SpaceX starts rebuilding the Orbital Launch Mount at Starbase in preparation for the next Starship launch

-

-Advertisement-

Starbase, Boca Chica, Texas — SpaceX started the cleanup and repair process at the Orbital Launch Site earlier this week. The launch site received damages as a result of the 1st Starship launch last month.

The Orbital Launch Mount (OLM) or the launch pad had endured most of the damage caused by the massive thrust of the Super Heavy rocket booster engines.

Starship 1st stage aka Super Heavy booster has 33 Raptor engines at its base to lift the massive 120 meters (390 feet) spacecraft. At liftoff during the 1st Starship launch, 3 engines failed to fire. So, the orbital launch test was conducted with only 30 Raptor engines.

The thrust of a single 2nd-generation Raptor engine stands at 230 tons (~500,000 pound-force/lbf) at sea level.

The combined thrust of 6,900 tons or 15 million lbf dug a hole at the base of the Starship launch pad (OLM /Stage 0). The following picture of this pit was shared on Twitter by the SpaceX community.

The pit created by the Super Heavy Raptor engine thrust in the Orbital Launch Mount during the 1st Starship launch on Thursday 20th April 2023 at Starbase, Texas.
The pit created by the Super Heavy Raptor engine thrust in the Orbital Launch Mount during the 1st Starship launch on Thursday 20th April 2023 at Starbase, Texas. Credit: Unknown.
– Advertisement –
Video: watch 230 tons (~0.5 million pound-force) of thrust of a single Raptor 2 engine in action. Raptor 1 engine with a more complicated design had only 185 tons of thrust.

During a Twitter Space audio discussion on Sunday, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said that the damage to the Starship launch pad is insignificant. “I’m glad to report that the pad damage is actually quite small and it looks like it can be repaired quickly,” he said.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2Xzx9Ej578
Twitter Space audio recording: Elon Musk talks about the Starship launch experience and the next launch schedule.
– Advertisement –

Next Starship Flight Schedule

In the same Twitter Space talk, Elon Musk gave a tentative timeline for the repairs to the OLM and the launch site as well.

“I think from a rocket standpoint and Pad standpoint, we are probably ready to launch in six to eight weeks,” Musk said.

“The longest lead item on that is probably re-qualification of the flight termination system (FTS), because we did initiate the flight termination system but it was not enough to […], it took way too long to rupture the tanks,” Musk explained the main cause of the delay for next Starship flight.

During the 2024 Proposed NASA Budget Hearing last week, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson also said that SpaceX has informed him that it will take at least 2 months to prepare for the next Starship launch.

“It blew a hole in that launch pad. So I have an ask, so I report to you as of today that SpaceX is still saying that they think it will take at least two months to rebuild the launch pad and concurrently about two months to have their second vehicle ready to launch,” Bill Nelson said during his speech.

In the latest videos by NASASpaceflight.com, we can observe that SpaceX has started repair and rebuilding work at the launch site and we can expect the next Starship flight toward the end of June or the start of July.

The first Starship launch attempt ended in a rapid unscheduled disassembly (RUD). But Elon Musk and SpaceX say that they have garnered a ton of data from this experience and it will be useful for future Starship flights.

Video: SpaceX starts rebuilding the Starship OLM to prepare for the next launch.
Video: Nic Ansuini of NASASpaceflight.com shows us the level of damage done at the Starbase launch site due to the Starship launch.
– Advertisement –

SpaceX has also started repairing the LOX tanks which were damaged during the Starship liftoff during the 1st launch.

“SpaceX begins repairing the LOX tanks after being damaged during Starship’s full stack test flight. These tanks were seen venting uncontrollably after chunks of concrete impacted them at liftoff,” NSF wrote in the description of the video (watch below).

Stay tuned for future updates on Starship and SpaceX, Follow us on:

Google News | X (Twitter) | Flipboard | WhatsApp ChannelRSS (Feedly).

Related

Iqtidar Ali
Iqtidar Alihttp://www.teslaoracle.com
Author of more than 1500 articles on Tesla, SpaceX, and EVs. His work has been liked and tweeted by Elon Musk and other prominent influencers. You can reach him on Twitter @IqtidarAlii

Latest News

Red hot Tesla Cybertrucks welcome Elon Musk and President Trump in Qatar (videos)

After getting a warm reception at the Doha airport by the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al...

Tesla (TSLA) regains $1 trillion market cap, Musk to bring Optimus robot dance troupe to the Shareholder Meeting

Tesla (TSLA) has once again topped the $1 trillion market capitalization mark with this week's spur in the company's...

Elon Musk shows Optimus dance moves to President Trump and the Saudi Crown Prince, Tesla (TSLA) releases new videos, more

Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk was in Saudi Arabia yesterday. He accompanied President Donald Trump to attend the 2025...

Tesla rolls out FSD v13.2.9 with Spring Update 2025.14.6, fixing the TCU issue

Tesla (TSLA) brings smiles on the faces of its customers waiting for a Full Self-Driving (FSD) software update for...
- Advertisement -

Flight 9 Starship is headed for another static fire test, expected launch schedule, more

SpaceX has moved Starship prototype 35 (Ship 35) to the Starbase, Texas launch site in preparation for the upcoming...

SpaceX Starship now has its own city—Starbase, Texas (election results)

Today, it was the election day at Cameron County. Ballots for Starbase incorporation as a Texas city and its...

SpaceX accelerates Starship Gigabay development in Florida, OLM construction makes progress, more

Elon Musk's spaceflight and astronautics company SpaceX is accelerating the Starship program in Florida as well. SpaceX is building...

Tesla Tips & Tricks

Leaked photo of the Tesla Cybertruck bed reveals 3 power outlets of 120 and 240 volts

As close as we get to the Cybertruck Delivery...

Here’s how to clean jeans stains from white seats of your Tesla Model S, 3, X, or Y

The white interior is the most popular option among...

Tesla Quarterly Reports & Eearnings

Tesla (TSLA) surges after Q1 2025 Earnings Call, Musk’s time at DOGE to drop significantly soon

Surprisingly, after reporting negative Q1 2025 automotive and overall...

What to expect from Tesla (TSLA) Q1 2025 Earnings Call with Elon Musk

Today's Tesla (TSLA) Q1 2025 Earnings Call is probably...

Tesla (TSLA) announces time and date of the Q1 2025 Earnings Call

Elon Musk's electric vehicle and energy storage company Tesla...
- Advertisement -

You might also likeRELATED
Recommended for You