193-493: SpaceX Starbase —previously, SpaceX South Texas Launch Site and SpaceX private launch site —is an industrial complex and rocket launch facility that serves as the main testing and production location for Starship launch vehicles , as well as the headquarters of the American aerospace manufacturer SpaceX . Located at Boca Chica , near Brownsville, Texas , United States , Starbase has been under near-continuous development since
386-427: A Raptor vacuum engine underwent its first full duration firing at McGregor, Texas . Starship SN8 was the first full-sized upper-stage prototype, though it lacked a heat shield. It underwent four preliminary static fire tests between October and November 2020. On 9 December 2020, SN8 flew, slowly turning off its three engines one by one, and reached an altitude of 12.5 km (7.8 mi). After SN8 dove back to
579-447: A carbon fiber structure, a mass in excess of 10,000 t (22,000,000 lb) when fully fueled, a payload of 300 t (660,000 lb) to low Earth orbit while being fully reusable. By 2017, the concept was again re-dubbed the BFR . In December 2018, the structural material was changed from carbon composites to stainless steel, marking the transition from early design concepts of
772-414: A company town named Starbase . Locals raised concerns about SpaceX's authority, power, and a potential threat for eviction through eminent domain . In early April, the orbital launch pad's fuel storage tanks began mounting. SN12 through SN14 were scrapped before completion; SN15 was selected to fly instead, due to improved avionics , structure, and engines. On 5 May 2021, SN15 launched, completed
965-493: A floating platform , it will be transported by a barge to a port and then transported by road. The recovered Starship will either be positioned on the launch mount for another launch or refurbished at a SpaceX facility . In November 2005, before SpaceX had launched its first rocket the Falcon 1 , CEO Elon Musk first mentioned a high-capacity rocket concept able to launch 100 t (220,000 lb) to low Earth orbit , dubbed
1158-456: A hyperloop high-speed vactrain transportation system. In 2015, he co-founded OpenAI, a nonprofit artificial intelligence research company. The following year Musk co-founded Neuralink, a neurotechnology company developing brain–computer interfaces , and The Boring Company, a tunnel construction company. In 2018 the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued Musk, alleging that he had falsely announced that he had secured funding for
1351-503: A spaceflight services company, in 2002. In 2004, Musk was an early investor in electric-vehicle manufacturer Tesla Motors, Inc. (later Tesla, Inc.), providing most of the initial financing and assuming the position of the company's chairman. He later became the product architect and, in 2008, the CEO. In 2006, Musk helped create SolarCity , a solar energy company that was acquired by Tesla in 2016 and became Tesla Energy . In 2013, he proposed
1544-457: A " blue check ", and laid off a significant portion of the company's staff. Musk lessened content moderation, including reinstating accounts like The Babylon Bee . The Southern Poverty Law Center noted that Twitter has verified numerous extremists; hate speech also increased on the platform after his takeover. In December 2022, Musk released internal documents relating to Twitter's moderation of Hunter Biden's laptop controversy in
1737-1074: A "nano-manager". The New York Times has characterized his approach as absolutist . Musk does not make formal business plans . He has forced employees to adopt the company's own jargon and launched ambitious, risky, and costly projects against his advisors' recommendations, such as removing front-facing radar from Tesla Autopilot . His insistence on vertical integration causes his companies to move most production in-house. While this resulted in saved costs for SpaceX's rocket, vertical integration (as of 2018) has caused many usability problems for Tesla's internal corporate software. Musk's handling of employees—whom he communicates with directly through mass emails—has been characterized as " carrot and stick ", rewarding those "who offer constructive criticism" while also being known to impulsively threaten, swear at, and fire his employees. Musk said he expects his employees to work for long hours, sometimes 80 hours per week. He has his new employees sign strict non-disclosure agreements and often fires in sprees, such as during
1930-696: A 2005 defamation trial and the funding agreement from venture capital firm Mohr Davidow Ventures. Eventually, Zip2 obtained contracts with The New York Times and the Chicago Tribune . The brothers persuaded the board of directors to abandon a merger with CitySearch ; however, Musk's attempts to become CEO were thwarted. Compaq acquired Zip2 for $ 307 million in cash in February 1999, and Musk received $ 22 million for his 7-percent share. In March 1999, Musk co-founded X.com , an online financial services and e-mail payment company with $ 12 million of
2123-485: A 3.8 MWh battery supplies some of the electricity. In September 2022, during a first test firing of all six engines of the Starship prototype, scattered hot debris ignited a SpaceX dumpster, and caused a bushfire in the nearby Las Palomas Wildlife Management Area , an environmentally sensitive area, ultimately destroying 68 acres before the fire could be doused. On April 20, 2023, the first Starship Integrated Flight Test
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#17328525284412316-572: A Bachelor of Science in economics from the university's Wharton School . He reportedly hosted large, ticketed house parties to help pay for tuition, and wrote a business plan for an electronic book-scanning service similar to Google Books . In 1994, Musk held two internships in Silicon Valley : one at energy storage startup Pinnacle Research Institute, which investigated electrolytic ultracapacitors for energy storage, and another at Palo Alto –based startup Rocket Science Games . In 1995, he
2509-606: A Canadian passport through his Canadian-born mother to avoid South Africa’s mandatory military service , which would have forced him to participate in the apartheid regime, and to ease his path to immigration to the United States. While waiting for his application to be processed, he attended the University of Pretoria for five months. Musk arrived in Canada in June 1989, connected with
2702-499: A common bulkhead, similar to the ones used on the S-II and S-IVB stages on the Saturn V rocket After Starship's second flight test , the common dome's design was changed to a more elliptical dome, which has changed the propellant capacity of both tanks by an unknown, but likely negligible, amount. Both tanks are heavily reinforced, with roughly 74 stringers attached to the interior walls of
2895-572: A company named Dogleg Park LLC , a reference to the "dogleg" type of trajectory that rockets launched from Boca Chica will be required to follow. Prior to May 2013, five lots in the Spanish Dagger Subdivision in Boca Chica Village, adjacent to Highway 4 which leads to the proposed launch site, had been purchased. In May 2013, SpaceX purchased an additional three parcels, adding another 1 acre (4,000 m), plus four more lots with
3088-432: A deal that would appoint him to Twitter's board of directors and prohibit him from acquiring more than 14.9% of the company. However, on April 13, Musk made a $ 43 billion offer to buy Twitter, launching a takeover bid to buy 100% of Twitter's stock at $ 54.20 per share. In response, Twitter's board adopted a "poison pill" shareholder rights plan to make it more expensive for any single investor to own more than 15% of
3281-577: A device akin to a sewing machine that could embed threads into a human brain. In an October 2019 paper that detailed some of Neuralink's research, Musk was listed as the sole author, which rankled Neuralink researchers. At a 2020 live demonstration, Musk described one of their early devices as "a Fitbit in your skull" that could soon cure paralysis, deafness, blindness, and other disabilities. Many neuroscientists and publications criticized these claims, with MIT Technology Review describing them as "highly speculative" and "neuroscience theater". During
3474-543: A federal probe was launched into possible animal welfare violations by Neuralink. In September 2023, the Food and Drug Administration approved Neuralink to initiate human trials, and it plans to conduct a six-year study. In 2017, Musk founded The Boring Company to construct tunnels, and revealed plans for specialized, underground, high-occupancy vehicles that could travel up to 150 miles per hour (240 km/h) and thus circumvent above-ground traffic in major cities. Early in 2017,
3667-479: A fellow pupil, Elon was thrown down concrete steps and beaten severely by the boy and his friends, leading to him being hospitalized for his injuries. Elon described his father berating him after he was discharged from the hospital, saying, "I had to stand for an hour as he yelled at me and called me an idiot and told me that I was just worthless." Errol denied berating Elon but claimed, "The boy had just lost his father to suicide and Elon had called him stupid. Elon had
3860-456: A flight path similar to SN8. The prototype crashed upon landing because one engine did not ignite properly. A month later, on 3 March, Starship SN10 launched on the same flight path as SN9. The vehicle landed hard and crushed its landing legs, leaning to one side. A fire was seen at the vehicle's base and it exploded less than ten minutes later, potentially due to a propellant tank rupture. On 30 March, Starship SN11 flew into thick fog along
4053-450: A height of 1.8 m (5 ft 11 in), a thickness of 4 mm (0.16 in) and a mass of 1,600 kg (3,500 lb) each. Domes inside the spacecraft separate the methane and oxygen tanks. SpaceX has stated that Starship, in its "baseline reuseable design", will have a payload capacity of 100–150 t (220,000–331,000 lb) to low earth orbit and 27 t (60,000 lb) to geostationary transfer orbit . Super Heavy
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#17328525284414246-406: A launch pad for orbital Starship flights. The first flight-capable prototype, SN5 , was cylindrical as it had no flaps or nose cone: just one Raptor engine, fuel tanks, and a mass simulator . On 5 August 2020, SN5 performed a 150 m (500 ft) high flight and successfully landed on a nearby pad. On 3 September 2020, the similar-looking Starship SN6 repeated the hop; later that month,
4439-534: A majority of users wanted him to do so. Five months later, Musk stepped down from CEO and placed former NBCUniversal executive Linda Yaccarino in the position and transitioned his role to executive chairman and chief technology officer. On November 20, 2023, in a U.S. District Court in Texas, X filed a lawsuit stating that Media Matters "manipulated" the X platform, in that it used accounts that followed major brands, and "resorted to endlessly scrolling and refreshing"
