SpaceX Starship page

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

FAQ

  1. When next launch? (IFT-7) TBD
  2. When previous launch? (IFT-6)? Booster 13 and Ship 31 launched on 2024-11-19.
  3. What was the result? Booster catch attempt aborted, performed soft splashdown in the Gulf. Ship performs in-space raptor relight, survives reentry, and makes an on-target splashdown.

Quick Links

Nerdle Cam | Lab Cam | Sapphire Cam | Sentinel Cam | Rover Cam | Rover 2.0 Cam | Rocket Ranch Cam | Plex Cam | NSF Starbase Live

Starship Dev October | IFT-5 launch thread | Starship Dev 57 | Starship Dev 56 | IFT-4 launch thread | Starship Dev 55

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

Road closures

Cameron County website - @bocaroad Mastodon bot

*As of 2024-11-19

  • 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)
  • 1-hour road delays are posted for Nov 11th (19:00 to 22:00) and 12th (10:00 to 13:00) for transport from factory to pad, likely B13 rollout.
  • 1-hour road delays are posted for Nov 13th (00:00 to 03:00 or 12:00 to 15:00) and 14th (00:00 to 03:00) for transport from factory to pad, either backups for B13 rollout or for S31 rollout.
  • 8-hour road closure is scheduled for Nov 17th (08:00 to 16:00) for non-flight testing activities.
  • 14-hour road closures are posted for Nov 18th, 19th, and 20th (all 08:00 to 22:00), for flight testing activities, presumably IFT-6.
  • Nov 20th road closure is revoked.
  • 1-hour road delay was posted for Nov 21st (00:00 to 03:00) for transport from factory to pad, but then revoked.

Vehicle Status

*As of 2024-11-21

Follow Ring Watchers on Twitter and Discord for more.

Ship Location Status Comment
S20 Rocket Garden Pending scrapping?
S26 Rocket Garden 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. Scrapping began Nov 20th.
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 Indian Ocean Successful splashdown 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. Preflight checkouts completed Nov 17th. Launched as IFT-6 on Nov 19th. In-space raptor relight was successful, ship survived reentry and performed soft splashdown in the Indian Ocean.
S32 Rocket Garden Pending scrapping? Fully stacked, fore flaps installed but not aft flaps
S33 Megabay 2 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). Raptor installation begins Nov 9th.
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 as IFT-5 on Oct 13, returned to launch site for successful chopstick catch. Moved to Megabay 1 Oct 15th.
B13 Gulf of Mexico Successful splashdown Cryo tests Apr 26th (methane tank) and Apr 29th (LOX tank). Static fired Oct 24th. Preflight checkouts completed Nov 17th. Launched as IFT-6 on Nov 19th. Chopsticks catch attempt was aborted, performed soft splashdown in the Gulf.
B14 Megabay 1 Pending gridfin install 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

  • threelonmusketeers@sh.itjust.worksOPMEnglish
    4·
    2 days ago

    Starbase activities (2024-11-20):

    • Nov 19th cryo delivery tally.
    • Nov 20th road closure is revoked.
    • 1-hour road delay was posted for Nov 21st (00:00 to 03:00) for transport from factory to pad, but then revoked.
    • Build site: S26 moves to Highbay, the LTR1220 crane delivers a ring spreader, and the lower 4 rings of S26 are removed. (ViX 1, ViX 2, ViX 3, Beyer, DeffGeff)
    • Booster transport stand arrives at the production site. (ViX)
    • Potential raptor delivery truck is spotted. (ViX)
    • Pad A: Chopsticks and launch mount inspections overnight. (Starbase Pulse)
    • Launch mount work platform rolls back out to the pad. (ViX, NSF)
    • Three truckloads of cryo piping are delivered. (ViX)
    • Booster stabilization pins are moved back towards the launch mount. (ViX)

    IFT-6:

    • Gulf of Mexico: Final sighting on Nov 19th of B13 heading south into Mexican waters, guarded by support aircraft. (LabPadre)
    • Two out of three support ships return to port. (Cornwell, Cornwell 2)
    • Indian Ocean: The two ships slowly move west, likely following the remains of S31. (Cornwell 1, Cornwell 2)
    • “What caused the catch abort?” Elon: “Lost comms to the launch tower computer. Catch would probably still have worked, but we weren’t sure, so erred on the side of caution.”
    • “What happened to the banana?” Elon: “Well, the fairing did blow up when the ship fell over after landing in the water (as expected)”
    • FAA confirms no mishap. All outcomes were within the scope of the launch license. (Beil)

    Other:

    • “Is the perspirative cooling still off the table?” Elon: “Metallic shielding, supplemented by ullage gas or liquid film-cooling is back on the table as a possibility”
    • The FAA publish a revised Environmental Assessment draft (Revised Draft EA, PDF warning) for increasing launch cadence to 25 per year. Document includes (pg. 153 and 154) a map showing the planned trajectory for Starship RTLS, passing over Matamoros (Mexico) and the outskirts of Brownsville. (thanks u/Nydilien and u/scarlet_sage in The Other Place)
    Embedded screenshot