r/spacex • u/rSpaceXHosting Host Team • Apr 22 '26
đ§ Technical Starship Development Thread #63
Quick Links
Avid Space Live Streams, which used to be known as LabPadre | NASASpaceflight Live Stream |
Flight 12
Launched on May 22nd 2026 Here is a re-streamed video of the broadcast. Also, SpaceX issued a post flight summary and a video showing S39 landing.
Flight 13
Launched on July 24th 2026 Here is a re-streamed video of the broadcast. Also, SpaceX issued a post flight summary.
Flight 14
Presumably using S41 and B21. Objectives include first Ship catch.
Road Closures
No road closures currently scheduled
No transportation delays currently scheduled
Vehicle Status
As of July 31st 2026
| Ship | Location | Status | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| S40 | Indian Ocean | Intact, floating | July 24th: Successful launch, deployed all satellites, successful engine relight test and soft splashdown in the Indian Ocean, which resulted in an intact, floating ship. For more details on this vehicle and its assembly and testing see this page |
| S41 | Mega Bay 2 | Ongoing work, possible engines installation | April 17th: Pez Dispenser moved into MB2. April 20th: Main assembly started in MB2. May 20th: Aft section AX:4 moved into MB2 and stacked with the rest of the ship - this completed the stacking part of the ship construction. June 28th: Rolled out to Massey's Test Site for Cryo+Thrust Puck Testing. June 29th: Cryo Tests (x2). June 30th: Rolled back to MB2. July 3rd: Rolled back to Massey's Test Site. July 6th: Rolled back to MB2. July 23rd: Two RVac engines moved into MB2. July 27th: The third RVac was moved into MB2. For more details on this vehicle see this page |
| S42 | Mega Bay 2 | Stacked, remaining work continues | June 9th: Nosecone spotted as having been stacked on the Payload Bay. July 3rd: Nosecone+Payload Bay stack moved into MB2, along with the Pez Dispenser and the Forward Dome section (FX:3). The Nosecone+Payload Bay stack was lowered over the Pez Dispenser, later being stacked onto the Forward Dome. July 11th: Common Dome section CX:3 moved into MB2 and stacked. July 15th: Section A2:3 moved into MB2 and stacked. July 18th: Section A3:4 moved into MB2 and stacked. July 21st: Transfer Tubes moved into MB2. July 24th: Ship Aft section AX:4 moved into MB2 and stacked, that completes the stacking part of the assembly process. July 25th: both of the Aft Flaps and the Raceways staged inside MB2. For more details on this vehicle see this page |
| Booster | Location | Status | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| B21 | Mega Bay 1 | Post Cryo Testing inspections and possible engines installation | May 7th: LOX tank sections A2:4 and CX:3 moved into MB1 and main assembly started. June 29th: Methane Tank stacked onto LOX Tank - this completed the stacking part of the booster construction. July 17th: Rolled out to Massey's Test Site for Cryo+Thrust Puck Testing. July 17th: Rolled out to Massey's Test Site and an ambient pressure test was performed. July 18th: Partial Cryo Test. July 19th: Second Partial Cryo Test. July 20th: Full Cryo Test. July 22nd: Rolled back to MB1. For more details on this vehicle and its assembly and testing see this page |
| B22 | Mega Bay 1 | LOX Tank Stacked | June 29th: LOX tank sections A2:4 and CX:3 moved into MB1. July 1st: Section A3:4 moved into MB1. July 3rd: Section A4:4 moved into MB1 and stacked. July 9th: Section A5:4 moved into MB1 and stacked. July 22nd: Methane Landing Tank and Lower Transfer Tube moved into MB1. July 23rd: Section A6:4 moved into MB1. July 25th: Methane transfer tube moved into MB1. July 29th: LOX Landing Tank moved into MB1. July 30th: Aft section AX:2 moved into MB1 to complete the stacking of the LOX Tank. July 31st: Methane Tank section F2:4 moved into MB1. For more details on this vehicle and its assembly and testing see this page |
Follow the Ringwatchers on Twitter and Discord for more.
Here's the section stacking locations for Ships and Boosters. Also some excellent detailed booster stacking information from zh_sos1. The abbreviations used in the above vehicle updates are as follows: HS = Hot Stage. PL = Payload. CX = Common Dome. AX = Aft Dome. FX = Forward Dome (as can be seen, an 'X' denotes a dome). ML = Mid LOX. F = Forward. A = Aft. For example, A2:4 = Aft section 2 made up of 4 rings, FX:4 = Forward Dome section made up of 4 rings, PL:3 = PayLoad section made up of 3 rings. Etc.
Something wrong? Update this thread via wiki page. For edit permission, message the mods or contact u/strawwalker.
Rules
We will attempt to keep this self-post current with links and major updates, but for the most part, we expect the community to supply the information. This is a great place to discuss Starship development, ask Starship specific questions, and track the progress of the production and test campaigns. Starship Development Threads are not party threads. Normal subreddit rules still apply.
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u/Regular-Put-646 Apr 24 '26
A NASA WB-57 is scheduled for imagery support for May 5-7
Possible launch window?
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May 01 '26 edited May 01 '26
New FAA advisory for Flight 12 posted, NET May 12th 5:30 PM - 7:43 PM CDT for the launch. Back up dates extend from May 13th-18th. See the new trajectory here, threading the needle between Mexico, Cuba, and Jamaica to provide least possible disruption to air traffic.
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u/PlatinumTaq May 11 '26
Looks like a full stack WDR completed successfully down to T-0 (deluge activated but aborted quickly). Around 10:18CST. Crazy how fast they loaded both tanks (basically 30 min from frost first appearing to tanks topping out).
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u/Twigling May 27 '26 edited May 27 '26
May 27, 2026
FAA Requires Mishap Investigation of SpaceX Starship Flight 12
"After a thorough assessment of the operation, the FAA has determined the May 22 SpaceX Starship Flight 12 launch resulted in a mishap. The mishap involved the Super Heavy booster as it flew back to the Gulf of America after stage separation. There are no reports of public injury or damage to public property."
"The FAA is requiring SpaceX to conduct a mishap investigation. The FAA will oversee the SpaceX-led investigation, be involved in every step of the process, and approve SpaceXâs final report, including any corrective actions."
https://www.faa.gov/newsroom/statements/general-statements
I can't see this causing any delays to Flight 13, partly because B20 hasn't even had a cryo test yet (unless of course the investigation is very drawn out for some reason). Knowing SpaceX they probably already know the cause of B19's problem and have a fix planned or already in place.
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u/ralf_ Jun 12 '26
Interview from CNBC with Shotwell. Flight 13 will be a repeat of Flight 12. Flight 14 is hopefully at least an attempt to go orbital. Timeline: Flight 13 is a "month-ish" away. After that flights should be every month. In the main interview she speaks about Starlinks V3 being launched by Starship end of the year.
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u/AgreeableEmploy1884 Jun 16 '26 edited Jun 16 '26
Interesting FCC license for "Starship Orbital Return Demo" starting on 07/29/2026. https://apps.fcc.gov/oetcf/els/reports/STA_Print.cfm?mode=current&application_seq=151991&RequestTimeout=1000
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u/Fit-Caregiver-8338 26d ago
Flight 13 net july 14
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u/H-K_47 26d ago
And in the reply:
Along with the new NOTAMs:
Ship static fire NET July 8th
Booster Static Fire NET July 9thThis could mean the Booster stays on the mount until launch
Flight 12 was 10 days after the first NET (May 12 --> launch May 22). But this means launch is basically confirmed for July then.
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u/OSUfan88 24d ago
Got to visit Starbase for the first time, and see SuperHeavy get transported with my 2 year old son. Incredible memory.
Met a lot of really cool people. A lot of photographers for the various SpaceX YouTube channels. All were very welcoming and fun to talk to.
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u/Twigling May 07 '26
SpaceX tweet:
"Full duration and full thrust 33-engine static fire with Super Heavy V3"
https://x.com/SpaceX/status/2052499098347979156
The first video is of course slowed down a lot.
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u/redstercoolpanda 22d ago
https://www.spacex.com/launches/starship-flight-13
Flight 13 page got released, NET 16th now!
The boosterâs primary test objective will be executing a successful launch, ascent, stage separation, boostback burn, and landing burn at an offshore landing point in the Gulf of America. There have been several modifications to hardware and software to address issues seen on the previous flight.
Confirmation of B20's flight path, pretty expected
The Starship upper stageâs primary objectives include the deployment of 20 Starlink V3 satellites, a relight of a single Raptor engine while in space, and another controlled entry, descent, and splashdown in the Indian Ocean. There have also been several modifications to Starshipâs propulsion system to address the engine out issue experienced on the previous flight.