4632-747: A maximum of 15 hours per closure date, with no more than three scheduled space flights between the Saturday prior to Memorial Day and Labor Day, unless the Texas GLO approves. In 2019, the FAA completed a reevaluation of the SpaceX facilities in South Texas, and in particular the revised plans away from a commercial spaceport to more of a spaceship yard for building and testing rockets at the facility, as well as flying different rockets— SpaceX Starship and prototype test vehicles—from
4825-481: A month after announcing the takeover, Musk stated that the deal was "on hold" following a report that 5% of Twitter's daily active users were spam accounts. Although he initially affirmed his commitment to the acquisition, he sent notification of his termination of the deal in July; Twitter's board of directors responded that they were committed to holding him to the transaction. On July 12, 2022, Twitter formally sued Musk in
5018-518: A more than 10% drop in Tesla's stock price; at the time, SolarCity was facing liquidity issues. Multiple shareholder groups filed a lawsuit against Musk and Tesla's directors, stating that the purchase of SolarCity was done solely to benefit Musk and came at the expense of Tesla and its shareholders. Tesla directors settled the lawsuit in January 2020, leaving Musk the sole remaining defendant. Two years later,
5211-502: A new city . In January 2024, Cameron County and Brownsville officials both passed resolutions requesting the federal government to recognize "Starbase" as an official place name for the area. As early as April 2007, at least five potential locations were publicly known, including "sites in Alaska , California , Florida , Texas and Virginia ." In September 2012, it became clear that Georgia and Puerto Rico were also interested in pursuing
5404-464: A nitrogen purge while on the launch pad. The aft bay has eighteen vents visible on the outside of the booster, which are believed to be connected to the outer 20 engines, while the center engines vent directly below the launch pad. The Raptor engine uses a full-flow staged combustion cycle, which has both oxygen and methane-rich turbopumps. Before 2014, only two full-flow staged-combustion rocket engine designs had advanced enough to undergo testing:
5597-523: A package of incentives to encourage SpaceX to locate at Brownsville, Texas. 2013 economic estimates showed SpaceX investing approximately US$ 100 million in the development and construction of the facility. A US$ 15 million incentive package was approved by the Texas Legislature in 2013. In April 2012, the FAA's Office of Commercial Space Transportation initiated a Notice of Intent to conduct an Environmental Impact Statement and public hearings on
5790-508: A payload to GTO of 21 t (46,000 lb). The first tests started with the construction of the first prototype in 2018, Starhopper , which performed several static fires and two successful low-altitude flights in 2019. SpaceX began constructing the first full-size Starship MK1 and Mk2 upper-stage prototypes before 2019, at the SpaceX facilities in Boca Chica , Texas , and Cocoa, Florida , respectively. Neither prototype flew: Mk1
5983-635: A private launch site began at least as early as 2011. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk mentioned interest in a private launch site for their commercial launches in a September 2011 speech. In 2012, Fredrick (Rick) Jenet, director of the Center for Advanced Radio Astronomy (CARA) and an associate professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Texas at Brownsville , proposed to install the STARGATE in Boca Chica (initial funding included US$ 500,000 in seed money provided by
SpaceX Starbase - Misplaced Pages Continue
6176-637: A private takeover of Tesla. To settle the case Musk stepped down as the chairman of Tesla and paid a $ 20 million fine. In 2022, he acquired Twitter for $ 44 billion, merged the company into the newly-created X Corp. and rebranded the service as X the following year. In March 2023, Musk founded xAI, an artificial-intelligence company. Musk's actions and expressed views have made him a polarizing figure. He has been criticized for making unscientific and misleading statements, including COVID-19 misinformation , promoting right-wing conspiracy theories , and endorsing an antisemitic trope ; he has since apologized for
6369-430: A public comment period ending in June 2013. The draft EIS identified three parcels of land—a total of 12.4 acres (5.0 ha)—that would notionally be used for the control center. In addition, SpaceX had leased 56.6 acres (22.9 ha) of land adjacent to the terminus of Texas State Highway 4, 20 acres (8.1 ha) of which would be used to develop the vertical launch area; the remainder would remain open space surrounding
6562-473: A rental lodge at the Timbavati Private Nature Reserve . Elon has a younger brother, Kimbal , and a younger sister, Tosca . Elon has four paternal half-siblings. The family was wealthy during Elon's youth. Despite both Elon and Errol previously stating that Errol was a part owner of a Zambian emerald mine, in 2023, Errol recounted that the deal he made was to receive "a portion of
6755-460: A replat of lots totaling 49.3 acres (200,000 m) into a second subdivision, this one named "Launch Site Texas", made up of several parcels of property previously purchased. This is the site of the launch site itself while the launch control facility is planned two miles west in the Mars Crossing subdivision. Dogleg Park had also continued purchasing land in Boca Chica, and by September 2014 owned
6948-570: A rough ride while traveling at suboptimal speeds. Two tunnel projects announced in 2018, in Chicago and West Los Angeles, have been canceled. However, a tunnel beneath the Las Vegas Convention Center was completed in early 2021. Local officials have approved further expansions of the tunnel system. I made an offer https://sec.gov/Archives/edgar... Musk expressed interest in buying Twitter as early as 2017, and had questioned
7141-573: A second cousin in Saskatchewan, and worked odd jobs including at a farm and a lumber mill. In 1990, he entered Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario . Two years later, he transferred to the University of Pennsylvania , where he studied until 1995. Although Musk has said that he earned his degrees in 1995, the University of Pennsylvania did not award them until 1997 – a Bachelor of Arts in physics and
7334-464: A small rented office in Palo Alto , with Musk coding the website every night. Musk and his brother's immigration statuses during this period was described by Musk as a "gray area", although Kimbal maintained they were working as illegal immigrants. A Washington Post exposé from October 2024 reported Musk worked illegally while building the company, citing an email from Musk submitted as evidence during
7527-585: A tendency to call people stupid. How could I possibly blame that child?". After the incident, Elon was enrolled in private school. Elon was an enthusiastic reader of books, later attributing his success in part to having read The Lord of the Rings , the Foundation series , and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy . At age ten, he developed an interest in computing and video games, teaching himself how to program from
7720-424: A thinner forward flap design, which are positioned more leeward, a 25% increase in propellant capacity, integrated vented interstage, two "raceways", and an increase in thrust. The vehicle will be a total of 3.1 m (10 ft) taller than the previous Block 1 vehicle, and is planned to have a payload capacity of at least 100 tons to orbit when reused. Additionally, Block 2 vehicles will use Raptor 3 , removing
7913-468: A total of "87 lots equaling more than 100 acres". SpaceX has also bought and is modifying several residential properties in Boca Chica Village, but apparently planning to leave them in residential use, about 2 miles (3.2 km) west of the launch site. In September 2019, SpaceX extended an offer to buy each of the houses in Boca Chica Village for three times the fair market value along with an offer of VIP invitations to future launch events. The 3x offer
SpaceX Starbase - Misplaced Pages Continue
8106-509: A total of 1.9 acres (7,700 m) in July 2013, making a total of 12 SpaceX-purchased lots. In November 2013, SpaceX substantially "increased its land holdings in the Boca Chica Beach area from 12 lots to 72 undeveloped lots" purchased, which encompass a total of approximately 24 acres (97,000 m), in addition to the 56.5 acres (229,000 m) leased from private property owners. An additional few acres were purchased late in 2013, raising
8299-508: A tweet by Musk regarding Tesla stock price ("too high imo ") violated the agreement. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)-released records showed that the SEC concluded Musk had subsequently violated the agreement twice by tweeting regarding " Tesla's solar roof production volumes and its stock price". Musk provided the initial concept and financial capital for SolarCity , which his cousins Lyndon and Peter Rive founded in 2006. By 2013, SolarCity
8492-401: A tweet that Tesla would build half a million cars that year. The SEC reacted by asking a court to hold him in contempt for violating the terms of the 2018 settlement agreement. A joint agreement between Musk and the SEC eventually clarified the previous agreement details, including a list of topics about which Musk needed preclearance. In 2020, a judge blocked a lawsuit that claimed
8685-602: A viewing gallery". Starship's life support system is expected to recycle resources such as air and water from waste. Starship will be able to be refueled by docking with separately launched Starship propellant tanker spacecraft in orbit. Doing so increases the spacecraft's mass capacity and allows it to reach higher-energy targets, such as geosynchronous orbit , the Moon, and Mars. A Starship propellant depot could cache methane and oxygen on-orbit and be used by Starship to replenish its fuel tanks. Starship Human Landing System (HLS)
8878-575: A week, and a total of $ 16.4 billion by year end, reaching the 10% target. In February 2022, The Wall Street Journal reported that both Musk and his brother Kimbal were under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for possible insider trading related to the sale. In 2022, Musk unveiled Optimus , a robot being developed by Tesla. In June 2023, Musk met with Indian prime minister Narendra Modi in New York City , stating he
9071-481: A week, able to support large rocket ground and flight testing. In November 2019 the SpaceX South Texas Launch Site crew was working on a new launch pad for its Starship/Super Heavy rocket; the former launch site has been transformed to an assembly site for the Starship rocket. On March 7, 2021, it was revealed by Michael Baylor on Twitter that the SpaceX South Texas Launch Site may eventually expand to
