1
00:00:00,400 --> 00:00:02,320
Hey everybody, welcome back to 
the show. 

2
00:00:02,320 --> 00:00:05,120
In today's episode, we're going 
to be talking about SpaceX and 

3
00:00:05,120 --> 00:00:08,320
Starship program. 
And after the initial Starship 

4
00:00:08,320 --> 00:00:11,160
launch ended in a dramatic 
explosion above the Gulf of 

5
00:00:11,160 --> 00:00:14,440
Mexico, the company's forward 
momentum has stalled on the 

6
00:00:14,440 --> 00:00:16,720
launch front. 
Three months have passed since 

7
00:00:16,720 --> 00:00:19,800
the incident, and the company's 
yet to submit a final accident 

8
00:00:19,800 --> 00:00:23,360
report to the Federal Aviation 
Administration or the FAA. 

9
00:00:24,280 --> 00:00:28,040
Now this indicates that the 
rocket program remains grounded 

10
00:00:28,040 --> 00:00:33,380
for now, and a second launch may
not happen this summer, unlike 

11
00:00:33,900 --> 00:00:37,260
what Elon Musk has said now 
overseeing the investigation 

12
00:00:37,260 --> 00:00:41,220
into April 20th launch. 
The FAA stated on Wednesday that

13
00:00:41,220 --> 00:00:45,300
it still awaits the critical 
report that will identify the 

14
00:00:45,300 --> 00:00:49,580
necessary corrective measures 
SpaceX must undertake before 

15
00:00:49,580 --> 00:00:52,860
gaining clearance for another 
launch from Boca Chica Starbase,

16
00:00:52,860 --> 00:00:57,090
Texas, And an FA spokesperson 
avoided conjecture regarding the

17
00:00:57,090 --> 00:01:00,010
potential completion date for 
the agency's investigation, 

18
00:01:00,250 --> 00:01:03,690
explaining that public safety 
and actions yet to be taken by 

19
00:01:03,690 --> 00:01:06,370
SpaceX will dictate the 
timeline. 

20
00:01:06,850 --> 00:01:10,450
Now, according to the FA, any 
return to flight operations will

21
00:01:10,450 --> 00:01:13,890
only be sanctioned when it is 
determined that any system, 

22
00:01:13,970 --> 00:01:17,730
process, or procedure related to
the mishap does not affect 

23
00:01:17,730 --> 00:01:20,730
public safety or any other 
aspect of the operator's 

24
00:01:20,730 --> 00:01:22,600
license. 
Now, they emphasize that the 

25
00:01:22,600 --> 00:01:25,920
mishap investigation is still 
ongoing, though now adding to 

26
00:01:25,920 --> 00:01:30,440
the situation's complexity. 
SpaceX is also trying to modify 

27
00:01:30,440 --> 00:01:34,480
its current license, which was 
suspended after the first 

28
00:01:34,480 --> 00:01:37,640
launch. 
Now, despite these regulatory 

29
00:01:37,920 --> 00:01:41,440
roadblocks, though, Elon Musk 
and SpaceX are projecting a 

30
00:01:41,440 --> 00:01:43,600
swift return to launching 
operations. 

31
00:01:43,960 --> 00:01:47,200
The company, which is held 
privately, has been showcasing 

32
00:01:47,200 --> 00:01:49,980
repairs to its orbital launch 
mount now. 

33
00:01:49,980 --> 00:01:52,700
This facility sustained 
significant damage from 

34
00:01:52,700 --> 00:01:56,100
starships first launch, raising 
public safety and environmental 

35
00:01:56,100 --> 00:01:58,380
concerns. 
The rocket, after a chaotic 

36
00:01:58,380 --> 00:02:02,500
liftoff and loss of control, was
annihilated over the Gulf of 

37
00:02:02,500 --> 00:02:06,500
Mexico and while dealing with 
the aftermath, SpaceX has made 

38
00:02:06,500 --> 00:02:09,740
enhancements to its launch site.
Among the new additions is a 

39
00:02:09,740 --> 00:02:13,740
steel plate designed to shield 
the pad in future test launches.

40
00:02:14,060 --> 00:02:16,780
Last week, the company shared on
Twitter that had transported a 

41
00:02:16,780 --> 00:02:20,780
new Super heavy booster 
prototype to the pad for testing

42
00:02:20,780 --> 00:02:24,100
ahead of Flight A continuing its
updates. 