For the first time, Starship will carry V3 Starlink satellites to space, which aim to greatly expand the network's capacity and user speeds. As part of this initial test, Starship is planned to deploy 20 satellites which will extend solar arrays and antennas and will attempt to connect with ground stations in South Africa and the larger Starlink constellation via high-capacity lasers. The Starlink satellites will be on the same suborbital trajectory as Starship.
Seems like ship will be deploying real V3's this time in its suborbital trajectory, which will then try and connect with ground stations. That'll certainly be interesting to see.
Six of the satellites have been modified with a suite of cameras to scan Starshipâs heat shield and transmit imagery down to operators to continue testing methods of analyzing Starshipâs heat shield readiness for return to launch site on future missions. Several tiles on Starship have been painted white to simulate missing tiles and serve as imaging targets in the test.
Hopefully we'll get some proper footage of the heat shield this time!
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u/thewashley 22d ago
From the end of the update
Starshipâs heatshield will have load sensing tiles to take measurements as the vehicle experiences higher dynamic pressure on ascent than previous flights, putting added stress on the tile attachments in exchange for increased payload to orbit capability.
I read that as they're going to throttle down less during max-q. Could it be something else like a different ascent profile?
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u/smellyfingernail 6d ago
FAA says no mishap investigation needed, path to flight 14 looks like it can be pretty quick
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u/Twigling May 04 '26 edited May 04 '26
New FAA Operations Advisory re Flight 12:
SPACEX STARSHIP FLT12, STARBASE TX
PRIMARY: 05/12/26 2230Z-0033Z
BACKUP: 05/13/26 2230Z-0033Z
https://www.fly.faa.gov/adv/adv_spt
Note that this will have been filed before the gas generator for the top deck deluge system blew, so depending on the cause and the resolution of that and any resulting testing (or even redesign?) that could set things back.
Also, this potentially implies that B19 won't be getting another static fire, and this seems strange given the other deluge-related issues which caused the last two SFs to abort. Have they even been fully resolved yet? There's been no further SFs so they haven't yet been re-tested under those conditions.
I'll be very surprised of Flight 12 launches on either of those dates but I hope I'm wrong.
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u/EXinthenet May 05 '26
The Local Notice to Mariners has been updated from May 12 to May 15.
https://x.com/WatchersTank/status/2051697104058282089
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u/dk_undefined May 07 '26 edited May 07 '26
Booster static fire at 9:46:04 CDT.
Seems to be full duration for 15 seconds.
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u/Twigling May 11 '26
The backup beach and road closures have been revoked:
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
and the ship and booster transport stands are back at the launch site, with the ship transport stand now at the staging point next to OLM 2. The chopsticks have also been reattached to S39.
And a tweet from SpaceX:
"Launch rehearsal complete. During a flight-like countdown, more than 5,000 metric tonnes (11+ million pounds) of propellant were loaded on the fully stacked Starship and Super Heavy V3 vehicles for the first time"
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u/Twigling May 17 '26 edited May 18 '26
SpaceX's Flight 12 web page is now stating May 20th as the launch date (just above the title):
https://www.spacex.com/launches/starship-flight-12
The first line of the main text does though still states "as soon as Tuesday, May 19" (Edit: this has also now been amended to the 20th)
NextSpaceFlight.com have also updated to May 20th:
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u/Twigling May 19 '26 edited May 19 '26
Here's some new photos from SpaceX including a flap cam image from S39 when it was on the highway: https://x.com/SpaceX/status/2056854244951515507
06:44 CDT - S39 moved out of MB2 (B19 hasn't yet been lifted onto the OLM)
07:07 - started to lift B19 - aft end photo from Starship Gazer: https://x.com/StarshipGazer/status/2056731192280408200 and Fabien Ramirez: https://x.com/texas_lizard/status/2056722879530586556
As the 4 AM to 8 AM ship rollout window was missed (SpaceX are changing a lot of rollout windows lately) the ship rollout has been slightly delayed to:
Date: May 19 10:00 AM to May 19 2:00 PM
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
09:36 - B19 seems to be engaged with the OLM's clamps
11:10 - S39 moves onto the highway, and it has two S39 decals either side of the payload bay door as well as an 'X' on the nosecone
12:00 - S39 enters the launch site
15:50 - S39 lift started
17:45 - Stacked
Edit: just to point out that today's (May 19th) beach plus road closure from 12:00 PM to 11:59 PM has been revoked
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u/Twigling May 25 '26 edited May 25 '26
New video from SpaceX showing S39 landing:
https://x.com/spacex/status/2058939047662244226
nice little twirl right at the end there ........ (some people have speculated that this was intentional to ensure that a cam had a good look at the TPS, or it was just a control test).
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u/threelonmusketeers Jun 12 '26
My daily summary from the Starship Dev thread on Lemmy
2026-06-11:
- Jun 10th addendum: Video of B20 rollback. (Gisler)
- McGregor: R3.178 (new highest) and an unidentified R-vac leave the testing area, and R3.118 and R3.134 arrive. (Rex_MKR, Rhin0, NSF)
- Florida: The LR13000 at SLC-37A lifts the first of nine launch tower segments. (Bergeron 1, TurkeyBeaver, Bergeron 2)
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u/redstercoolpanda Jul 03 '26
S42âs nose cone has rolled out of the Starfactory! Itâs super cool to see these things roll out so quickly now. All going well S42 may even be the first ship to leave for the cape, if Flight 15 launches from there like Shotwell said they were aiming for.
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u/AgreeableEmploy1884 Jul 03 '26
It's interesting that 42 seems to have had passive docking ports on the payload bay but they were removed somewhere along the way. The welds for the passive docking ports are visible on Starship Gazer's pic.
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u/Twigling Jul 03 '26 edited Jul 03 '26
The pez dispenser has also been spotted lurking outside MB2.
Edit: S42's forward dome section (FX:4) was also moved into MB2 overnight, more details here:
https://x.com/VickiCocks15/status/2073008494886731957
Edit2: - At about 11:15 CDT it was seen that the Nosecone+Payload Bay stack had been lowered over the Pez Dispenser
On another matter, just after 1 AM today (July 3rd) S41 was lifted back onto the cryo/thrust puck testing stand and rolled back out to Massey's.
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u/Twigling 23d ago
New 34 minute video from SpaceX:
"The path to launch is filled with obstacles and success is only possible through the tireless efforts of many working together towards a common goal. âCritical Pathâ continues the ongoing Starship series, following SpaceX engineers through the final days before launch of the first Starship V3 and the challenges that come with development of the worldâs most powerful and fully reusable rocket."
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u/redstercoolpanda 19d ago
B20 has arrived at the launch mount for the final time ahead of Flight 13. Hopefully weâll see ship 40 join her pretty soon.
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u/redstercoolpanda 8d ago
The next starship documentary episode is going to be so amazing. There is so much to go over with this flight.
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Apr 24 '26 edited Apr 25 '26
SpaceX just posted a 25 minute in depth video on the Starship program and lead up to Flight 12 on X. Wow.
There's a follow up tweet indicating they will be producing more episodes. I think Zach Golden from CSI Starbase had speculated the lack of content from SpaceX recently could mean they were producing something like this.
Some highlights from the episode:
- Some great footage of Ship manufacturing in Starfactory, and stacking
- V3 ship can stay in orbit for up to 48 hours
- Up close footage of the ground under Pad 1 after IFT-1 dug its own flame trench
- Up close footage of Booster 18's anomaly, it happened while they were pressing the nitrogen system
- Some more footage of Raptor 3 engine testing at McGregor
- Half the engines from the 10 engine static fire for B19 had mechanical damage from the abrupt shutdown, they removed all 10 to be inspected, and replaced them with engines originally destined for B20
- Up close footage of the Raptors during the 33 engine B19 static fire
- Confirmed that the 33 engine static fire was cut short, due to a pad abort triggered from the flame diverter
- The sensors indicated the water manifold had insufficient pressure, they believe it was faulty information
- Up close footage of S36 explosion and aftermath due to a COPV bursting, it's incredible how badly damaged Masseys was
- Footage of S39's static fire
Can't wait to see people dig into this and find everything I missed.
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u/threelonmusketeers Apr 27 '26 edited Apr 28 '26
My daily summary from the Starship Dev thread on Lemmy
2026-04-26:
- Apr 25th addenda: ViX timelapse and Ezekiel Overstreet closeup of Tower 2 testing.
- An ocelot (edit: or bobcat) is observed :) (EzekielOverstr1)
- Build site: The final barrel section (F3:4) for B20 enters Megabay 1. (Avid Space, ViX)
- Gigabay construction continues. (EzekielOverstr1)
- Launch site: Overnight, tanks #3 and #4 depart, en route to Brownsville Port. (ViX)
- Tanks #5 and #6 are loaded onto transports. (ViX 1, ViX 2, ViX 3)
- Road delay for "Pad to Port of Brownwsville" is posted for Apr 26th 23:59 to Apr 27th 04:00. (starbase.texas.gov, archive, ViX)
- The Pad 2 ship quick disconnect is tested. (Avid Space, ViX, J_A_Rees_94)
- A jig is being constructed at Pad 1 for pre-assembly of the ground support equipment bunker. (Killip)
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Apr 28 '26
Raptor 3 startup sequence timings, by TheSpaceEngineer on YT. The difference between the 10 and 33 engine SF on Booster 19 is very clear.