9264-467: Is 71 m (233 ft) tall, 9 m (30 ft) wide, and is composed of four general sections: the engines, the oxygen tank, the fuel tank, and the interstage. Elon Musk stated in 2021 that the final design will have a dry mass between 160 t (350,000 lb) and 200 t (440,000 lb), with the tanks weighing 80 t (180,000 lb) and the interstage 20 t (44,000 lb). The propellant tanks on Super Heavy are separated by
9457-541: Is a businessman known for his key roles in the space company SpaceX and the automotive company Tesla, Inc. His other involvements include ownership of X Corp. , the company that operates the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) , and his role in the founding of the Boring Company , xAI , Neuralink , and OpenAI . Musk is the wealthiest individual in the world ; as of November 2024 , Forbes estimates his net worth to be US$ 323 billion. A member of
9650-400: Is a crewed lunar lander variant of the Starship vehicle that would be modified for landing, operation, and takeoff from the lunar surface. It features landing legs, a body-mounted solar array , a set of thrusters mounted mid-body to assist with final landing and takeoff, two airlocks , and an elevator to lower crew and cargo onto the lunar surface. Varying estimates have been given about
9843-466: Is designed to protect the vehicle during atmospheric entry and to be used multiple times with minimal maintenance between flights. The silica -based tiles are attached to Starship with pins and have small gaps in between to allow for heat expansion . After IFT-4, SpaceX added a secondary ablative layer under the primary heat shield. The total mass of the heat shield and ablative layer is 10.5 t (23,000 lb). For satellite launch , Starship
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#173285252844110036-564: Is in Cameron County, Texas, approximately 17 miles (27 km) east of Brownsville, with launch flyover range over the Gulf of Mexico. The launch site is planned to be optimized for commercial activity, as well as used to fly spacecraft on interplanetary trajectories. Launches on orbital trajectories from Brownsville will have a constrained flight path, due to the Caribbean Islands as well as
10229-413: Is made from a special stainless steel alloy that SpaceX has dubbed "30X". As of 2024, Starship is in development with an iterative and incremental approach , involving test flights of prototype vehicles . As a successor to SpaceX's Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets, Starship is intended to perform a wide range of space missions. For missions to further destinations, such as geosynchronous orbit ,
10422-407: Is mostly aluminum, copper, and steel; oxidizer-side turbopumps and manifolds subject to corrosive oxygen-rich flames are made of an Inconel -like SX500 superalloy . Some components are 3D printed . A Raptor 2 engine produces 2.3 MN (520,000 lbf) at a specific impulse of 327 seconds (3.21 km/s) at sea level and 350 seconds (3.4 km/s) in a vacuum. Raptor vacuum , used on
10615-410: Is part of the aft dome. A large steel structure is mounted at the bottom of the dome, reinforcing the thrust puck enough to enable its support of the inner thirteen engines, while also providing pathways for methane and oxygen to flow into the engines. Large slosh baffles were added in this region as well, beginning on Booster 10. A header tank is used to supply liquid oxygen during the landing burn for
10808-413: Is planned to have a large cargo door that opens to release payloads, similar to NASA 's Space Shuttle , and close upon reentry instead of a jettisonable nosecone fairing . Instead of a cleanroom , payloads are integrated directly into Starship's payload bay, which requires purging the payload bay with temperature-controlled ISO class 8 clean air. To deploy Starlink satellites , the cargo door
11001-541: Is powered by 33 Raptor engines, which are housed within a dedicated shielding compartment. This compartment is not present before engine installation, thus, boosters are roughly three meters shorter before engine installation. The outer 20 engines, arranged in a single ring, are in a fixed position. In order to save weight, these engines are started using ground support equipment on the launch mount and cannot be reignited for subsequent burns. The inner thirteen engines are attached to an adapter, which rests directly against
11194-421: Is replacing traditional helium tank pressurization as well as initial launch and landing algorithms for the much larger 9-metre-diameter (29 ft 6 in) rocket. SpaceX developed their reusable booster technology for the 3-meter-diameter Falcon 9 from 2012 to 2018. The Starhopper prototype was also the platform for the first flight tests of the full-flow staged combustion methalox Raptor engine, where
11387-598: Is the largest of any active or planned launch vehicle; its internal volume of 1,000 m (35,000 cu ft) is slightly larger than the International Space Station's pressurized volume. SpaceX will also provide a 22 m (72 ft) tall payload bay configuration for even larger payloads. Starship has a total propellant capacity of 1,200 t (2,600,000 lb) across its main tanks and header tanks. The header tanks are better insulated due to their position and are reserved for use to flip and land
11580-504: Is the latest project in SpaceX's reusable launch system development program and plan to colonize Mars . Starship's two stages are the Super Heavy booster and the Starship spacecraft . Both stages are equipped with Raptor engines , the first flown and mass-produced full-flow staged combustion cycle engines, which burn liquid methane (natural gas) and liquid oxygen . The main structure
11773-438: Is to be replaced with a slot and dispenser rack, whose mechanism has been compared to a Pez candy dispenser. Crewed Starship vehicles would replace the cargo bay with a pressurized crew section and have a life-support system . For long-duration missions, such as crewed flights to Mars , SpaceX describes the interior as potentially including "private cabins, large communal areas, centralized storage, solar storm shelters, and
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#173285252844111966-665: The Artemis program , starting in 2026). When stacked and fully fueled, Starship has a mass of approximately 5,000 t (11,000,000 lb), a diameter of 9 m (30 ft) and a height of 121.3 m (398 ft). The rocket has been designed with the goal of being fully reusable to reduce launch costs; it consists of the Super Heavy booster and the Starship upper stage which are powered by Raptor and Raptor Vacuum engines . The bodies of both rocket stages are made from stainless steel and are manufactured by stacking and welding stainless steel cylinders. These cylinders have
12159-537: The BFR . Later in 2012, Elon Musk first publicly announced plans to develop a rocket surpassing the capabilities of Space X's existing Falcon 9 . SpaceX called it the Mars Colonial Transporter , as the rocket was to transport humans to Mars and back. In 2016, the descriptor was changed to Interplanetary Transport System , as the rocket was planned to travel beyond Mars as well. The conceptual design called for
12352-487: The Chancery Court of Delaware for breaching a legally binding agreement to purchase Twitter. In October 2022, Musk reversed again, offering to purchase Twitter at $ 54.20 per share. The acquisition was officially completed on October 27. Immediately after the acquisition, Musk fired several top Twitter executives including CEO Parag Agrawal ; Musk became the CEO instead. He instituted a $ 7.99 monthly subscription for
12545-560: The Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launch vehicles as well as "a variety of reusable suborbital launch vehicles". In early 2018, SpaceX announced a change of plans, stating that the launch site would now be used exclusively for SpaceX's next-generation launch vehicle, Starship . Between 2018 and 2020, the site added significant rocket production and test capacity. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk indicated in 2014 that he expected " commercial astronauts , private astronauts, to be departing from South Texas," and eventually launching spacecraft to Mars from
12738-417: The Falcon 9 booster, which has titanium grid fins mounted 90 degrees from each other. This is done to improve control in the pitch axis. Additionally, these fins remain extended during ascent in order to save weight. The interstage also has protruding hardpoints , located between grid fins, allowing the booster to be lifted or caught by the launch tower. The ability to lift a booster from these hardpoints
12931-582: The Greater Brownsville Incentives Corporation in October 2012) as part of a package to increase the likelihood of attracting SpaceX to build a launch site in the area. The goal was also to have students and the faculty to be hands-on and assist with launches and space exploration, which was viewed as a rare opportunity. The company announced in August 2014 that they had chosen Texas as
13124-603: The International Astronomical Union , have alleged that Starlink blocks the view of the sky and poses a collision threat to spacecraft. During the March 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine , Musk sent Starlink terminals to Ukraine to provide Internet access and communication. In October 2022, Musk stated that about 20,000 satellite terminals had been donated to Ukraine, together with free data transfer subscriptions, which cost SpaceX $ 80 million. After asking
13317-510: The Moon , and Mars , Starship will rely on orbital refueling ; a ship-to-ship propellant transfer demonstration is expected to occur in 2025. SpaceX also plans other versions of the Starship spacecraft, such as: cargo (deploying SpaceX's second-generation Starlink satellite constellation), and human spaceflight (the Human Landing System variant will land astronauts on the Moon as part of
13510-535: The RS-25 's 12.5° and the Merlin's 5°. SpaceX has stated they aim to achieve a per unit production cost of US$ 250,000 upon starting mass-production. On April 4, 2024, Elon Musk provided an update on Starship at Starbase , where two new versions of Starship were announced, Block 2 and Block 3. As of November 19, 2024, Block 1 has been retired but was used for the first 6 Flight Tests . Block 2 vehicles feature
13703-469: The Series A round of investment in February 2004; he invested $ 6.35 million, became the majority shareholder, and joined Tesla's board of directors as chairman. Musk took an active role within the company and oversaw Roadster product design, but was not deeply involved in day-to-day business operations. Following a series of escalating conflicts in 2007, and the financial crisis of 2007–2008 , Eberhard