43
00:02:24,100 --> 00:02:27,940
On Monday, SpaceX revealed that 
it's completed propellant load 

44
00:02:27,940 --> 00:02:32,220
tests on two different boosters.
Booster 9 and Booster 10 images 

45
00:02:32,220 --> 00:02:35,220
displayed the boosters glazed 
with frost after being filled 

46
00:02:35,220 --> 00:02:37,300
with liquid methane and liquid 
oxygen. 

47
00:02:37,740 --> 00:02:41,300
The absence of a completed 
investigation report and the FAE

48
00:02:41,300 --> 00:02:44,900
approval for another launch 
suggests that Musk's timeline 

49
00:02:44,900 --> 00:02:48,300
for resuming test flights may be
overly optimistic. 

50
00:02:48,700 --> 00:02:51,740
Musk, who's also responsible for
Tesla, The Boring Company, 

51
00:02:51,740 --> 00:02:55,940
Neurolink Operations, as well as
Twitter, has stated on June 13th

52
00:02:55,940 --> 00:02:59,860
that the Starship would be ready
for another launch within 6 to 8

53
00:02:59,860 --> 00:03:04,260
weeks, aligning with the end of 
July or early August time frame.

54
00:03:05,060 --> 00:03:08,420
A SpaceX Starship, the world's 
most powerful rocket, was 

55
00:03:08,420 --> 00:03:11,660
launched from its Starbase 
facility at Boca Chica on April 

56
00:03:11,660 --> 00:03:14,300
20th of this year. 
It managed to clear the launch 

57
00:03:14,300 --> 00:03:19,380
tower, which Elon Musk said was 
a hope at most and at recent 

58
00:03:19,380 --> 00:03:23,700
altitude, of 24 miles above 
Earth before culminating in an 

59
00:03:23,740 --> 00:03:26,140
uncontrolled explosion over the 
Gulf of Mexico. 

60
00:03:26,620 --> 00:03:31,340
At liftoff though, the Rockets 
33 Raptor engines fired up, but 

61
00:03:31,340 --> 00:03:34,500
there were only 31 that were 
actually firing. 

62
00:03:34,780 --> 00:03:37,780
And they also fired chunks of 
concrete and metal from the 

63
00:03:37,780 --> 00:03:42,500
launch site across 385 acres, 
igniting wildfires and kicking 

64
00:03:42,500 --> 00:03:44,900
up a dust storm of pulverized 
concrete. 

65
00:03:45,180 --> 00:03:49,600
Scattering debris possibly up to
6.5 miles away from the launch 

66
00:03:49,600 --> 00:03:53,840
site must conceded the launch 
had caused an unforeseen rock 

67
00:03:53,840 --> 00:03:56,840
tornado under the Starship super
heaviest booster stage during 

68
00:03:56,840 --> 00:04:00,080
liftoff, and despite the havoc, 
he insisted there were no 

69
00:04:00,080 --> 00:04:01,760
significant environmental 
damage. 

70
00:04:02,120 --> 00:04:04,080
And since the launch, SpaceX has
progressed. 

71
00:04:04,080 --> 00:04:07,480
At the launch compound has been 
closely monitored, and since the

72
00:04:07,480 --> 00:04:11,920
three months this Starship 
debuted, SpaceX has made a huge 

73
00:04:11,960 --> 00:04:15,790
amount of progress on the 
hardware of the boosters and the

74
00:04:15,790 --> 00:04:20,149
ships, and also on the launch 
site, ground systems down a 

75
00:04:20,149 --> 00:04:23,430
Starbase Boca Chicas, Texas. 
Now, despite the optimism, 

76
00:04:23,430 --> 00:04:27,310
SpaceX still has legal hurdles 
to overcome before resuming 

77
00:04:27,310 --> 00:04:31,190
flight testing from Starbase. 
Along with the FAA, SpaceX is a 

78
00:04:31,190 --> 00:04:35,110
codefendant in a federal lawsuit
contesting the FA A's initial 

79
00:04:35,110 --> 00:04:38,590
approval of the Starship launch 
program, and the suit was filed 

80
00:04:38,590 --> 00:04:41,950
by environmental and indigenous 
groups that challenge the FA A's

81
00:04:41,950 --> 00:04:44,590
review and approval of Spacex's 
plans. 

82
00:04:45,140 --> 00:04:47,220
The plaintiffs are pushing for 
the agency to carry out an 

83
00:04:47,220 --> 00:04:50,620
environmental impact statement, 
a process that could potentially

84
00:04:50,620 --> 00:04:53,820
ground the rocket program for 
many years to come. 