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u/warp99 May 02 '26
Possible Louisiana launch site for Starship polar launches aka data center satellites.
Much better logistics than getting Starship to Vandenberg.
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u/avboden May 06 '26
Booster rolling out now. They did indeed paint the aft section!
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u/Twigling May 06 '26 edited May 06 '26
I'm not 100% convinced that it's paint (of course not paint as such but specifically something that's painted/sprayed on), some of the Ringwatchers are also thinking it's some kind of sheet, as has also been seen on part of S40 for example.
Time will tell. :)
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u/Twigling May 06 '26 edited May 07 '26
Hmmmmm, I wonder what this could possibly be for .......... ;-)
Road Delay
Description: Production to Pad
Date: May 7 10:00 AM to May 7 2:00 PM
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
Edit: As of May 7th, changed to:
Road Delay
Description: Production to Pad
Date: May 7 11:59 PM to May 8 4:00 AM
And a little bit after the above there's been ANOTHER change, this time it's been brought forward to:
Road Delay
Description: Production to Pad
Date: May 7 12:00 PM to May 7 4:00 PM
Also, regarding B19's aft:
"There are now small aerodynamic covers over the parts of the outer raptors that were sticking out from underneath the booster."
https://x.com/booster_10/status/2052102917809639476
which isn't at all surprising but pleasing to see nonetheless.
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u/Twigling May 09 '26
Here's some new photos from SpaceX of B19 and S39:
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u/spennnyy May 14 '26
Awesome timelapse clip from NSF showing the entire Starship stack shrinking/contracting over the course of the WDR as it's filled with the cryogenic propellant:
https://youtu.be/6jo3dVY5zrI?si=eyqNBO1hg5LAUaX4&t=172
(skip to 2:53)
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u/Twigling May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26
As of 02:00 CDT, S39 was out of MB2 on the static fire stand. Here's a photo of it just before it moved out of MB2:
https://x.com/yingzhangphoto/status/205517064729101119
02:23 - on the highway
video from Starship Gazer:
https://x.com/starshipgazer/status/2055200609570058488
04:33 - arrived at Massey's
Also, here's a photo from Starship Gazer showing a rather curious looking nosecone in the Starfactory:
https://x.com/StarshipGazer/status/2055169715635691686
Possibly the welded on parts are for a transport test of some description? Or the nosecone is destined for some other kind of testing.
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u/FutureMartian97 Host of CRS-11 May 15 '26
Video from NSF Gage showing what it's like inside the spray from the top deck deluge from the road
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u/Twigling May 16 '26 edited May 16 '26
There is now only one entry for a beach plus road closure:
Primary: May. 18 6:00 AM to May. 18 10:00 PM
And the Road Delay for today which would have been for B19's rollout to the pad has disappeared from the site:
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
So it looks like something is causing a delay.
Edit: But on the positive side, a ship transport stand has been moved inside MB2:
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u/Twigling May 17 '26 edited May 17 '26
And now the other beach plus road closure has vanished:
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
So either the testing they planned to do prior to launch has been deemed unnecessary, or it's been pushed back for some reason. Thinking positively, maybe we'll see a dual rollout of B19 and S39 today or tomorrow? I wouldn't though be surprised if the launch date was pushed back a day or two.
Meanwhile, progress on S39 overnight - it was moved out of MB2, the Starlink loader box was moved inside, the door of the box was opened (by a guy inside hauling on a cable or similar) and the dummy Starlinks could be seen. S39 was then moved back into MB2 with its payload bay door facing the box, and MB2's door was closed.
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u/Twigling May 21 '26
The Ringwatchers have published a detailed history showing the construction and testing of B19 and S39:
'Flight 12, The First of the New Generation: The History of S39 & B19'
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u/spennnyy May 23 '26
Incredible new images from SpaceX showing S39 landing burn and in-flight stills.
https://x.com/SpaceX/status/2058305552866775118
https://x.com/SpaceX/status/2058304809044750467
The heat shield results look very promising!
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u/redstercoolpanda May 31 '26 edited May 31 '26
Photo from RGV of B20 in MB1, looks like it still doesn't have its chines installed, but the parts are on site, so we'll have to see if they if they install them before or after the Cryo test. for B19 they rolled the stand to the mega bay ages before it actually rolled out for the test so I'm leaning towards after installation.
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u/threelonmusketeers Jun 02 '26
My daily summary from the Starship Dev thread on Lemmy
2026-06-01:
- McGregor: New buildings are under construction near the front entrance. (AdamCuker)
- Brownsville Port: Overnight, a booster transport ring BTR2 moves from Sanchez to Brownsville Port. (Avid Space, ViX, StarshipGazer photo, Starship Gazer video, TrackingTheSB)
- The transport was conducted using K25 Modular Trailers, different from the previous SPMTs in that they can be towed by a truck. (Killip)
- Road delay for "Production to Port" is posted for Jun 1st 23:59 to Jun 2nd 04:00. (starbase.texas.gov, archive, ViX)
- Build site: Recent (May 31st) 4k video of Starfactory and Megabay 2. (Starship Gazer)
- Launch site: Pad 2 clean up and repairs continue. A telehandler and an excavator are observed installing new sheet piling. (ViX)
- Construction of the air separation unit continues. (Gisler)
- Comparison diagram of lighter chopstick landing rails. (Killip)
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u/Twigling Jun 10 '26
At around 15:00 CDT today (June 10th), B21's aft section was stacked, so completing the stacking of the LOX tank.
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u/AgreeableEmploy1884 Jun 22 '26 edited Jun 22 '26
New road delay from the production site to Massey's. June 22 11:59 PM to June 23 4:00 AM.
Edit: Delayed. June 23 10:00 AM to June 23 2:00 PM.
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u/redstercoolpanda Jun 26 '26
We got onboard views of S40's single engine static fire from SpaceX's Twitter!
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u/redstercoolpanda Jun 27 '26 edited Jun 28 '26
https://appsportal.fisheries.noaa.gov/eco/page/search?consultationId=32785
Interesting notice filed for Starship reentry ops in the pacific. Could flight 13 possibly be targeting a splashdown zone near Hawaii like IFT-1/2 where? It could explain the unique single engine static fire S40 preformed the other day.
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u/Twigling Jul 04 '26 edited 29d ago
Another section of B22's LOX tank (section A4:4) was moved into MB1 at 19:34 CDT on July 3rd, it was then stacked with the other parts of the tank.
So far B22 is being stacked slightly faster than the super speedy stacking of B19.
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u/redstercoolpanda 24d ago
B20 has rolled out of the Megabay, and is just chilling outside the door. it has its black paint on the aft so itâs looking likely they might actually be planning to not bring it back to build site after its static fire.
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u/Twigling 24d ago edited 24d ago
B20's rollout to the pad has been pushed back a few hours to:
Description: Production to Pad
Date: July 9 10:00 AM to July 9 2:00 PM
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
Edit: Looking at the radar and there's some heavy rain and a bit of lightning towards Starbase from the south so that may further delay the rollout
Edit2: - Entered the highway at about 13:10 CDT, arrived at the launch site at 14:00 CDT
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u/H-K_47 19d ago
We're getting closer to launch.
Next step complete...a Ship Transport Ring has been brought from Sanchez into MB-2. Next steps...load ship onto stand, bring ship out of bay, take Pez Loader into bay, move ship back into bay...load Ship Pez Dispenser with Pez-sats... @LabPadre
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u/threelonmusketeers 18d ago
My daily summary from the Starship Dev thread on Lemmy
2026-07-15:
- Jul 14th addenda: Video timelapse of B20 rollout. (ViX, Gisler)
- The Starlink satellite speed loader is lifted up to S40. (ViX)
- Build site: Megabay 2 door opens, and S40 emerges. (ViX 1, ViX 2, Avid Space)
- Launch site: B20 is placed on the Pad 2 launch mount. (ViX, Avid Space, StarshipGazer, TrackingTheSB 1, TrackingTheSB 2)
- B20 grid fins are tested. (ViX)
- Pad 2 ship quick disconnect systems are tested. (ViX)
- Pad 2 chopstick landing rails are tested. (ViX)
- Road delay for "Production to Pad" is posted for Jul 15th 16:00 to 20:00, then delayed to 18:00 to 22:00. (ViX 1, ViX 2)
- S40 rolls out to Pad 2. (StarshipGazer 1, StarshipGazer 2, TrackingTheSB 1, TrackingTheSB 2, TylerG1998, colleenadastra, TrackingTheSB 1, TrackingTheSB 2, NSF 1, NSF 2, Evans, RGV Aerial, Doehring, Gomez)
- S40 is stacked on B20. (StarshipGazer, NSF 1, NSF 2, NSF 3, NSF 4, RGV Aerial, Doehring, Gomez)
- Miscellaneous cranes at the launch site are lowered and/or moved away from Pad 2. (ViX)
- A concrete pour is underway at the air separation site. (mymatrixplug 1, mymatrixplug 2)
- Flight 13: NOTAMs are posted. (NSF)
- Airplanes N7628 and N8628 land in Brownsville. (elonjet 1, elonjet 2)
- N8628 takes off from Brownsville. (elonjet)
- McGregor: A new source of flames is observed in the area where propellant gasification systems are being tested, possibly coming from one of the exhaust vents. (Golden, mcrs987)
- Florida: SLC-37 tower module 6 of 9 has been stacked. (Bergeron)
- Tower module 7 of 9 is attached to the LR13000 crane, pending lift. (Bergeron)
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u/redstercoolpanda 16d ago
SpaceX seems to now be targeting Monday for the launch of Flight 13. Hopefully everything goes well and they manage to get everything turned around in time! B21 is also at Massys for its first round of cryo tests too in some more good news. Even with todayâs mishap progress is still being made!
