Who is afraid of Elon Musk ? Starship update - things are moving fast !!!

On September 28, 2019, on a windy evening, Elon Musk made a historic presentation in the front of the impressive Starship Spacecraft that will take humankind literally to the stars. Made entirely out of special steel and standing 160 ft tall and 30 feet in diameter, the Mark 1 model was majestically shining in the reflectors light.

Starship, once complete, will be “world’s most powerful launch vehicle,” according to SpaceX, with a cargo capacity of 100 metric tons (that’s over 220,000 lbs) to Earth orbit. With orbital refueling, it’ll also be able to take its freight — and passengers — to the Moon, Mars and beyond.

But what fascinates me the most is the pace at which SpaceX is bringing this massive rockets and boosters into existence. 4 to 6 Starships will be built and will fly in the next 6 months and the boosters will enter production in the next 4 months. A complete Starship+Booster combo "The Super Heavy" will fly sometime next summer, according to Elon!
Citing TheCrunch "As for Super Heavy, it’ll have the same 30-foot diameter, but be much taller, at 223 feet, with a propellant capacity of a massive 3,300 metric tons, and a thrust capability of 72 meganewtons (MN) (the thrust of the Saturn V rocket was only 35 MN, by comparison). Actuated grid fins near the top of the rocket will be used for its controlled landing, much like those found on the Falcon 9 boosters SpaceX uses today. The bigger booster will have 37 Raptor engines, however, and six landing legs for stability when it comes back down to be readied for re-use."

WOW! It looks like next year if all goes well, we will finally be ready to leave mother Earth and settle on other worlds.

Question for you all ATS members :

Will this spur a new "Wild West" race to colonize the Moon and Mars? (and possibly other planets) and Earth will finally find it's peace because all the resources and political games will move into the new arena?

OR

Things will get worse because there will be a lack of political will when it comes to space exploration and is not on the elite's agenda at this time pr in the near future?

full Starship update below :

a reply to: Nairda

Its purpose in reality is only to save the elites from the hell they create here when nuclear launch buttons are pushed or from the coming poleshift if it beats them to it.

They've come to realize their bunkers just wont cut it.

They will look back on the destruction from their cosy new flying city.

There is a very real reason why Space X didn't take a penny of Gov't money for the development of starship/super heavy.

Because if they did take government money to develop it, it would take as long as the SLS has.

Also, there are two starships under construction right now (I don't know how many other people will watch an hour and a half like I already have)


They have been building them in parallel with two separate teams so they can learn from one another, and progress more quickly in design/construction methodology.

'Elites Escape Earth - Back To Mars' would be an accurate headline

sadly the thing looks like an oversized high school science project, at best. what's with all the glued tile sections with sloppy seams??

anyways, the commercial starship is no doubt one underground where people live out their whole lives thinking they're on the way to the Mars or Stars wherever.

anyone seen the movie ASCENSION?

originally posted by: CthruU
a reply to: Nairda

Its purpose in reality is only to save the elites from the hell they create here when nuclear launch buttons are pushed or from the coming poleshift if it beats them to it.

They've come to realize their bunkers just wont cut it.

They will look back on the destruction from their cosy new flying city.

Hmm, I beg to differ although I am intrigued by the pace of the progress they are making. Elon was once refused by the Russians when he was shopping for rockets way before he set up SpaceX. Now the Russians are probably very sorry that they missed the opportunity. So he is in the game for a while and nearly went bankrupt while developing what is today SpaceX. So the argument that he is working to save the elites does not really stand. I think he genuinely wants to get us off this planet . But you still not answered my question in the post ha ha.

a reply to: dubiousatworst
Excellent points. He mentioned a lot of those and more in the video

a reply to: tulsi
Because is built of Steel it does not need to be welded inside. Also is way cheaper and resistant. If you would watch the vid you will understand more. Your description is very funny I must admit .
Ascension is a very poorly made movie in my opinion. Is like "they" are scared to lose control lol.

a reply to: Nairda

That thing does not look like a modern space ship, it looks like something Satan would build in an alternative Philip K Dick universe somewhere in the 50s-60s.

a reply to: Nairda


I would offer a third option

When (not if) space X (and other private sector companies that will follow their example) will take over space exploration and industry.

to which it will clearly show NASA is just another bloated, inefficient , protect one budget, protects one job and power government agency

that will lead to a much reduced, specialized and a MAJOR budget cut .

that NASA (and their government supporters/ those who benefit from it) will fight back .

either finding a way to shut down private space companies, force them out of business, or regulate/control them to such a level NASA keeps its budget and power.

scrounger

That's amazing! I didn't realize the capacity and production effort. Maybe the elite are planning to survive in space to escape some impending catastrophe? You can fit a lot of gear and people in that sucker.

