Elon a hug, whole contraction crew seem like a family and all of them seem to share the same urgency. Actually so much that the mene "Every billionaire is building spaceships; what is going on". Feel scarier. Those giant crane operators are know by name, tells me that there are not many people in whole planet that can do what lifting the launch ring needs.

 

[miimura]

"second biggest crane in the world" struck me as significant in Part 2.

 

[adiggs]

"second biggest crane in the world" struck me as significant in Part 2.

I've seen the biggest crane in the world as it came to my place of work a couple of times over the last decade for pieces of big construction projects that just couldn't be done another way. The thing about that is it's something that you rent - it's not something that anybody would own just for their own use - it's just too expensive to own and operate to ever let it sit idle (well - except for when it's on its own fleet of trucks being moved to the next work site).

Having the 2nd biggest crane and clearly owning and operating it exclusively is all kinds of remarkable to me.

 

[miimura]

I've seen the biggest crane in the world as it came to my place of work a couple of times over the last decade for pieces of big construction projects that just couldn't be done another way. The thing about that is it's something that you rent - it's not something that anybody would own just for their own use - it's just too expensive to own and operate to ever let it sit idle (well - except for when it's on its own fleet of trucks being moved to the next work site).

Having the 2nd biggest crane and clearly owning and operating it exclusively is all kinds of remarkable to me.

What makes you think SpaceX owns the crane?

 

[adiggs]

What makes you think SpaceX owns the crane?

Well that's a good point - I have no idea about the legal ownership. What has me thinking this way is that I don't see a business model in which SpaceX is busy stacking and unstacking these things, and then decided that they know they won't want to do anything along those lines for months or years while the crane is off to other customer sites to do work.

I expect that these cranes are scheduled out a long ways in advance, so letting the crane off the site looks to me like a serious crimp in SpaceX's ability to make progress. And considering how Elon reacts to that sort of thing (vertically integrate; vertical - get it!?!) I expect that SpaceX just owns the thing (or at least has it rented out indefinitely until they can build their own).

Short answer - guesswork

 

[mongo]

Well that's a good point - I have no idea about the legal ownership. What has me thinking this way is that I don't see a business model in which SpaceX is busy stacking and unstacking these things, and then decided that they know they won't want to do anything along those lines for months or years while the crane is off to other customer sites to do work.

I expect that these cranes are scheduled out a long ways in advance, so letting the crane off the site looks to me like a serious crimp in SpaceX's ability to make progress. And considering how Elon reacts to that sort of thing (vertically integrate; vertical - get it!?!) I expect that SpaceX just owns the thing (or at least has it rented out indefinitely until they can build their own).

Short answer - guesswork

13500 crane is short term solution until the orbital launch tower is fully operational. Not needed after that (unless something breaks or they build another tower). Shorter crane would be for test stand load/unloading.
In terms of future reservations, 13500 will likely be needed at the Cape for that build.

 

[Skotty]

I don't think most people yet get the multi-order of magnitude improvement Super Heavy/Starship will likely bring over older tech like the Saturn V.

 

[Cosmacelf]

I don't think most people yet get the multi-order of magnitude improvement Super Heavy/Starship will likely bring over older tech like the Saturn V.

Absolutely. People never got that Model S was going to change transportation … eventually. Same thing with Falcon 9. we are a couple of years out before the domino on Starship’s capability falls. Maybe about the same amount of time before people realize Starlink will change satellite communications forever. Boring company might take 5-10 years before cities line up for projects, but it will happen. Neuralink will, among other things, give humans telepathy. If you don’t realize telepathy is science and not fantasy, you aren’t paying attention.

Elon Musk will be my grandchildren’s Einstein and Edison rolled into one. Enjoy watching history unfold my friends, we get front row seats.

 

[HVM]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1425990909573873668

 

[diplomat33]

Full stack should be ready for first flight "in a few weeks":

https://twitter.com/x/status/1426715232475533319

 

[favo]

Starbase 360 degree video

 

[EVCollies]

Starbase 360 degree video

Subscribed hoping for more...

 

[dazedNconfuzed]

I seem to recall Elon mentioning that the grid fins don't function by drag (per se), hence the lack of need to stow them during launch. So long as they are oriented to match aerodynamics, drag is negligible.

I expect folding them presents a drag surface comparable to full extension. Folded, that's still a big flat surface for air to impact.

 

[tmoz]

And let's not forget this lady:

 

[HVM]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1428702946766827520

 

[SwTslaGrl]

The Daily Hopper is great!
Some time off in the high bay: Booster 4 reading "Returning to launch site for dummies"

https://twitter.com/x/status/1429192855696908291

 

[scaesare]

I do needs me some more Starship news....

 

[winfield100]

I do needs me some more Starship news....

@scaesare

SpaceX Launch Manifest

The launch schedule for SpaceX.

nextspaceflight.com

SpaceX Launch Manifests
Starship-Super Heavy (prototype)
launch (NET) (no exact time) September, 2021

(? let’s do a point to point test, 1/2 way around the world, who’s up for visiting Kauai where they filmed Jurassic Park and Pie rats of the Caribbean? we can be there in 90 minutes…….?, next trip though)

 

[HVM]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1431987076044578817

https://twitter.com/x/status/1432038003334164488

 

[e-FTW]

That is some serious hardware.