13896-476: The State of Texas General Land Office (GLO) and Cameron County signed an agreement outlining how beach closures would be handled in order to support a future SpaceX launch schedule. The agreement is intended to enable both economic development in Cameron County and protect the public's right to have access to Texas state beaches. Under the 2013 Texas plan, beach closures would be allowed but were not expected to exceed
14089-675: The United States for the new commercial launch pad. Since then, the leading candidate location for the new facility was a parcel of land adjacent to Boca Chica Beach near Brownsville, Texas. By early 2013, Texas remained the leading candidate for the location of the new SpaceX commercial launch facility, although Florida, Georgia, and other locations remained in the running. Legislation was introduced in Texas to enable temporary closure of state beaches during launches, limit liability for noise and other commercial spaceflight risks, as well as considering
14282-485: The United States Department of Defense to pay for further units and future subscriptions on behalf of Ukraine, Musk publicly stated that SpaceX would continue to provide Starlink to Ukraine for free, at a yearly cost to itself of $ 400 million. At the same time, Musk refused to block Russian state media on Starlink, declaring himself "a free speech absolutist". In September 2023, Ukraine asked for
14475-520: The VIC-20 user manual. At age twelve, Elon sold his BASIC -based game Blastar to PC and Office Technology magazine for approximately $ 500. Musk attended Waterkloof House Preparatory School , Bryanston High School , and then Pretoria Boys High School , where he graduated. Musk was a good but not exceptional student, earning a 61 in Afrikaans and a B on his senior math certification. Musk applied for
14668-401: The first orbital test flight . SpaceX workers started building GSE tanks, cryogenic shells, Starship SN20, and Super Heavy Booster 4. As SN20 was completed, and Booster 4 and SN20 were rolled out to the launch site for a full stack. On August 6, 2021, SN20 was stacked on top of Booster 4 for fit checks and compatibility testing with the tower. SpaceX workers soon took SN20 and Booster 4 back to
14861-469: The first stage of a Falcon 9 on a land platform. Later landings were achieved on autonomous spaceport drone ships , an ocean-based recovery platform. In 2018, SpaceX launched the Falcon Heavy ; the inaugural mission carried Musk's personal Tesla Roadster as a dummy payload . Since 2019, SpaceX has been developing Starship , a fully-reusable , super-heavy-lift launch vehicle intended to replace
15054-547: The second integrated flight test on the 18th, but it resulted in the implosion of the Super Heavy booster due to oxygen line clogs leading to engine failures, while excessive oxygen venting forced the Starship upper stage to trigger its self-destruct. The launch infrastructure was deemed to be in good shape afterward. On March 14, 2024, the third integrated flight test was held, ending in the Super Heavy booster splashing down but at speeds too high to be considered acceptable, and
15247-547: The 370 t (370,000 kg; 820,000 lb) launch table, which had been custom built at the manufacturing site over the preceding months. Musk has commented that Stage Zero would be all that is necessary to both launch and catch the rocket, and that building it is at least as difficult as the booster or ship. As of August 2, 2021, launch mount and launch tower plumbing, electrical, and ground support equipment connections were yet to be completed. Soon after tests for Starships were paused, production started to ramp up for
15440-450: The 56-acre (230,000 m) lease. SpaceX's investments in Cameron County continued in March 2014, with the purchase of more tracts of land, bringing the total number of lots it owned to 90. Public records showed that the total land area that SpaceX then owned through Dogleg Park LLC was roughly 37 acres (150,000 m). This is in addition to 56.5 acres (229,000 m) that SpaceX then had under lease. By September 2014, Dogleg Park completed
15633-458: The Block 3 vehicle. These later versions may have up to 35 engines. The combined plume of the engines produces large shock diamonds in the exhaust during the ascent burn. During unpowered flight in the upper atmosphere, control authority is provided by cold gas thrusters fed with residual ullage gas . Four perpendicular vents are located within the interstage, placed at a 45 degree angle from
15826-465: The FAA, has a height of 150 m (490 ft). The Starship second stage will feature 9 Raptor engines, while the Super Heavy booster will have up to 35. It is planned to have a payload capacity of at least 200 tons to orbit when reused. Payloads are planned to be integrated into Starship at a separate facility and then rolled out to the launch site . Super Heavy and Starship are then to be stacked onto their launch mount and loaded with fuel via
16019-677: The Falcon 1 into orbit in 2008. Later that year, SpaceX received a $ 1.6 billion Commercial Resupply Services contract from NASA for 12 flights of its Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS), replacing the Space Shuttle after its 2011 retirement . In 2012, the Dragon vehicle docked with the ISS , a first for a commercial spacecraft. Working towards its goal of reusable rockets , in 2015 SpaceX successfully landed
16212-612: The Falcon 9 and the Falcon Heavy. In 2020, SpaceX launched its first crewed flight, the Demo-2 , becoming the first private company to place astronauts into orbit and dock a crewed spacecraft with the ISS. In 2024, NASA awarded SpaceX an $ 843 million contract to deorbit the ISS at the end of its lifespan. In 2015, SpaceX began development of the Starlink constellation of low-Earth-orbit satellites to provide satellite Internet access , with
16405-480: The Model 3 "production hell" in 2018. In 2022, Musk revealed plans to fire 10 percent of Tesla's workforce, due to his concerns about the economy. That same month, he suspended remote work at SpaceX and Tesla and threatened to fire employees who do not work 40 hours per week in the office. He laid off more than 10 percent of the Tesla workforce in early 2024. Musk's leadership has been praised by some, who credit it with
16598-466: The Moon, Starship will fire its engines to slow down. To land on bodies with an atmosphere, such as the Earth and Mars, Starship first slows by entering the atmosphere using a heat shield . The spacecraft would then perform a "belly-flop" maneuver by diving through the atmosphere at a 60° angle to the ground, controlling its fall using four flaps at the front and aft of the spacecraft. Shortly before landing,
16791-466: The Raptor engines fire, using fuel from the header tanks, to perform a "landing flip" maneuver to return to a vertical orientation, with the Raptor engines' gimbaling helping to maneuver the craft. The HLS and depot cannot reenter the atmosphere, as they lack a thermal protection system . If Starship's second stage lands on a pad, a mobile hydraulic lift will move it to a transporter vehicle. If it lands on
16984-563: The Roadster, an electric sports car, in 2008. With sales of about 2,500 vehicles, it was the first serial production all-electric car to use lithium-ion battery cells. Tesla began delivery of its four-door Model S sedan in 2012. A crossover , the Model X was launched in 2015. A mass-market sedan, the Model 3 , was released in 2017. In 2020, the Model 3 became the all-time bestselling plug-in electric car worldwide, and in June 2021 it became
17177-430: The SEC's allegations. As a result, Musk and Tesla were fined $ 20 million each, and Musk was forced to step down for three years as Tesla chairman but was able to remain as CEO. Shareholders filed a lawsuit over the tweet, and in February 2023, a jury found Musk and Tesla not liable. Musk has stated in interviews that he does not regret posting the tweet that triggered the SEC investigation. In 2019, Musk stated in
17370-460: The South Texas launch site would be used exclusively for Starship. By March 2019, two test articles of Starship were being built, and three by May. The low-altitude, low-velocity Starship test flight rocket was used for initial integrated testing of the Raptor rocket engine with a flight-capable propellant structure, and was slated to also test the newly designed autogenous pressurization system that
17563-656: The Soviet RD-270 project in the 1960s and the Aerojet Rocketdyne Integrated Powerhead Demonstrator in the mid-2000s. To improve performance, the engines burn super cooled propellant. The current version of the booster produces a total of 69.9 MN (15,700,000 lb f ) just over twice that of the Saturn V first stage , with this total being expected to increase to 80.8 MN (18,200,000 lb f ) for Block 2 boosters and later up to 98.1 MN (22,100,000 lb f ) with
17756-523: The Space Shuttle . The second-stage design had also settled on six Raptor engines by 2019: three optimized for sea-level and three optimized for vacuum . In 2019 SpaceX announced a change to the second stage's design, reducing the number of aft flaps from three to two in order to reduce weight. In March 2020 SpaceX released a Starship Users Guide, in which they stated the payload of Starship to LEO would be in excess of 100 t (220,000 lb), with
17949-479: The SpaceX total "from 72 undeveloped lots to 80 lots totaling about 26 acres." In late 2013, SpaceX completed a replat of 13 lots totaling 8.3 acres (34,000 m) into a subdivision that they have named " Mars Crossing ." In February 2014, they purchased 28 additional lots that surround the proposed complex at Boca Chica Beach, raising the SpaceX-owned land to approximately 36 acres (150,000 m) in addition to
18142-447: The Starship upper stage disintegrating upon atmospheric re-entry. The launch infrastructure again performed well, and SpaceX had noted their propellant filling processes were much faster by about 20 minutes. SpaceX Starship Starship is a two-stage fully reusable super heavy-lift launch vehicle under development by American aerospace company SpaceX . On April 20, 2023, with the first Integrated Flight Test , Starship became
18335-417: The Starship upper stage, is modified with a regeneratively cooled nozzle extension made of brazed steel tubes, increasing its expansion ratio to about 90 and its specific impulse in vacuum to 380 seconds (3.7 km/s). The main combustion chamber operates at a pressure of 350 bar (5,100 psi) exceeding that of any prior operational rocket engine. The Raptor's gimbaling range is 15°, higher than
18528-466: The Starship. Musk cited numerous reasons for the change of material; low cost and ease of manufacture, increased strength of stainless steel at cryogenic temperatures , as well as its ability to withstand high heat. In 2019, SpaceX began to refer to the entire vehicle as Starship, with the second stage also being called Starship , and the booster Super Heavy . They also announced that Starship would use reusable heat-shield tiles similar to those of