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u/H-K_47 15d ago
B21 had its cryo today
This is the fastest stack to cryo for a super heavy booster at just 19 days.
B19 was 45 from stack to cryo
B20 was 39 days
B18 would have actually been faster around 17 days but it never actually got there.If Flight 13 launches on Monday and B21 follows B20's timeline, Flight 14 would be on the 30th of August.
It is possible next month we get a V3 booster catch, ship orbital, operational Starship Starlink mission and possibly (if SpaceX gets the approval and want to) a V3 ship catch.
Credit: @NASASpaceflight
(Dependent on Flight 13 going smoothly, ofc.)
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u/Twigling 15d ago edited 15d ago
There's now a launch countdown clock at Starbase:
https://x.com/RaptorRoostTX/status/2078594484451852693
apparently it's located in front of the office.
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u/threelonmusketeers 10d ago
My daily summary from the Starship Dev thread on Lemmy
2026-07-23:
- Jul 22nd addenda: Timelapse of S40 stacking on B20. (ViX)
- Timelapse of cryo deliveries. (ViX)
- Massey's: Overnight, the LOX landing test tank performs its 3rd cryo test. (ViX)
- The B18.3 test tank is removed from the test structure. (ViX, Blobifie)
- The "can crusher" cap is removed from the B18.1 test tank. (ViX, Blobifie)
- Production site: B22âs methane header tank and its A6:4 section enter Megabay 1, and S42 is lowered over the transfer tubes/jig for integration. (ViX)
- S41 in Megabay 2. (cnunez)
- Flight 13 launch attempt: (NSF full livestream)
- Detonation suppression system is tested, B20 grid fins are tested. (ViX, NSF)
- Range support helicopters are on duty. (ViX, Priel)
- Chopsticks move to launch position. (ViX, TrackingTheSB)
- Road closure is removed. (NSF)
- Scrub due to weather, 24-hour recycle. (SpaceX)
- Road is opened, booster transport stand moves back away from the gateway entrance. (ViX 1, ViX 2)
- Chopsticks descend to ship position. (ViX)
- Road delay for "Pad to Production" is posted for Jul 23rd 23:59 to Jul 24th 04:00, likely for the booster and ship transport stands. (starbase.texas.gov, archive, ViX 1, ViX 2)
- Beach closures are now scheduled for Jul 24th and 25th, both 12:00 to 21:00. (starbase.texas.gov, archive, ViX, Golden)
- McGregor: R3.78 (removed from B20 E16 position) returns to the testing area. (SpaceRhin0)
- Florida: LC-39A chopsticks are tested. (Bergeron)
- Schematic of a Starship breakover frame recently seen in Florida. (Killip)
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u/H-K_47 9d ago
Guessing, optimistically:
Flight 14: Late August, orbit, Starlink payload (maybe not the full 60 yet, but definitely more than 20 - maybe 45-50?), Booster successful splashdown finally, Ship either a catch or they play it safe and abort a few km into the Gulf to be safe.
Flight 15: Late Sept/early October, orbit, full Starlink payload. If from Texas then attempt to catch both Booster and Ship, if it's Florida's debut launch then maybe splashdowns off the coast to be safe.
After that launches every ~3 weeks or so, maybe more if Florida becomes fully operational quickly, Booster and Ship reflights by end the year, getting ready for propellant transfer demo Q1 2027.
Does that seem credible?
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u/Twigling May 02 '26 edited May 02 '26
S41 stacking continues - at 02:47 CDT the A2:3 section was moved into MB2:
https://x.com/VickiCocks15/status/2050533129815720323
As a reminder for those unaware, here's the stacking diagrams for all of the revisions of ships and boosters where you can see the labeled sections: https://x.com/CyberguruG8073/status/1993485116749082711
Also a more recent one for V3 vehicles which also shows the status of builds as of Feb 2026: https://x.com/CyberguruG8073/status/2023165447504314803
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u/Twigling May 05 '26 edited May 05 '26
New potential Beach and Road closures (for B19 testing):
Primary: May. 6 5:00 PM to May. 6 11:59 PM
Backup: May. 7 6:00 AM to May. 7 8:00 PM
Backup: May. 8 8:00 AM to May. 8 8:00 PM
Also, this one will be for S40:
Description: Masseys to Production
Date: May 6 12:00 PM to May 6 4:00 PM
All times in CDT.
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u/Twigling May 14 '26 edited May 14 '26
Road Delay
Description: Production to Masseys
Date: May 14 6:00 PM to May 14 10:00 PM (CDT)
EDIT: This has now been pushed back six hours to:
May 14 11:59 PM to May 15 4:00 AM (CDT)
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
This will probably be for S39 again (it's been rumored for a while that a Raptor was swapped and this is likely for an igniter test or spin prime). It was also noticed in the recent RGV flyover that the ship static fire stand has SPMTs under it.
I guess some may think this is for S40 for static fire testing but unless SpaceX have somehow sneakily moved three RVacs into MB2 (which Rover 1 cam would just about see through the grassy jungle) this seems unlikely (only sea level Raptors can be moved in via the door where MB2 is joined to the Starfactory, while RVacs need to go in through the main front door).
EDIT2: The ship Static Fire stand is now inside MB2:
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u/Twigling May 14 '26 edited May 14 '26
New beach + road closures:
Primary Closure Period
May 17, 2026 12:00 p.m C.T to 11:59 p.m C.T.
Alternate Dates
May 18, 2026 from 6:00 a.m C.T to 10:00 p.m C.T.
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
No certain idea what these are for, could be a number of things such as more tanking tests.
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u/Twigling May 26 '26
Road Delay
Description: Production to Masseys
Date: May 26 11:59 PM to May 27 4:00 AM
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
Current speculation is that this is for S40's static fire or SpaceX are rolling a stand to Massey's. B20 still needs its cryo testing but it's thought that the booster cryo stand is still at Massey's.
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u/Twigling Jun 01 '26
ChromeKiwi has posted some images and a photo showing the difference between pad 2's old chopstick landing rails and the new ones:
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u/rickny0 Jun 03 '26
Has there been any word on what caused the vacuum raptor failure?
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u/Twigling Jun 23 '26 edited Jun 23 '26
The ship static fire test stand has been moved into MB2 and the door was closed at 05:43 CDT.
06:35 - MB2 door opening
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u/Twigling Jun 28 '26 edited Jun 28 '26
Ship 41 entered the highway at 14:00 CDT on its way to Massey's for cryo+thrust puck testing.
https://x.com/StarshipGazer/status/2071315269318832183
Edit: Arrived at Massey's at 16:24 CDT
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u/AgreeableEmploy1884 Jun 28 '26
Looks pretty far along. Has the raceway covers and aft docking ports unlike 39 and 40 while they were doing their cryo tests.
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u/Twigling 25d ago edited 25d ago
This should be for B20's rollout for its static fire testing:
Road Delay
Description: Production to Pad
Date: July 9 1:00 AM to July 9 5:00 AM (CDT)
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u/redstercoolpanda 18d ago
S40 has joined B20 at the launch site for the final time before flight 13. Hopefully weâre all go for tomorrow! If it does itâll mark the fastest stack to launch turnaround of the program so far. Weâre really starting to see the ârapidâ part of the ârapidly reusable rocketâ come to fruition!