The progress Elon Musk and SpaceX have made is mind-boggling and I have no doubt that if the government was in charge 90% of it would still be in limbo. What he and his company has done is the stuff of dreams.

As far as a wild west push happening for the moon is both an exciting prospect and also needs to be watched carefully. It will happen and needs to happen, but there is also a danger inherent when it happens.

If you have never heard of it here is an article on an old concept for a space-based kinetic weapon. Project Thor

E = mc2. "Energy equals mass times the speed of light squared."

Whoever controls space will be able to control the earth. They will not need nukes or high tech weapons. All they need are dense or large objects and solid math to be able to put a figurative gun to the head of every government on earth.

Seeing that crane next it, the rocketship was on the cover of MY LITTLE GOLDEN BOOK when I was 7.....

It said everyone would go visit the moon in 20 years......1959....

a reply to: Nairda

Well yes thats kind of the point, the pace of progress versus global political and economical unrest versus prophecy.

There really should be no rush - so what's the rush???????

Somethings not adding up here.

a reply to: CthruU

I wouldnt call it a rush.

more of us finally getting off our backsides and getting out into the universe.

the problem is we have left the idea of space exploration and putting thing into space solely in the hands of the government.

a government on its best day could not have a one car parade going one block down a one way street without costing much more than budgeted, grossly inefficient, overly behind in scheduled and major preventable errors (note not saying cant have any errors) .

even in the heyday of the early space race to the moon this was the case. But to be fair todays NASA is much worse than before.

the government basically didnt let ANYONE within the USA or businesses go it alone in space.

Now with space X, virgin company and others space has FINALLY opened up to capitalism...
NASA (to be frank) is being forced to let it happen with I imagine lots of kicking and screaming .

they have been so backlogged and screwed the pooch on space vehicles they really had no choice but to go civilian.
but notice even with space X they are still going with the orion project.. overbudget, behind schedule and in short a hot mess at taxpayer expense.

to get back to your idea of a rush let me leave you with this old (VERY OLD) joke about capitalism in space business.

If capitalism were applied to going to the moon we already have mcdonalds open there.

scrounger

a reply to: Nairda

Weird i was just thinking about this this morning and how quick Musk was in setting a time for a launch of the vehicle

When i was a kid it seemed to take for ever for the shuttle to get built and launched so i am loving the pace of what space x are doing and how he is proving all those who called him P.T Barnum so wrong

I Think that what SpaceX does is good for the industry in general , it paves the way for more companies to actually invest in this industry.

It also opens up chances for breakthroughs in this field since more companies investing time and money in it.

Every one probably though SpaceX was crazy when they said we are gonna launch rockets into space and have them land back to earth with a suicide burn.

years later they have launched dozen of them , recovered most of the boosters from the larger falcon heavy.

They proved that specific design and recovery method works , and now they are stepping up their game by going even larger.

They showed that you don't have to waste millions of dollars by having your boosters burn up in the atmosphere or splashdown in the water.

Think those things in it self could be considered a breakthrough in the field , by cutting back cost , the price of the payload would drop , wich allows more companies to have acces to their service.

a reply to: Nairda

I think Humanity should be allowed to go out into the solar system

there shouldnt be any legal reason we cant leave earth , we need new colonies and new worlds and maybe things will get better for humanity.

either that or we are going to see a whole new world of indentured servitude for a free ride to the moon or mars!

free one way trip so long as you work in the mines for 5 years for free once you get there !

It could all go like the expanse though, Mars, Earth, the belt
all fighting over resources as we expand further

a reply to: Nairda

Sorry, but while rockets still depend on liquid fuel they will be little more than toys as far as manned space exploration go. their seed and range is too limited to take people much further than Mars.

a reply to: Nairda

We are hardly afraid? Alaurentia (the micronation) is, itself, planning on building its own.

I think it's actually about time. Private sector SHOULD start exploring space. Earth can't take it anymore. We NEED to begin building a Planet B.

Elon Musk is but one crazy dude. I don't particularly care much for what he does. I think sending a car in space was stupid. But I also happen to watch his progress with his (rather ugly) ship, to hopefully learn from the mistakes he'll probably make.

We NEED to start putting our heads together, physicists, thinkers, environmentalists, everyone, and start getting our stuff straight.

originally posted by: swanne
a reply to: Nairda

We NEED to start putting our heads together, physicists, thinkers, environmentalists, everyone, and start getting our stuff straight.

Oh, we're putting our heads together alright.
The problem is we're doing it at full speed.