18721-480: The activation of Starlink satellites over Crimea to attack Russian naval vessels located at the port Sevastopol ; Musk denied the request, citing concerns that Russia would respond with a nuclear attack. Tesla, Inc. , originally Tesla Motors, was incorporated in July 2003 by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning . Both men played active roles in the company's early development prior to Musk's involvement. Musk led
18914-458: The area, making sure roadways stay open on certain days of the year, and actions to protect local sea turtle populations. Prior to a final decision on the location of the spaceport, SpaceX began purchasing a number of real estate properties in Cameron County, Texas, beginning in June 2012. By July 2014, SpaceX had purchased approximately 41 acres (170,000 m) and leased 57 acres (230,000 m) near Boca Chica Village and Boca Chica Beach through
19107-462: The booster throttles down its engines. The booster then rotates, before igniting ten additional engines for a "boostback burn" which stops all forward velocity. After the boostback burn, the booster's engines shut off with Super Heavy on a trajectory for a controlled descent to the launch site using its grid fins for minor course corrections. Roughly six minutes after launch, shortly before landing, it ignites its inner 13 engines, then shuts off all but
19300-489: The build-up of deposits in the engine from coking . Methane can also be produced from carbon dioxide and water using the Sabatier reaction . The engines are designed to be reused many times with little maintenance. Raptor operates with an oxygen-to-methane mixture ratio of about 3.6:1 , lower than the stoichiometric mixture ratio of 4:1 necessary for complete combustion, since operating at higher temperatures would melt
19493-399: The company began discussions with regulatory bodies and initiated construction of a 30-foot (9.1 m) wide, 50-foot (15 m) long, and 15-foot (4.6 m) deep "test trench" on the premises of SpaceX's offices, as that required no permits. The Los Angeles tunnel , less than two miles (3.2 km) in length, debuted to journalists in 2018. It used Tesla Model Xs and was reported to be
19686-413: The company had lost $ 24 billion in equity value, "a vaporization of wealth that has little parallel outside the realm of economic or industry-specific crashes, or devastating corporate scandals". Two years after the acquisition, Fidelity Investments estimated the value of its stake in X that implied the company had lost 79% of its value. Musk is often described as a micromanager and has called himself
19879-568: The company without board approval. Nevertheless, by the end of the month Musk had successfully concluded his bid for approximately $ 44 billion. This included about $ 12.5 billion in loans against his Tesla stock and $ 21 billion in equity financing . Tesla's stock market value sank by over $ 100 billion the next day in reaction to the deal. He subsequently tweeted to his 86 million followers criticism of Twitter executive Vijaya Gadde 's policies, which led to some of them engaging in sexist and racist harassment against her. Exactly
20072-423: The company's CEO and chief engineer. SpaceX attempted its first launch of the Falcon 1 rocket in 2006. Although the rocket failed to reach Earth orbit , it was awarded a Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program contract from NASA , now led by Michael D. Griffin as Administrator. After two more failed attempts that nearly caused Musk and his companies to go bankrupt, SpaceX succeeded in launching
20265-488: The control center and primary spaceship build yard. SpaceX broke ground on the new launch site in September 2014, but indicated then that the principal work to build the facility was not expected to ramp up until late 2015 after the SpaceX launch site development team completed work on Kennedy Space Center Launch Pad 39A , as the same team was expected to manage the work to build the Boca Chica facility. Advance preparation work
20458-401: The control center area had begun in 2014. The Texas launch location was projected in the 2013 draft EIS to include a 20 acres (81,000 m) vertical launch area and a 12.2 acres (49,000 m) area for a launch control center and a launch pad directly adjacent to the eastern terminus of Texas State Highway 4. Changes occurred based on actual land SpaceX was able to purchase and replat for
20651-614: The court ruled in Musk's favor. In 2016, Musk co-founded Neuralink , a neurotechnology startup company, with an investment of $ 100 million. Neuralink aims to integrate the human brain with artificial intelligence (AI) by creating devices that are embedded in the brain. Such technology could enhance memory or allow the devices to communicate with software. The company also hopes to develop devices with which to treat neurological conditions such as Alzheimer's disease , dementia , and spinal cord injuries . In 2019, Musk announced work on
20844-403: The demonstration, Musk revealed a pig with a Neuralink implant that tracked neural activity related to smell. In 2022, Neuralink announced that clinical trials would begin by the end of the year. Neuralink has conducted further animal testing on macaque monkeys at the University of California, Davis ' Primate Research Center . In 2021, the company released a video in which a Macaque played
21037-399: The destruction of one of SpaceX two Florida launch facilities in a September 2016 rocket explosion , which tied up the launch site design/build team for over a year. In order to stabilize the waterlogged ground at the coastal site, SpaceX engineers determined that a process known as soil surcharging would be required. For this to happen, some 310,000 cubic yards (240,000 m) of new soil
21230-516: The documents, Taibbi said he had found no evidence to support the allegation, and Twitter attorneys denied the allegation in a subsequent court filing. The United States House Committee on the Judiciary held hearings on the Twitter Files on March 9, 2023, at which Taibbi and Shellenberger gave testimony. In late 2022, Musk promised to step down as CEO after a Twitter poll posted by Musk found that
21423-516: The emeralds produced at three small mines". Errol was elected to the Pretoria City Council as a representative of the anti-apartheid Progressive Party and has said that his children shared their father's dislike of apartheid . Elon's maternal grandfather, Joshua N. Haldeman , was an American-born Canadian who took his family on record-breaking journeys to Africa and Australia in a single-engine Bellanca airplane; Haldeman died when Elon
21616-418: The engine. The propellants leave the pre-burners and get injected into the main combustion chamber as hot gases instead of liquid droplets allowing a higher power density as the propellants mix rapidly via diffusion . The methane and oxygen are at high enough temperatures and pressures that they ignite on contact , eliminating the need for igniters in the main combustion chamber. The engine structure itself
21809-452: The engines draw propellant from the main tanks, with the liquid oxygen being drawn from a dedicated header tank during the landing burn. Like the thrust vector control system, the engine shielding, which isolates individual engines in the event of a failure, was upgraded after Starship's first flight test, alongside the fire suppression system . This system uses CO 2 tanks to purge the individual engine compartments during flight, as well as
22002-418: The engines. The design of this manifold was changed when Super Heavy was upgraded from 29 engines to 33, with the more modern design featuring a dedicated methane sump instead of a direct distribution manifold. The oxygen tank terminates with the thrust structure of the vehicle. While the outer 20 engines are mounted to the walls of the aft bay, the inner thirteen are mounted directly to the thrust puck, which
22195-569: The feed until it found ads next to extremist posts. The Wall Street Journal reported in August 2024 that the $ 13 billion Musk borrowed to buy Twitter "is now considered the worst deal in merger finance that banks have participated in since the 2008 to '09 financial crisis ", adding that "the allure of banking Elon Musk, providing capital for him to buy a company, not only would reward them handsomely if things went according to plan" but "you can certainly say things have not gone according to plan". The Washington Post reported in September 2024 that
22388-672: The first electric car to sell 1 million units globally. A fifth vehicle, the Model Y crossover, was launched in 2020, and in December 2023, became the best-selling vehicle of any type, as well as the all-time best-selling electric car. The Cybertruck , an all-electric pickup truck, was unveiled in 2019, and delivered in November 2023. Under Musk, Tesla has also constructed multiple lithium-ion battery and electric vehicle factories, named Gigafactories . Since its initial public offering in 2010, Tesla stock has risen significantly; it became
22581-521: The first test flight, SpaceX began work on the launch mount to repair the damage it sustained during the test and to prevent future issues. The foundation of the launch tower was reinforced and a water powered flame deflector was built under the launch mount. Ship 25 and Booster 9 were rolled to the suborbital and orbital launch sites in May to undergo multiple tests. Elon Musk Elon Reeve Musk FRS ( / ˈ iː l ɒ n / ; born June 28, 1971)
22774-408: The first two prototype satellites launched in February 2018. A second set of test satellites, and the first large deployment of a piece of the constellation, occurred in May 2019, when the first 60 operational satellites were launched. The total cost of the decade-long project to design, build, and deploy the constellation was estimated by SpaceX in 2020 to be $ 10 billion. Some critics, including
22967-400: The flight profile posed a risk of explosion. FAA space division chief Wayne Monteith said SpaceX's violation was “inconsistent with a strong safety culture”, and criticized the company for proceeding with the launch "based on 'impressions' and 'assumptions,' rather than procedural checks and positive affirmations". On 2 February 2021, Starship SN9 launched to 10 km (6.2 mi) in
23160-558: The fuel needed for landing, and allow landing at destinations in the Solar System where runways do not exist (for example, Mars). Under the forward flaps, hardpoints are used for lifting and catching the spacecraft via mechanical arms. The flap's hinges are sealed in aero-covers because they would otherwise be easily damaged during reentry. Starship's heat shield is composed of eighteen thousand hexagonal black tiles that can withstand temperatures of 1,400 °C (2,600 °F). It