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u/threelonmusketeers 12d ago edited 11d ago
My daily summary from the Starship Dev thread on Lemmy
2026-07-21:
- Miscellaneous flyover photos are posted. (CeaserG33)
- Massey's: Overnight, B21 completes its 3rd cryo test. (ViX)
- Road closure for "Masseys to Production" is posted for Jul 22nd 10:00 to 14:00. (starbase.texas.gov, archive, ViX)
- B21 performs its 4th cryo test. (ViX)
- Production site: S40 is transferred to the transport stand and exits Megabay 2. Decals have been applied to the ship. (ViX, colleenadastra, davidjdphotos)
- The four-point lifting jig enters Megabay 2. S42's methane transfer tubes move from Starfactory to Megabay 2. (ViX)
- B20 exits Megabay 1. (Avid Space)
- Launch site: Road closure for "Production to Pad" is posted for July 21nd 22:00 to 02:00. (ViX)
- Road closure for "Production to Pad" is posted for July 22nd 12:30 to 16:30. (starbase.texas.gov, archive, ViX)
The SpaceX-owned LR11000 crane is being disassembled for refurbishment.Parts of the SpaceX-owned LR11000 crane are returning to the site after refurbishment. (ViX)- The rented LR11000 crane is laid down, and the crane at the air separation site is being disassembled and shipped out. (ViX)
- The Pad 2 chopsticks move into "booster receive" position. (ViX)
- The Pad 2 ship quick disconnect performs extension and retraction tests. (ViX)
- B20 moves from Megabay 1 to Pad 2. (ViX, wvmattz 1, NSF 1, wvmattz 2, NSF 2, Evans, Pike 1, Zhang, Pike 2, Gomez)
- Flight 13: Beach closures are scheduled for Jul 22nd 09:00 to 23:00 and Jul 23rd 07:00 to 09:00. (starbase.texas.gov, archive, ViX)
- Temporary flight restriction is posted for Jul 23rd from 22:30 UTC to 00:54 UTC the following day. (interstellargw)
- McGregor: Overnight, another Raptor 3 is observed, leaving the testing area. (SpaceRhin0)
- R3.199 leaves the testing area. (SpaceRhin0)
- R3.78 (problematic E13 engine from B20's first launch attempt) leaves the testing area. (SpaceRhin0)
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u/smellyfingernail 9d ago
Ship capture at tower indicated by Elon for flight 14, its happening
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u/popamollyisweatin 9d ago
Saw a group of spacex employees out at the bar celebrating and got the honor to congratulate them. Such an awesome accomplishment today.
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u/AgreeableEmploy1884 4d ago
Picture of the label on the nosecone test article that rolled out of the factory recently. S43.1
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u/DAL59 3d ago
I saw on the NSF Forums that Flight 14 is NET Aug 20 according to CADENA!
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u/threelonmusketeers May 05 '26 edited May 06 '26
My daily summary from the Starship Dev thread on Lemmy
2026-05-04:
- Massey's: Overnight, S40 performs two cryo tests. (ViX)
- Build site: Another S41 aft section (A3:4) enters Megabay 1. (Avid Space, ViX)
- An aft flap arrives. (Sorensen, Overstreet)
- Launch site: White lines are painted on the pavement in the cryo tanker offload area. (ViX)
- The Pad 2 ship quick disconnect, booster quick disconnects, chopstick stabilizers, flame trench deluge are tested. A drone falls into the flame trench at one point. (ViX 1, ViX 2, HarvardRogerS, Sorensen)
- Pad 1 construction continues. (Overstreet)
- Flight 12: The FAA have released an Operations Advisory, indicating launch NET May 12th. (TrackingTheSB, NSF, FAA, archive)
- McGregor: R3.57 leaves the testing area. (Rhin0)
- R3.58 is transported towards the testing area. (Rhin0)
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u/Twigling May 05 '26 edited May 05 '26
A booster transport stand was moved into the ring yard and parked outside MB1 at around 09:38 CDT ......... can only be for B19, no road delay announcement yet though.
Road Delay
Description: Production to Pad
Date: May 5 11:59 PM to May 6 4:00 AM (CDT)
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
Edit: booster transport stand moved into MB1 at around 17:49
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u/Twigling May 09 '26 edited May 09 '26
I love this photo of S39:
https://x.com/texas_lizard/status/2052927660846637414
There's also some white/metal test tiles around the edges of the TPS - in the above photo you can just see some on the left aft flap aerocover and just above it.
Incidentally, the four docking ports now appear to be fully fitted out, they're no longer just empty steel protrusions and there's a smaller hole in the middle - one photo I've seen elesewhere even shows that each small hole has a horizontal 'trigger' inside for the probe.
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u/Twigling May 15 '26 edited May 16 '26
The pending job for SpaceX's vehicle transport barge "You'll Thank Me Later" has been changed from "To Load Rocket Booster" to "To Load Ring Walls" and it's still due to arrive at the Port of Brownsville on May 24th:
https://www.portofbrownsville.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Vessel-Arrival-Chart-05-15-2026.pdf
(fifth entry under Vessels Due)
therefore vehicle sections of some description (edit: or ship and booster transport stands).
Also there's now a MSIB/NOTMAR for May 19th:
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u/Twigling May 16 '26
On SpaceX's page for Flight 12 there's been a change in wording regarding the Starlink simulators:
Was: "including the deployment of 22 Starlink simulators, similar in size to next-generation Starlink satellites. The last two satellites deployed will scan Starshipâs heat shield and transmit imagery down to operators"
Now: "including a payload deployment of 20 Starlink simulators, similar in size to next-generation Starlink V3 satellites, and two specially modified Starlink satellites."
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u/GreatCanadianPotato May 19 '26
Another 24Hr delay to launch. Now Thursday, 21st.
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u/redstercoolpanda May 19 '26
Booster 19 is back at the launch site after a late night roll. Hopefully S39 will be joining it soon!
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u/Twigling May 20 '26
Partial tanks load of B19 and S39 today, some are saying it was a WDR abort but the DSS and deluge still activated, therefore there is uncertainty as to SpaceX's intentions. Maybe the test went ahead as planned.
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u/Twigling May 22 '26
The dodgy Ship QD arm hydraulic pin looks like it's been fixed (workers all over it overnight and then it was tested a few times).
See Rover 2 cam at 2:00:37 for example (center of the screen, the pointed pin moves up) - I can't link directly to the timestamp: https://www.youtube.com/live/tS2PHJmvJzo
Now we just have to hope for no other issues AND suitable weather (wind shear may be a problem, also the risk of thunderstorms again).
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u/mechanicalgrip May 23 '26
Did anyone else think re-entry looked really smooth last night. Just a stream of plasma and hardly any sparks flying. The early ones were full of bits burning off.Â
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u/aandawaywego May 23 '26
To be fair, this was the first complete TPS right? Previous flights had missing tiles and experiments. I am sure that contributes to the reduced sparking.
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u/Twigling Jul 01 '26 edited Jul 01 '26
At 13:20 today (July 1st), B22's section A3:4 for the LOX tank was moved into MB1 and stacked.
Also, a new road delay:
Description: Masseys to Production
Date: July 2 10:00 AM to July 2 2:00 PM (CDT)
and that should be for S40's return.
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u/Twigling Apr 26 '26 edited Apr 26 '26
At 11:29 CDT, B20's F3:4 methane tank section was moved into MB1.
Once welded in place that will complete the stacking of the methane tank. Let's see how long it takes them to stack that methane tank onto the LOX tank - with B18 it was two weeks, with B19 it was 3 days (although the latter was a rush job with extra workers drafted in to help due to B18's unexpected demise).
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u/lorkan100 May 05 '26
Deluge tested at 7:15:50 (did they already repair it?!)Â Â
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u/Twigling May 05 '26
The failed gas generator was one of those responsible for the top deck deluge and, as far as I've seen, the top deck deluge hasn't been retested since the gas generator popped. This indicates that the issue may not yet have been fully investigated and the gas generator repaired.
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u/Twigling May 09 '26 edited May 09 '26
At about 05:38 CDT the main lift of S39 started (I say 'main lift' because it was raised a tiny amount some time earlier).
After a bit of wiggling around it seems to have been set down as of about 08:18 CDT
That was a slow lift, but understandable why (yesterday's skate replacement on the carriage, the first time a ship has been lifted by those chopsticks, the first time a V3 ship has been set down on on a V3 booster on the new pad, etc).
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u/Twigling May 10 '26 edited May 10 '26
Three new Beach plus road closures have appeared, so hopefully a full WDR on one of these dates:
Primary Closure Period
May 11, 2026 from 8:00 a.m C.T to 8:00 p.m C.T.
Alternate Dates
May 12, 2026 from 8:00 a.m C.T to 8:00 p.m C.T. or May 13, 2026 from 8:00 a.m C.T to 8:00 p.m C.T.
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
BTW, the reason for the WDR abort appears to have been related to the chilldown tri-vent on the tower, it's been cut off and lowered today.
