This is not investment advice. The author has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Wccftech.com has a disclosure and ethics policy.
As it prepares for Starship Flight 7, SpaceX is busy manufacturing rockets for subsequent flights to fuel its 2025 Starship test campaign. Footage from local media in Boca Chica, Texas, shows the firm manufacturing what appears to be a component of an upper-stage Starship rocket in its factory. SpaceX is building a massive factory in Boca Chica called the Starfactory, through which it plans to eventually produce 1,000 upper-stage Starship rockets annually. Today's footage shows technicians working on the upper stage of Starship, complete with heat shield tiles. It also shows robots welding Starship's nose cone at multiple angles.
SpaceX Picks Up The Pace With Starship Flight 7 Tests In Texas
SpaceX manufactures its upper and lower-stage Starship rockets in stages. After rolling steel sheets into tubes, the tubes are welded together to form the basic structure that surrounds the rockets' tanks and other internal structures. Specifically for the second stage of the Starship spacecraft, since the forward or upper stage uses flaps and has to be aerodynamically shaped for ascent, it is assembled differently than others.
Called the ship's nosecone, footage from local media spotted this piece being welded by robots at SpaceX's facilities in Boca Chica, Teas. These facilities are part of a sprawling complex called Starbase, and they include manufacturing, assembly and testing facilities for the world's largest rockets.
SpaceX has already started operations at its massive Starfactory. Some operations at the plant include inspecting the thousands of heatshield tiles on the nosecone after they are installed. For Starship Flight 7 and beyond, SpaceX will use upgraded heatshield tiles and a new design for the upper stage to improve its reliability during reentry.
Footage from local media in Texas shows workers and robots working on the Starship nosecone for what is presumably a component for a rocket destined for a future flight. SpaceX's welding robot is clearly visible as it makes small changes to the nosecone, leading to barely visible sparks. Technicians, on the other hand, work on the nosecone with heatshield tiles installed.
As technicians and robots work at manufacturing Starship upper stage ships for future flights, SpaceX is also busy testing the 232-foot-tall Super Heavy booster at the launch pad. Additional media footage shows that the firm performed a spin prime test of the booster's pumps to ensure they could inject propellants and fuel into the engines. SpaceX also appears to have performed tank tests on the booster to verify the tanks' structural integrity and other systems ahead of flight.
Such tests typically pave the way for a static fire test. A static fire, which fires a rocket's engines, is generally one of the few tests before flight. Starship Flight 7 can take place in January, and the test will be a key stepping stone for the Starship program. The test will allow SpaceX to test the upper-stage Starship further before it can attempt a potential tower catch of the upper-stage rocket.
Looking forward to Starship Flight 7? Well Starbase is already working on vehicles for multiple flights into 2025. Oh and using robots of course.
Full video in reply. pic.twitter.com/x3NknOVxSY
— NSF - NASASpaceflight.com (@NASASpaceflight) December 8, 2024
About the author: Ramish is a seasoned technology writer and editor with more than a decade of experience. He specializes in semiconductor fabrication and market analysis. With a background in finance and supply chain management - via his bachelors in Finance and a micromasters in supply chain management from MIT - Ramish combines financial rigor with deep industry insight to deliver accurate and authoritative coverage.
Follow Wccftech on Google to get more of our news coverage in your feeds.