23353-553: The ground, its engines were hampered by low methane header tank pressure during the landing attempt, which led to a hard impact with the landing pad and subsequent explosion of the vehicle. Because SpaceX had violated its launch license and ignored warnings of worsening shock wave damage, the Federal Aviation Administration investigated the incident for two months. During the SN8 launch, SpaceX ignored FAA warnings that
23546-426: The hardpoints. Additionally, four "cowbell" vents are located just below the common dome, which point down towards the engines, though at a slight angle. The interstage is also equipped with four electrically actuated grid fins made of stainless steel, each with a mass of 3 t (6,600 lb). These grid fins are paired together, with the fins in each pair being 60 degrees apart from each other, differing from
23739-664: The hopper vehicle was flight tested with a single engine in July/August 2019, but could be fitted with up to three engines to facilitate engine-out tolerance testing. The launch site has been the main production and testing site of the Starship/Super Heavy system. All Starship vehicles have been constructed here except the Mk2 prototype, which was built in Florida but never completed, and eventually scrapped. By March 2020, SpaceX had doubled
23932-414: The inner 3, to perform a landing burn which slows it sufficiently to be caught by a pair of hydraulic actuating arms attached to the launch tower. The booster landing and catch was successfully demonstrated for the first time on October 13, 2024, with the landing of Booster 12. Meanwhile, the Starship spacecraft continues to accelerate to orbital velocity with its six Raptor engines. Once in orbit,
24125-404: The inner thirteen engines. On Booster 15, the header tank has at least nine additional tanks attached, increasing total propellant supply during the landing burn. These tanks may have been present on Boosters 12, 13, and 14, though this is unconfirmed. Booster 5 was the only 29 engine booster to receive a header tank, which was mounted to the side of the oxygen tank. It is unknown whether or not
24318-564: The interstage when flying Block 2 and Block 3 boosters, as the interstage will be directly integrated into the vehicle. The current Block 1 of the Starship spacecraft is 50.3 m (165 ft) tall, 9 m (30 ft) in diameter, and has 6 Raptor engines, 3 of which are optimized for use in outer space. The future Block 3 of the Starship spacecraft is planned to have an additional 3 Raptor Vacuum engines for increased payload capacity. Starship Block 1's payload bay, measuring 17 m (56 ft) tall by 8 m (26 ft) in diameter,
24511-593: The large number of oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico . SpaceX has stated that they have a good flight path available for the launching of satellites on trajectories toward the commercially valuable geosynchronous orbit . Although SpaceX initial plans for the Boca Chica launch site were to loft robotic spacecraft to geosynchronous orbits, Elon Musk indicated in September 2014 that "the first person to go to another planet could launch from [the Boca Chica launch site]", but did not indicate which launch vehicle might be used for those launches. In May 2018, Musk clarified that
24704-490: The late 2010s, and comprises a spaceport near the Gulf of Mexico , a production facility at Boca Chica village , and a test site along Texas State Highway 4 . When initially conceptualized in the early 2010s, its stated purpose was "to provide SpaceX an exclusive launch site that would allow the company to accommodate its launch manifest and meet tight launch windows ." The launch site was originally intended to support launches of
24897-789: The latter. His ownership of Twitter has been controversial because of the layoffs of large numbers of employees, an increase in hate speech , misinformation and disinformation posts on the website, and changes to website features, including verification . In early 2024, Musk became active in American politics as a vocal and financial supporter of Donald Trump, becoming Trump's second-largest individual donor in October 2024. In November 2024, Trump announced that he had chosen Musk along with Vivek Ramaswamy to co-lead Trump's planned Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) advisory board which will make recommendations on improving government efficiency through measures such as slashing "excess regulations" and cutting "wasteful expenditures". Elon Reeve Musk
25090-410: The launch facility. In July 2014, the FAA officially issued its Record of Decision concerning the Boca Chica Beach facility, and found that "the proposal by Elon Musk's Space Exploration Technologies would have no significant impact on the environment," approving the proposal and outlining SpaceX's proposal. The company formally announced selection of the Texas location in August 2014. In September 2013,
25283-402: The launch pad in a process said to take two years, with significant additional soil work and significant construction beginning in late 2018. By September 2019, the site had been "transformed into an operational launch site – outfitted with the ground support equipment needed to support test flights of the methane-fueled Starship vehicles." Lighter construction of fencing and temporary buildings in
25476-537: The launch, Musk had said that if the rocket were to get "far enough away from the launchpad before something goes wrong, then I think I would consider that to be a success." The South Texas Launch Site is SpaceX's fourth active launch facility, and its first private facility. As of 2019, SpaceX leased three US government -owned launch sites: Vandenberg SLC 4 in California , and Cape Canaveral SLC-40 and Kennedy Space Center LC39A both in Florida. The launch site
25669-503: The leadup to the 2020 presidential election . Comments on these internal documents by journalists Matt Taibbi , Bari Weiss , Michael Shellenberger and others were posted on Twitter as the Twitter Files . Musk and many Republicans alleged the documents showed the FBI had engaged in government censorship by ordering Twitter to suppress a New York Post story about the laptop. Upon review of
25862-399: The liquid oxygen turbopumps on all 33 Raptor engines, resulting in an explosion at the vehicle's base, which destroyed a pressure pipe and caused minor damage to the launchpad. By the end of November, Ship 24 had performed 2 static test fires, while Booster 7 had performed 6 static test fires and finally on 9 February 2023, a static fire with 31 engines at 50% throttle. In January 2023,
26055-439: The location for their SpaceX South Texas launch site . Site soil work began in 2015 and major construction of facilities began in late-2018, with rocket engine testing and flight testing beginning in 2019. The name Starbase began to be used more widely by SpaceX and news media after March 2021, when SpaceX had some discussions described as a "casual enquiry" about incorporating a city in Texas to be called Starbase . Separate from
26248-404: The merged company. His preference for Microsoft - over Unix -based software caused a rift among the company's employees, and eventually led Confinity co-founder Peter Thiel to resign. With the company suffering from compounding technological issues and the lack of a cohesive business model, the board ousted Musk and replaced him with Thiel in September 2000. Under Thiel, the company focused on
26441-513: The money he made from the Compaq acquisition. X.com was one of the first online banks that was federally insured , and over 200,000 customers joined in its initial months of operation. Musk's friends expressed skepticism about the naming of the online bank, fearing it might have been mistaken for a pornographic site. Musk brushed off their concerns, emphasizing that the name was meant to be straightforward, memorable, and easy to type. Additionally, he
26634-449: The money-transfer service and was renamed PayPal in 2001. In 2002, PayPal was acquired by eBay for $ 1.5 billion in stock, of which Musk—PayPal's largest shareholder with 11.7% of shares—received $ 176 million. In 2017, more than 15 years later, Musk purchased the X.com domain from PayPal for its "sentimental value". In 2022, Musk discussed a goal of creating "X, the everything app". In early 2001, Musk became involved with
26827-436: The most massive, most powerful, and tallest vehicle ever to fly. SpaceX has developed Starship with the intention of lowering launch costs using economies of scale , aiming to achieve this by reusing both rocket stages by "catching" them with the launch tower's systems, increasing payload mass to orbit, increasing launch frequency, mass-manufacturing the rockets and adapting it to a wide range of space missions. Starship
27020-501: The most valuable carmaker in summer 2020, and it entered the S&;P 500 later that year. In October 2021, it reached a market capitalization of $ 1 trillion, the sixth company in US history to do so. In November 2021, Musk proposed on Twitter to sell some of his Tesla stock. After more than 3.5 million Twitter accounts supported the sale, Musk sold $ 6.9 billion of Tesla stock within
27213-489: The need for secondary engine shielding. However, the first Block 2 vehicle, S33, received Raptor 2 engines. The capacity to manufacture Block 2 became possible as a large portion of the Starfactory was commissioned in 2024. Block 2 will be first flown on the seventh flight test . As of June 2024, the Block 3 final configuration is unknown. The most recent configuration, as described in regulatory filings submitted to
27406-500: The new SpaceX commercial spaceport facility. The Camden County, Georgia , Joint Development Authority voted unanimously in November 2012 to "explore developing an aerospaceport facility" at an Atlantic coastal site to support both horizontal and vertical launch operations. The main Puerto Rico site under consideration was the former Roosevelt Roads Naval Station . By September 2012, SpaceX was considering seven potential locations around
27599-600: The new launch site, which would be located in Cameron County, Texas . The summary then indicated that the Texas site would support up to 12 commercial launches per year, including two Falcon Heavy launches. The first public meeting was held in May 2012, and the FAA released a draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the location in South Texas in April 2013. Public hearings on the draft EIS occurred in Brownsville, followed by
27792-445: The nonprofit Mars Society and discussed funding plans to place a growth-chamber for plants on Mars . In October of the same year, he traveled to Moscow, Russia with Jim Cantrell , Adeo Ressi , and future NASA Administrator Michael D. Griffin to buy refurbished intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) that could send the greenhouse payloads into space. He met with the companies NPO Lavochkin and Kosmotras ; however, Musk