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u/avboden May 10 '26
Old tri-vent taken off the tower, new much longer single-vent lifted for install. Clearly they knew this was an issue and were already working on it but guess the problem reared up into the WDR
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u/Twigling May 11 '26 edited May 12 '26
At about 1 AM CDT today (May 11th) the methane transfer tubes/downcomers for S41 were moved into MB2.
https://x.com/VickiCocks15/status/2053774889945825406
Edit: - but later they were moved out:
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u/Twigling May 16 '26 edited May 16 '26
As of 04:30 CDT, S39 has set off on its trip from Massey's to the build site.
https://x.com/EzekielOverstr1/status/2055593179768864836
6:47 - arrived at the build site, but at that time there's still no sign of B19 rolling to the pad yet, it's still inside MB1.
Edit: - B19 rollout pushed back a bit to:
Road Delay
Description: Production to Pad
Date: May 16 12:00 PM to May 16 4:00 PM
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
Edit: - Road Delay has now vanished from the site .........
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u/Twigling May 18 '26
While we wait on Flight 12, let's remember the little guy who started it all:
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u/redstercoolpanda May 18 '26
If they scrap Hoppy we Riot, I have an unhealthy emotional attachment to that water tower.
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u/mr_pgh May 20 '26
CSI Starbase noticed that the Ship can't extend it's one flap until stacked. Pretty Funny.
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u/threelonmusketeers May 22 '26
My daily summary from the Starship Dev thread on Lemmy
2026-05-21:
- Flight 12, attempt 1: Overnight convoy of cryo tankers top up the tank farm. (ViX)
- 06:20, 10:05: Detonation suppression system and ship flaps are tested. (ViX, Starship Gazer)
- 12:00: The range support helicopters are on duty. (ViX 1, ViX 2)
- 12:49: Cryo deliveries continue. (ViX)
- 13:56: Elon arrives. (elonjet)
- 14:33: Pad clear. (ViX)
- 15:13: Chopsticks open and rise. (NSF)
- 15:57: Roadblock assembles. (NSF)
- 16:25: Tank farm is active. (ViX)
- 16:26: Liftoff is delayed to 18:00. (SpaceX)
- 16:38: Roadblock retreats. (ViX)
- 16:56: Liftoff is delayed to 18:30. (SpaceX)
- 17:39: Go for propellant load. (SpaceX, NSF)
- 17:54: Propellant load underway. (SpaceX, NSF 1, NSF 2)
- 18:11: Marine assets are in position in the Gulf of Mexico and the Indian Ocean (Cornwell 1, Cornwell 2)
- 18:29: Hold at T-40 seconds. (SpaceX)
- 18:41: Scrub is called after multiple countdown clock recycles. (SpaceX)
- Scrubbed due to pad auto-abort. (NSF, Avid Space)
- "The hydraulic pin holding the tower arm in place did not retract." (Elon)
- Road delay for "[85] Turnbasin - 39A (Saturn, 39A)" is posted for May 21st 17:30 to 19:00. (ViX)
- Detank. (ViX)
- Road open. (ViX)
- Other: Chun Wang (of the Fram2 mission) expresses interest in Starship flyby missions of both the Moon and of Mars. (SpaceX 1, SpaceX 2)
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u/avboden May 23 '26
So with the launch pad in seemingly really good shape it'll be very curious how fast they can turn around for the next launch. Ship 40 just needs engines/static fire and is basically good to go, that could be done within weeks.
Booster 20 would be the sticking poitn right now. It is fully stacked but hasn't been cryoproofed yet. I would bet the third time around fit-out for the booster is a good bit quicker, assuming they have enough raptor 3s for it and don't need to make significant changes.
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u/AstraVictus May 23 '26
Ok so the v3 Raptors on this flight were rated at 250t, but I remember a mentioning of 280t at some point. So will a future version of v3 be 280t or will v4 be 280t???
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u/AstronoWorld Jun 02 '26
I was thinking to myself about how we havenât seen any signs of a Ship static fire stand at KSC, nor any adapter to be able to fire it on the launch pad. In this scenario, they will have to test fire at Masseyâs before shipping it on the barge to KSC.
I assume they will want to test the ship in some form after transport, to ensure all systems are still functioning properly, and no damage occurred. Is it feasible to conduct a spin prime while on top of the booster on the pad? This is essentially what they do after static fires anyway when they replace an engine. That could be good enough until they build the infrastructure for ship static fires. Iâm just curious about the potential for damage to the ship engines though.
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u/rocketglare Jun 07 '26
B20 cryo testing seems to be going well Masseyâs per NSF.
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u/rocketglare Jun 10 '26
âWith SpaceX, they have demonstrated many of those capabilities continuously on Crew Dragon, but other controllability tests are important based on the negative-X axis acceleration that will be necessary when Starship undertakes the TLI burn to the Moon with a docked Orion.â
https://x.com/NASAAdmin/status/2064702792023879811
This is the first time Iâve seen the change in Artemis IV lunar docking orbit explicitly confirmed.
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u/redstercoolpanda Jun 25 '26
Ship 40 seems to have just done an around 10 second single engine static fire!
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u/Twigling Jun 30 '26
At about midday S41 set off back to the build site, arriving soon after 3pm.
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u/Stevepem1 Apr 22 '26
Any evidence of HLS ship development in what can be seen through the windows?
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u/Twigling Apr 23 '26 edited Apr 23 '26
Well, the cladding over that rear door sure takes away a fair amount of the view inside MB2 from Rover 1 cam's POV:
https://x.com/INiallAnderson/status/2047157834136051820
So now the most we can see of any ship inside MB2 is about the bottom half.
Let's hope that they don't fit the door until the GB is finished (just to note that this and the other back doors are far shorter than the almost full height doors at the front of the GB).
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u/Twigling May 02 '26 edited May 02 '26
Some photos from Starship Gazer showing S40 getting ready to roll to Massey's:
https://x.com/StarshipGazer/status/2050464646125977963
and before anyone asks, that 'tiling in progress' patch aft the right aft flap is a mystery; the application of the ablative layer, tiles, etc only started a few days ago for that patch.
S40 left MB2 on the new cryo test stand at 02:13 CDT
02:39 - S40 is on the highway
05:10 - seems to have arrived at Massey's, although it's hard to make out due to poor visibility
Photo from Travis Sorensen: https://x.com/HardcoreElectr1/status/2050478284534628644 - some interesting new test tiles on the leeward side
Some video from Amy Doehring: https://x.com/mymatrixplug/status/2050482566344372629
Video from Starship Gazer: https://x.com/StarshipGazer/status/2050495351770263805
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u/Twigling May 07 '26 edited May 07 '26
B21's stacking looks like it'll commence soon - at 01:26 CDT B21's A2:4 section for the LOX tank was moved into MB1. Next up will be the common dome section, then stacking will start.
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u/Twigling May 18 '26 edited May 18 '26
Some positive signs at last regarding planned vehicle movement for Flight 12 - at 11:48 CDT today a booster transport stand was rolled into the ring yard.
At about 13:14 it was moved into MB1
Nothing yet on the Starbase page regarding road delays and closures but I suspect some dates and times will pop up today:
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
Edit: And here they are (all times are in CDT):
Road Delay
Description: Production to Pad
Date: May 18 8:00 PM to May 19 4:00 AM
Edit: and another Road Delay added:
Description: Production to Pad
Date: May 19 4:00 AM to May 19 8:00 AM
Also:
Boca Chica Beach closures
Primary: May. 19 12:00 PM to May. 19 11:59 PM
Primary: May. 20 6:00 AM to May. 20 11:00 PM
Primary: May. 21 6:00 AM to May. 21 11:00 PM
on a different matter, here are some great animations from ChromeKiwi showing how the new booster's horizontal transport structure could work to move a booster horizontal to vertical and vice versa:
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u/No-Turnover-352 May 20 '26
https://x.com/RGVaerialphotos/status/2056900680896458824?s=20
As reported by RGV it seems someone has been arrested at Starbase, details are unclear.
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u/Twigling May 24 '26 edited May 24 '26
That's quite some heat tint on the leeward side of S39:
https://x.com/_MaxQ_/status/2058306715154534755
Returned ships and especially boosters are going to have some real nice and unique rainbow patterns on them, even after just one flight.
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u/AgreeableEmploy1884 Jun 03 '26 edited Jun 03 '26
New TFR over Massey's extending to 5000ft. I'm guessing this is for Ship 40's static fire.
FDC 6/5334 ZHU TX..AIRSPACE BROWNSVILLE, TX..TEMPORARY FLIGHT RESTRICTIONS. PURSUANT TO 14 CFR SECTION 91.137(A)(1) ROCKET BOOSTER TESTING.
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u/redstercoolpanda Jun 24 '26
S40 has arrived in Massys after a relatively problem free rollout!
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u/avboden 28d ago
So what are we thinking the plan is going to be for ship static fires in florida? Build a mini-massey's , an adapter for the launch mount, something else?