85
00:04:54,020 --> 00:04:57,380
Now, the suit alleges that the F
approval violated federal laws, 

86
00:04:57,500 --> 00:05:00,460
including the National 
Environmental Policy Act, due to

87
00:05:00,460 --> 00:05:03,380
an adequate consideration of 
potential harm to wildlife. 

88
00:05:03,700 --> 00:05:06,500
The FA and SpaceX have largely 
denied these allegations and 

89
00:05:06,500 --> 00:05:09,460
court filings and have requested
the lawsuit's dismissal. 

90
00:05:09,540 --> 00:05:12,300
SpaceX is the most valuable 
aerospace and defense company in

91
00:05:12,300 --> 00:05:15,160
the United States, and the 
company has asked to intervene 

92
00:05:15,160 --> 00:05:19,080
in the lawsuit, citing a direct 
subsequential economic interest.

93
00:05:19,240 --> 00:05:22,760
Now Musk has stated the SpaceX 
has invested 3 billion dollars 

94
00:05:22,760 --> 00:05:26,160
since 2014 and developing the 
Starbase facility, and the 

95
00:05:26,160 --> 00:05:28,800
facility is pivotal to the 
company's growth though, with 

96
00:05:28,800 --> 00:05:31,040
plans to use Starship for 
launching more Star Link 

97
00:05:31,040 --> 00:05:34,400
satellites into orbit and 
returning NASA astronauts to the

98
00:05:34,400 --> 00:05:38,480
moon with the Artemis 3 program.
Musk also has ambitions to use 

99
00:05:38,480 --> 00:05:42,320
the reusable rocket to transport
human beings to Mars for the 

100
00:05:42,320 --> 00:05:44,900
first time. 
Now, after the initial Starship 

101
00:05:44,900 --> 00:05:47,860
launch, Musk stood edit this 
out. 

102
00:05:48,140 --> 00:05:51,020
After the initial Starship 
launch, Musk said he expected to

103
00:05:51,020 --> 00:05:54,900
spend an additional $2 billion 
on the rocket program, hoping to

104
00:05:54,900 --> 00:05:58,180
attempt at least five launches 
by the end of 2023. 

105
00:05:58,660 --> 00:06:03,060
However, the test is in limbo 
right now and NASA has actually 

106
00:06:03,060 --> 00:06:06,820
voiced concerned over Spacex's 
ability to have its lunar Lander

107
00:06:06,820 --> 00:06:09,620
version of Starship ready and 
time to carry astronauts to the 

108
00:06:09,620 --> 00:06:13,400
moon According to the space 
agency schedule and early June, 

109
00:06:13,400 --> 00:06:16,560
NASA indicated that it's Artemis
3 moon mission originally 

110
00:06:16,560 --> 00:06:22,120
planned for late 2025 is likely 
to be postponed until 2026 due 

111
00:06:22,120 --> 00:06:25,520
to Spacex's complications with 
the Starship program. 

112
00:06:25,720 --> 00:06:29,760
NASA's Associate Administrator 
Jim Free commented on the 

113
00:06:29,760 --> 00:06:32,200
situation. 
They said with the difficulties 

114
00:06:32,200 --> 00:06:35,120
the SpaceX has had, that's 
really concerning now. 

115
00:06:35,120 --> 00:06:36,800
Thank you so much for listening 
to the show today. 

116
00:06:36,800 --> 00:06:40,240
I really do appreciate you 
stopping by and hanging out and 

117
00:06:40,240 --> 00:06:43,070
being part of this community. 
If you want to help out even 

118
00:06:43,070 --> 00:06:45,430
more, please take a second and 
hit the subscribe. 

119
00:06:45,430 --> 00:06:47,950
Or if you want to help out a 
little bit more, please hit the 

120
00:06:47,950 --> 00:06:50,870
follower subscribe button on the
podcast platform that you're 

121
00:06:50,870 --> 00:06:52,870
listening on right now. 
It would really help us out, 

122
00:06:53,150 --> 00:06:55,710
really help you out too because 
you get cool SpaceX news all the

123
00:06:55,710 --> 00:06:58,150
time. 
So that's about it for today. 

124
00:06:58,270 --> 00:07:01,070
Take care of yourselves at each 
other, and I will see you in the

125
00:07:01,070 --> 00:07:01,590
next one.