27985-451: The number of employees onsite for Starship manufacturing, test and operations since January, with over 500 employees working at the site. The employees work in four 12-hour shifts distributed throughout the day, with 4 days on, then 3 off for a given week, followed by 3 days on and 4 off for the next—to enable continuous Starship manufacturing with workers and equipment specialized to each task of serial Starship production. A 1 MW solar farm and
28178-706: The number of tanker launches required to fully fuel HLS, ranging from between "four and eight" to a number "in the high teens". These launches will reportedly have to be in "rapid succession" in order to manage schedule constraints and cryogenic fuel boil-off. When fully fueled, Starship HLS is designed to land 100 t (220,000 lb) of payload on the Moon. Raptor is a family of rocket engines developed by SpaceX for use in Starship and Super Heavy vehicles. It burns liquid oxygen and methane in an efficient and complex full-flow staged combustion power cycle. The Raptor engine uses methane as fuel rather than kerosene because methane gives higher performance and prevents
28371-420: The online city guide software company Zip2 . The startup was acquired by Compaq for $ 307 million in 1999. That same year, Musk co-founded X.com , a direct bank . X.com merged with Confinity in 2000 to form PayPal . In 2002, Musk acquired US citizenship , and that October eBay acquired PayPal for $ 1.5 billion. Using $ 100 million of the money he made from the sale of PayPal, Musk founded SpaceX,
28564-402: The pad might be used for "early vehicle testing" by late 2018 or early 2019 but that additional work would be required after that to make it into a full launch site. SpaceX achieved this new target, with prototype rocket and rocket engine ground testing at Boca Chica starting in March 2019, and suborbital flight tests starting in July 2019. In late 2018, construction ramped up considerably, and
28757-451: The platform's commitment to freedom of speech . Additionally, his ex-wife Talulah Riley had urged him to buy Twitter to stop the " woke-ism ". In January 2022, Musk started purchasing Twitter shares, reaching a 9.2% stake by April, making him the largest shareholder. When this was publicly disclosed, Twitter shares experienced the largest intraday price surge since the company's 2013 initial public offering . On April 4, Musk agreed to
28950-407: The production site. On April 20, 2023, Starbase hosted the first launch of the fully stacked Ship 24/Booster 7. The launch ended in an uncontrolled spin due to ignited propellant leaks in the engine control systems, and the rocket's flight termination system destroyed the vehicle four minutes after launch at 39 km (24 miles) altitude, without reaching the planned suborbital trajectory. Prior to
29143-407: The proposed Orbital Launch Mount B. In March 2021, SpaceX received a "Determination of no hazard to air navigation" from the FAA for the 146 m (479 ft) launch tower that SpaceX was building that to support orbital launches. The period of construction shown on the FAA documents was April–July 2021 but the expiration date on the regulatory approval was September 18, 2021. The launch tower
29336-452: The putative city, by early 2022, the Starbase moniker for the SpaceX facilities in South Texas had become common. The SpaceX site has also been called the "Gateway to Mars", including in a now removed sign outside the launch site. Starbase is also used sometimes to describe the region of the Boca Chica subdelta peninsula surrounding the SpaceX facilities; see Boca Chica (Texas) § Plans for
29529-525: The rocket spinning out of control. The vehicle reached a maximum altitude of 24 mi (39 km). Approximately 3 minutes after lift-off the rocket's autonomous flight termination system was activated, though the vehicle tumbled for another 40 seconds before disintegrating. The first flight test blasted large amounts of sand and soil in the air, reaching communities within a 10.7 km (6.6 mi) radius. A brushfire on nearby state parkland also occurred, burning 3.5 acres of state parkland. After
29722-411: The same flight path. The vehicle exploded during descent, possibly due to excess propellant in a Raptor's methane turbopump. In March 2021, the company disclosed a public construction plan for two sub-orbital launch pads, two orbital launch pads, two landing pads, two test stands, and a large propellant tank farm. The company soon proposed developing the surrounding Boca Chica Village, Texas , into
29915-518: The same maneuvers as older prototypes, and landed safely. SN15 had a fire in the engine area after landing but it was extinguished. According to a later report by SpaceX, SN15 experienced several issues while landing, including the loss of tank pressure and an engine. In June 2022, the Federal Aviation Administration determined that SpaceX must address more than 75 issues identified in the preliminary environmental assessment before integrated flight tests could start. In July 2022, Booster 7 tested
30108-479: The second stage "pushes off" from the first stage giving added thrust. The vented interstage contains a dome to shield the top of Super Heavy from the second stage's engines. Elon Musk in 2023 claimed that this change might result in a 10% increase in the payload to low Earth orbit . Beginning with Booster 11, the interstage is jettisoned after completion of the boostback burn, in order to reduce mass during descent. As of June 2024, SpaceX does not intend to jettison
30301-444: The ship quick disconnect (SQD) arm and booster quick disconnect (BQD). The SQD and BQD retract, all 33 engines of Super Heavy ignite, and the rocket lifts off. At approximately 159 seconds after launch at an altitude of roughly 64 km (40 mi), Super Heavy cuts off all but three of its center gimbaling rocket engines. Starship then ignites its engines while still attached to the booster, and separates. During hot-staging,
30494-498: The site saw the development of a large propellant tank farm including a 95,000 gallon horizontal liquid oxygen tank and 80,000 gallon liquid methane tank, a gas flare , more offices, and a small flat square launch pad. The Starhopper prototype was relocated to the pad in March 2019, and first flew in late July 2019. By September 2019, the facility had been transformed into a new phase of an industrial rocket build facility, with workers working multiple shifts and more than five days
30687-541: The site than the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy envisioned in the original 2014 environmental assessment. In May and August 2019, the FAA issued a written report with a decision that a new supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) would not be required. In May 2021, the FAA issued a written FAQ regarding the FAA's Environmental Review of SpaceX Starship/Super Heavy Operations at the Boca Chica Launch Site. Throughout 2022, Starship's first integrated flight test
30880-592: The site, and that "two years of dirt work" would be required before SpaceX could build the launch facility, with construction costs expected to be higher than previously estimated. The first phase of the soil stabilization process was completed by May 2016. Two 9 m (30 ft) S-band tracking station antennas were installed at the site in 2016–2017. They were formerly used to track the Space Shuttle during launch and landing and made operational as tracking resources for crewed Dragon missions in 2018. A SpaceX-owned 6.5-acre (26,000 m) photovoltaic power station
31073-489: The site. Between 2012 and 2014, SpaceX considered seven potential locations around the United States for the new commercial launch facility. For much of this period, a parcel of land adjacent to Boca Chica Beach near Brownsville, Texas, was the leading candidate location, during an extended period while the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) conducted an extensive environmental assessment on
31266-468: The site. The development of Starship has resulted in several lawsuits against the FAA and SpaceX from environmental groups. Some conservationists have expressed concern over the impact of Starship's development in Boca Chica, Texas, on species like the critically endangered Kemp's ridley sea-turtle , nearby wildlife habitats and national-refuge land. Private discussions between SpaceX and state officials about
31459-422: The south. The expansion could see the addition of two suborbital test stands along with one orbital launch pad named Orbital Launch Mount B. The expansion could also include a new landing pad, an expansion to the existing tank farm, a new tank farm situated next to the proposed Orbital Launch Mount B, expanded Suborbital Pad B decking and two integration towers situated to under-construction Orbital Launch Mount A and
31652-413: The spacecraft following reentry . A set of reaction control thrusters , which use the pressure in the fuel tank, control attitude while in space. The spacecraft has four body flaps to control the spacecraft's orientation and help dissipate energy during atmospheric entry , composed of two forward flaps and two aft flaps. According to SpaceX, the flaps replace the need for wings or tailplane , reduce
31845-405: The spacecraft is planned to be able to be refueled by another Starship tanker variant. Musk has estimated that 8 launches would be needed to completely refuel a Starship in low Earth orbit. NASA has estimated that 16 launches in short succession (due to cryogenic propellant boil-off) would be needed to partially refuel Starship for one lunar landing. To land on bodies without an atmosphere, such as
32038-422: The tanks. The booster's tanks hold 3,400 t (7,500,000 lb) of propellant, consisting of 2,700 t (6,000,000 lb) of liquid oxygen and 700 t (1,500,000 lb) of liquid methane. The methane tank has a camera installed in the forward dome, enabling images of the interior of the tank. Fuel is fed to the engines via a single downcomer, which terminates in a large distribution manifold above
32231-423: The thrust puck/aft dome assembly. These engines are equipped with gimbal actuators , and reignite for the boostback and landing burns. After Starship's first flight test , this gimbaling system was switched from a hydraulic system to an electric one, enabling the removal of the hydraulic power units. This change was made to the upper stage after the second flight test . During the ascent burn and boostback burns,
32424-410: The top of the tower. The launch mount ("Stage Zero") began construction in July 2020, when the rebar of the deep foundation began to rise above the ground. Soon six large steel circular launch supports were erected which would eventually support the massive weight of the launch table some ten months later. The mount was built to full height on July 31, 2021, with the rollout and craning into place of