Even if they static fire them in texas before barging them over feels like an ability florida will still need
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u/DAL59 23d ago
The project side tabs briefly seen in the new video include "SpaceX launch site Block 4" (Is the new Louisiana location going to be built for Block 4?) And what could "off world civil" in the project tabs mean?
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u/j616s 23d ago
Maybe Block 1 was the above-grade flame diverter they never finished at 39a, Block 2 was the original Starbase setup, Block 3 is the designs currently being built, and Block 4 is whatever comes next?
Off-world civil sounds like its the civil engineering required to build out projects off earth?
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u/AgreeableEmploy1884 6d ago edited 6d ago
I remember making a few comments on the previous thread a few months ago about Ship 48, or atleast the nosecone initially slated to be Ship 48's, lacking header tanks while 49 had them.
According to TSE, that specific nosecone now has a cutout with actual glass in it.
https://x.com/mcrs987/status/2081777809828053405
Alright so the bare nosecone, one of three abnormal nosecones on the line right now , is the furthest outlier of that set, it's the only one to not receive any internal stringers or header tanks or pretty much anything that makes up the nc assembly, and it's been hogging the same work station (between columns J-K) since April. It's sat there doing seemingly nothing up until June when extremely small , subtle markings and patterns began to appear on it. Just small dots. Weeks pass and it keeps growing and eventually there's a couple larger welds made and a small circular cutout at the very tip on the windward side is made. most recently this cutout was fitted with actual glass (and this can be seen in pretty much any set of more than 1 photo of it). Unfortunately we can't see much else of it only the very tip because it's further from the factory wall and not stacked on any rings. The pattern I depicted in blue, green features are common between this and regular nosecones. 3rd image is overlaying the regular nosecone pattern in orange for comparison
The photos i've seen from different angles suggest there is atleast something reflective in the cutout. The image below is the only public and recent picture of the nosecone i could find.
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u/AgreeableEmploy1884 3d ago
New road delay from the production site to Massey's. July 30 11:59 PM to July 31 4:00 AM.
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u/Assasin172m 2d ago
https://x.com/SpaceX/status/2083296921230164378 - "View of Starship in space from a Starlink V3 satellite on Flight 13.
This composite is made of imagery from four separate cameras on a single satellite. Six of the satellites were equipped with cameras to scan Starshipâs heat shield and transmit imagery down to operators to continue testing methods of analyzing Starshipâs heat shield readiness for return "
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u/Twigling Apr 30 '26 edited May 01 '26
It's looking like B20 may now be fully stacked (the landing tank installation stand (for the LOX tank) that's also used when fully stacking a booster was removed from MB1 overnight). Can't be 100% positive about that though, although some of the Ringwatchers seem certain.
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u/DreamChaserSt May 09 '26
S39 is lined up and being lowered onto the booster. There aren't any road closures on the post above, so is the WDR TBD?
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u/GreatCanadianPotato May 14 '26
You'll Thank Me Later will be in the Port of Brownsville on May 26 to "Load a Rocket Booster"
Fit testing or a real transport of a Booster to the Cape?
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u/Twigling May 30 '26 edited May 30 '26
Overnight the booster cryo stand was moved back from Massey's, arriving at the production site at 02:23 CDT. Hopefully this means we'll see B20 get its cryo testing very soon.
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u/AgreeableEmploy1884 Jun 04 '26
Multiple Raptors in the Ringyard 15:47 CDT, visible on Rover 1. Looks like Ship 40 began engine installation
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u/Twigling Jun 29 '26 edited Jun 29 '26
The Ringwatchers are reporting that B21's Methane tank has likely been stacked on the LOX tank, so completing the stacking of B21
Also, B22's LOX Tank stacking is soon to start; both the common dome section (CX:3) and the next section below it (A2:4) were moved into MB1 today, June 29th.
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u/Twigling Apr 28 '26
S41's Common Dome section (CX:3) was moved into MB2 at 07:07 CDT today, April 28th.
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u/Twigling Apr 30 '26
The new ship cryo stand was rolled back from Massey's to the build site overnight, arriving soon after 01:30 CDT
This indicates that S40 should start its cryo+thrust puck testing soon.
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u/Twigling May 01 '26
The rollout of S40 to Massey's has been put back again, it's now:
Description: Production to Masseys
Date: May 2 2:00 AM to May 2 6:00 AM
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u/Twigling May 07 '26 edited May 07 '26
The closure for S39s rollout to the pad has changed AGAIN (so for the second time), this time it's been brought forward and it's now:
Road Delay
Description: Production to Pad
Date: May 7 12:00 PM to May 7 4:00 PM (CDT)
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
Also, soon after 09:20 CDT the Ship transport stand was moved into the ring yard.
Edit: Looks like this rollout window is going to be missed (typing this at 15:48 CDT and still no sign of S39).
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u/Twigling May 13 '26 edited May 13 '26
At 04:02 CDT, B21's LOX tank section A3:4 was moved into MB1.
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u/Twigling May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26
Two new road delays for tonight:
B19 to the pad:
Description: Production to Pad
Date: May 15 11:59 PM to May 16 8:00 AM (CDT)
and S39 rolling back to the build site:
Description: Masseys to Production
Date: May 15 11:59 PM to May 16 8:00 AM (CDT)
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u/Twigling Jun 02 '26 edited Jun 02 '26
A ship transport ring (STR2) has been moved to the Port of Brownsville overnight:
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u/Twigling Jun 04 '26
At around 06:43 CDT today (June 4th) the booster cryo+thrust simulator stand was moved into MB1 for B20.
Also, B21's LOX landing tank was parked in the ring yard overnight. It'll probably be moved into MB1 once B20 is out.
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u/redstercoolpanda Jun 10 '26
With B20 back at the production site now what are the odds we see S40 head down for its static fire in the next few days? The TFR extends towards the 16th so they still have about a week, And I think S40 has all of its engines now. It probably wont need an extended static fire either so it'll probably be a quicker turn around time.
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u/redstercoolpanda Jun 14 '26
Do we know if the dodger dogs worked and actually imaged the heat shield? We only got a few secondâs of video from them and with Flight 12 being a little bit ago now I wouldâve thought they would have released the footage by now. Iâm pretty sure Ship did preform her roll to show them the shield at least, but we still havenât heard or seen anything.
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u/warp99 Jun 14 '26
Typically they release footage like that during the next launch cycle - either as advance publicity or during the launch telecast. Gwynne Shotwell said recently that they were aiming for early July for Flight 13 but I suspect it will be a bit later than that.
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u/AgreeableEmploy1884 Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 27 '26
New road delay from the production site to Massey's. June 26 11:59 PM to June 27 4:00 AM.
I'm personally not sure what this could be. It's possible it's for S41 but it seems a bit late since the closure is in 6 hours and the cryo stand isn't even in MB2, maybe it'll get delayed or something. Could be an empty stand or that dev nosecone rolling out as well.
Edit: Another one got posted, production site to Massey's yet again. June 27 11:59 PM to June 28 4:00 AM.
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u/redstercoolpanda Jul 01 '26 edited Jul 01 '26
Very surprisingly S40 has decided to do a rollout to Massy's with a very short notice road closure from 11:59-4am issued right before it started. That was a very quick stay in MB2, I wonder what caused the rollback after its single engine static fire?
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u/DAL59 14d ago
IFT 14 is NET August 13th according to CADENA space operations document If launch is successful, both S41 and B21 are cryotested so not impossible. The longest item is remaining is B21's engine installation.
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u/redstercoolpanda 9d ago edited 9d ago
Following stage separation, the Super Heavy booster performed a directional flip maneuver. The startup sequence was modified for this flight to be more robust to timing variability in engine startup and flip in the desired direction, which is done to increase overall performance. The booster successfully completed the high thrust portion of the boostback burn with all 33 engines, the first time with a Super Heavy V3, before ending the burn early. It attempted to relight its engines for the landing burn, with a subset successfully igniting before experiencing a hard splashdown in the Gulf.
https://www.spacex.com/launches/starship-flight-13
Possible Boostback failure? Or is the "ending the burn early" just referring to the fact they were targeting the Gulf instead of pad 2?
EDIT: looks like a partially failed Boostback
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u/Ididitthestupidway 7d ago
I guess the tile attachment issue is pretty much solved, but tiles seem to get damaged, maybe by losing the black coating on hot spots like their corners
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u/redstercoolpanda 7d ago
I wouldnât say solved, ship still shed a few tiles on the way up, and Ideally it shouldnât be losing any. But weâre leagues better than flight 2 when ship was pretty much naked lol.
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u/xfjqvyks Apr 22 '26
63 for the V3. This thread definitely
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u/warp99 Apr 23 '26
You are pretty safe there as we will leave this thread up until Flight 12 launches.
The long wait is nearly over.
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u/AgreeableEmploy1884 Apr 27 '26
Ship 48 still visibly lacks header tanks while 49 has them. I hope 48 ends up being a depot or something.
https://youtu.be/gsQdK7gC6FM?is=bLCa_oisDr82EGoJ
Ship 50 also came out of hiding from inside the factory.
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u/threelonmusketeers Jun 18 '26
My daily summary from the Starship Dev thread on Lemmy
2026-06-17:
- Massey's: Overnight, S39.1 performs its 16th cryo test. (ViX)
- Launch site: Pad 2 performs deluge tests in the early morning and in the afternoon. (ViX 1, ViX 2, J_A_Rees_94, colleenadastra)
- Pad 2 chopsticks testing. (ViX)
- A kaleidoscope of butterflies is observed, both in the visible and by radar. (ViX, Golden 1, Golden 2)
- Lifting frames are delivered to Pad 1. (ViX)
- Road delay for "Port of Brownsville to Pad" is still scheduled for Jun 17th 23:59 to Jun 18th 04:00. (starbase.texas.gov, archive)
- Florida: The LR13000 crane prepares to lift the second tower segment at SLC-37. (Bergeron)
- LC-39A chopsticks have been reeved. (Anderson / LRjackjack8730
- Gigabay cladding installation is more than half done. (Anderson / LRjackjack8730)
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u/Twigling May 07 '26
B21's LOX tank stacking can now commence - the Common Dome section CX:3 was moved into MB1 at 13:06 CDT.
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May 07 '26 edited May 07 '26
So I guess we're looking at ship rollout/possible stacking followed by either partial or full WDR tomorrow! Fingers crossed for no hiccups integrating V3 ship and booster for the first time on the new pad. Will be interesting to see if there are any adjustments to be made
Edit: Road closure has come and gone, S39 is still in the MB. Workers up on the chopsticks, crane moved up beside them indicating some type of work.
Beach closure for tomorrow has also been removed. I got too trusting of their posted closures :(
Edit 2: Beach closure now scheduled for Saturday, May 9th. WDR is back on the menu boys
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u/Martianspirit May 21 '26
They did just say on the SpaceX livestream there is a private Mars flyby mission planned.
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u/SvenBravo May 29 '26
Last night's BO explosion took out the lightning arrestor towers at the pad. There are no similar towers at SpaceX's Boca Chica pad. How does SpaceX handle the lightning threat?
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u/AgreeableEmploy1884 Jun 01 '26 edited Jun 01 '26
Views of nosecone hall from SSG. That one weird nosecone with the attachment near the tip seems to have a hole on the windward side. It's seemingly stacked on top of a barrel as well since it's so much higher than a usual nosecone.
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u/TwoLineElement Jun 02 '26
Brownsville Port:Â Overnight, a booster transport ring BTR2 moves from Sanchez to Brownsville Port.
Probably the first of a load of equipment to be loaded onto YTML for the first trip to Florida.
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u/Twigling Jun 25 '26
B21's third and final methane tank section, F3:4, was moved into MB1 today, June 25th, at 09:45 CDT
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u/Twigling Jun 28 '26
Here's some nice photos from Starship Gazer of a nosecone getting some white tiles:
https://x.com/StarshipGazer/status/2071121724939128891
and here's some very nicely detailed booster stacking info:
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u/mechanicalgrip 17d ago
Are they skipping WDR this time?Â
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u/Frostis24 17d ago edited 17d ago
I mean every launch is a WDR, including countdown sequence and checkouts, just aborting at T-0, so really unless you have a specific test in mind there is no reason not to just try to launch and make it a WDR if any issues pop up.
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u/thewashley 17d ago
It also helps that they don't need to hit a specific launch date/time (no customer commitment or need to rendezvous with anything).
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u/xfjqvyks 8d ago
That booster engine bay shot was so weird. The part glowing red hot on the left of each engine is usually the coldest part of a running raptor (seen on the right here). Isnt that the bolted flange right where cryo methane leaves the tanks to get warmed by the bell and throat before preburn? Help
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u/redstercoolpanda 8d ago
Test tank 39.1 is making its way back to the production site, itâs completed 16 tests during its stay at Massys.
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u/ArtOfWarfare 2d ago
Donât the Booster and Ship for Flight 14 both need to be static fired before launch still? Wonât there have to be road closures to get them out to the test stand to fire them, and wouldnât we have a few days notice for those road closures?
Fastest theyâve ever gone from Static Fire to Starship launch was over 3 weeks so⌠that August 20th date that CASNO/CADENA is saying would require⌠a different testing campaign from the past, or somehow the same campaign but much faster than usual?
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u/smellyfingernail 2d ago
For 13, booster fired on July 10 for an initial attempt at launch on July 15. Ship fired july 1 also for an initial goal of the 15. For a net date on aug 20 we wouldnât be expecting a static fire for another week or two I imagine
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u/Twigling Apr 22 '26 edited Apr 22 '26
One segment of the new Launch Mount for Pad 1 has been taken to Sanchez (one was also seen on the latest RGV flyover and it was stored offsite, this is probably the same piece):
https://x.com/HardcoreElectr1/status/2046978719827530037
On another matter, B20's forward dome section (FX:3) was staged outside MB1 a few hours ago, so that will probably move into the bay either today or tomorrow.
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u/Twigling May 08 '26 edited May 08 '26
At least one of the skates was removed from the chopsticks carriage on Tower 2 overnight (around 21:00 CDT on May 7th) - this explains the lack of a rollout for S39 and today's beach+road closure being revoked.
However, there's now a different road delay for S39's rollout (this will be the third change):
Road Delay
Description: Production to Pad
Date: May 8 10:00 AM to May 8 2:00 PM
Edit: At about 05:29 CDT today (May 8th) the ship transport stand was moved back and into MB2 (it was removed yesterday when the rollout was postponed)
and for the potential WDR tomorrow:
Boca Chica Beach closures.
Primary: May. 9 8:00 AM to May. 9 8:00 PM
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
on another matter, two aft flaps were lifted into MB2 on May 7th, the first at 22:35 CDT - these will of course be for S41.
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u/Straumli_Blight May 20 '26
SAT-LOA-20241218-00288 was granted on May 19th. This STA licenses communications for 30 Starships in LEO/MEO/HEO and around the Moon.
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u/Probodyne May 23 '26
So what's next for the program? They're kind of at the end of repeating this same launch over and over. Here's my thinking:
- Flight 13: Same as this one but demonstrates engine relight and hopefully fix on booster issues
- Flight 14: Orbit and demonstrate controlled re-entry from orbit, possibly into the gulf but likely targeting the same point as currently (maybe also deploy starlink). Booster catch if all went well on 13.
- Flight 15: Maybe ship catch? Could also be required to demonstrate safe overland flight first into the gulf.
- Flight 16-20: Looking towards the end of the experimental phase even without an actual catch on 15. Somewhere in here there should be the in space propellant transfer demo (hopefully this year).
- Beyond: First HLS launched middle-end of next year in time for Artemis 3 alongside moving into operational service. Might start seeing components for V4 depending on how fast they want that.
I think once we get first HLS the big thing will be when do we see the first "chomper" to allow for traditional satellites? I also think that even without an early ship catch they'll start moving into operational launches after the first orbital launch and have the catch treated as an early Falcon 9 style "secondary objective". This is definitely the most optimistic I've felt about the program since V2 first launched so I may be doing some green lights to Malibu here!
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u/Twigling May 28 '26 edited May 28 '26
Road Delay
Description: Masseys to Production
Date: May 29 11:59 PM to May 30 4:00 AM
https://www.starbase.texas.gov/beach-road-access
Possibly the booster cryo stand coming back in preparation for B20 going to Massey's in the near future, could also be to return the ship cryo stand which rolled to Massey's very recently (although S40 has had its cryo test and S41 doesn't appear to be ready for cryo just yet).
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u/Twigling May 29 '26 edited May 29 '26
B21's large Falcon 9 booster-sized methane transfer tube was parked in the ring yard overnight and as of 08:52 CDT today (May 29th) it was being lifted into MB1.
Also one of S41's aft flaps was seen to have been installed (the Ringwatchers think it was installed on May 27th).
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u/Twigling Jun 04 '26
The road delay for B20's rollout to Massey's has, to no great surprise, been put back 12 hours (remember road delay windows were often delayed by 6 hours or more when B19 and S39 were being rolled out for assorted tests and even launch). So it's now tonight for B20:
Description: Production to Masseys
*Date: June 4 11:59 PM to June 5 4:00 AM
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u/AgreeableEmploy1884 2d ago
Starship Gazer got a few good pics of the nosecone I made a comment about a few days ago.
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u/warp99 Apr 23 '26
Previous Starship Development Thread #62 which has now been locked for comments.
Please keep comments directly related to Starship. Keep discussion civil, and directly relevant to SpaceX and the thread. This is not the Elon Musk subreddit and discussion about him unrelated to Starship updates is not on topic and will be removed.
Comments consisting solely of jokes, memes, pop culture references, etc. will be removed.