32617-471: The top of this tank was ever completed, as a forward dome was never spotted. The methane downcomer is partially contained within the header tank, as the methane sump is located directly below it. On Booster 7 and all subsequent vehicles, four chines are located on the sides of the oxygen tank, protecting the COPVs and CO 2 tanks for fire suppression , as well as providing lift during descent. Super Heavy
32810-400: The use of the Texas location as a launch site. Also during this period, SpaceX began acquiring land in the area, purchasing approximately 41 acres (170,000 m) and leasing 57 acres (230,000 m) by July 2014. SpaceX announced in August 2014 that they had selected the location near Brownsville as the location for the new non-governmental launch site, after the final environmental assessment
33003-502: The video game Pong via a Neuralink implant. The company's animal trials—which have caused the deaths of some monkeys—have led to claims of animal cruelty . The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine has alleged that Neuralink's animal trials have violated the Animal Welfare Act . Employees have complained that pressure from Musk to accelerate development has led to botched experiments and unnecessary animal deaths. In 2022,
33196-609: The wealthy South African Musk family , Musk was born in Pretoria and briefly attended the University of Pretoria before immigrating to Canada at the age of 18, acquiring citizenship through his Canadian-born mother. Two years later, he matriculated at Queen's University at Kingston in Canada. Musk later transferred to the University of Pennsylvania and received bachelor's degrees in economics and physics. He moved to California in 1995 to attend Stanford University but never enrolled in classes, and with his brother Kimbal co-founded
33389-399: The whole Starship stack underwent a full wet dress rehearsal . After a launch attempt aborted on 17 April 2023, Booster 7 and Ship 24 lifted off on 20 April at 13:33 UTC in the first orbital flight test. Three engines were disabled during the launch sequence and several more failed during the flight. The booster later lost thrust vectoring control of the Raptor engines, which led to
33582-461: Was accepted to a graduate program in materials science at Stanford University , but did not enroll. Musk decided to join the Internet boom , applying for a job at Netscape , to which he reportedly never received a response. The Washington Post reported that Musk lacked legal authorization to remain and work in the United States after failing to enroll at Stanford. In response, Musk claimed he
33775-459: Was allowed to work at that time and that his student visa transitioned to an H1-B . According to numerous former business associates and shareholders, Musk claimed he was on a student visa at the time. In 1995, Musk, his brother Kimbal, and Greg Kouri founded Global Link Information Network, later renamed Zip2 . The company developed an Internet city guide with maps, directions, and yellow pages , and marketed it to newspapers. They worked at
33968-536: Was born on June 28, 1971, in Pretoria , South Africa's administrative capital. He is of British and Pennsylvania Dutch ancestry. His mother, Maye ( née Haldeman ), is a model and dietitian born in Saskatchewan , Canada, and raised in South Africa. His father, Errol Musk, is a South African electromechanical engineer , pilot, sailor, consultant, emerald dealer, and property developer, who partly owned
34161-464: Was carried out from Starbase. In May 2023, a few weeks after retiring from NASA , ex-head of human spaceflight Kathy Lueders joined SpaceX to oversee operations at Starbase to "give government customers comfort and confidence that Starship is going to be a *real thing* around which they can base future plans and operations." On November 11, 2023, SpaceX announced that they were targeting November 17th for their next Starship launch date. They conducted
34354-530: Was completed and environmental agreements were in place by July 2014. In 2023, the Integrated Flight Test-1 of Starship made it SpaceX's fourth orbital-class launch facility , following three launch locations that are leased from the US government . SpaceX conducted a groundbreaking ceremony on the new launch facility in September 2014, and soil preparation began in October 2015. The first tracking antenna
34547-495: Was delayed extensively, due to delays in the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issuing a license, to allow findings on environmental impact. On June 13, 2022, the FAA announced that Starbase was not creating a significant impact on the environment, yet listed more than 75 actions to be taken before review for an orbital launch license. Some of these actions included a $ 5,000 contribution to wildlife nonprofits in
34740-507: Was destroyed in November 2019 during a pressure stress test and Mk2's Florida facility was deconstructed throughout 2020. After the Mk prototypes, SpaceX began naming its new Starship upper-stage prototypes with the prefix "SN", short for " serial number ". No prototypes between SN1 and SN4 flew either—SN1 and SN3 collapsed during pressure stress tests, and SN4 exploded after its fifth engine firing. In June 2020, SpaceX started constructing
34933-411: Was expected to commence ahead of that. As of 2014, SpaceX anticipated spending approximately US$ 100 million over three to four years to build the Texas facility, while the Texas state government expected to spend US$ 15 million to extend utilities and infrastructure to support the new spaceport. The design phase for the facility was completed by March 2015. In the event, construction was delayed by
35126-414: Was fond of the email addresses derived from it, such as "e@x.com". Although Musk founded the company, investors regarded him as inexperienced and replaced him with Intuit CEO Bill Harris by the end of the year. In 2000, X.com merged with the online bank Confinity to avoid competition, as the latter's money-transfer service PayPal was more popular than X.com's service. Musk then returned as CEO of
35319-421: Was fully stacked by late July 2021, when a crane lifted the ninth and final large steel section to the top of the tower at the orbital launch site (OLS). The tower is designed to have a set of large arms attached which is used to stack both Super Heavy and the Starship second stage on the adjacent launch mount and, eventually, catch the rocket on return to the launch site. There is no separate large crane attached to
35512-469: Was installed in August 2016, and the first propellant tank arrived in July 2018. In late 2018, construction ramped up considerably, and the site saw the fabrication of the first 9 m-diameter (30 ft) prototype test vehicle , Starhopper , which was tested and flown March–August 2019. Through 2021, additional prototype flight vehicles were being built at the facility for higher-altitude tests. By late 2023, over 2,100 full-time employees were working at
35705-434: Was installed on site to provide off-grid electrical power near the control center, The solar farm was installed by SolarCity in January 2018. Progress on building the pad had slowed considerably through 2017, much slower than either SpaceX or Texas state officials had expected when it was announced in 2014. Support for SpaceX, however, remained fairly strong amongst Texas public officials. In January 2018, COO Shotwell said
35898-481: Was interested in investing in India "as soon as humanly possible". In 2018, Musk was sued by the SEC for a tweet stating that funding had been secured for potentially taking Tesla private. The lawsuit characterized the tweet as false, misleading, and damaging to investors, and sought to bar Musk from serving as CEO of publicly traded companies . Two days later, Musk settled with the SEC, without admitting or denying
36091-434: Was ousted from the firm. Musk assumed leadership of the company as CEO and product architect in 2008. A 2009 lawsuit settlement with Eberhard designated Musk as a Tesla co-founder, along with Tarpenning and two others. As of 2019, Musk was the longest-tenured CEO of any automotive manufacturer globally. In 2021, Musk nominally changed his title to "Technoking" while retaining his position as CEO. Tesla began delivery of
36284-416: Was proven on August 23, 2022, when Booster 7 was lifted onto OLM A. The first catch of a booster occurred on October 13, 2024, using Booster 12. After the first Starship test flight , all boosters have an additional 1.8 m tall vented interstage to enable hot staging . During hot staging, Super Heavy shuts down all but the 3 center engines, while the second stage fires its engines before separating, thus
36477-597: Was said to be "non-negotiable." Homeowners were given two weeks for this particular offer to remain valid. In January 2024, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department announced a proposal to transfer 43 acres of Boca Chica State Park lands to SpaceX, in exchange for 477 new acres to be added to the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge . Major site construction at SpaceX's launch site in Boca Chica got underway in 2016, with site soil preparation for
36670-466: Was seen as a novice and the group returned to the United States without an agreement to purchase Russian launch services. In February 2002, the group returned to Russia to look for three ICBMs. They had another meeting with Kosmotras and were offered one rocket for $ 8 million, which Musk rejected. He instead decided to start a company that could build affordable rockets. With $ 100 million of his own money, Musk founded SpaceX in May 2002 and became
36863-503: Was still a toddler. Elon has recounted trips to a wilderness school that he described as a "paramilitary Lord of the Flies " where "bullying was a virtue" and children were encouraged to fight over rations. After his parents divorced in 1980, Elon chose to live primarily with his father. Elon later regretted his decision and became estranged from his father. Elon attended Bryanston High School . In one incident, after an altercation with
37056-591: Was the second largest provider of solar power systems in the United States. In 2014, Musk promoted the idea of SolarCity building an advanced production facility in Buffalo , New York, triple the size of the largest solar plant in the United States. Construction of the factory started in 2014 and was completed in 2017. It operated as a joint venture with Panasonic until early 2020. Tesla acquired SolarCity for $ 2 billion in 2016 and merged it with its battery unit to create Tesla Energy . The deal's announcement resulted in
37249-433: Was trucked to the facility between October 2015 and January 2016. In January 2016, following additional soil testing that revealed foundation problems, SpaceX indicated they were not planning to complete construction until 2017, and the first launch from Boca Chica was not expected until late 2018. In February 2016, SpaceX President and COO Gwynne Shotwell stated that construction had been delayed by poor soil stability at
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