WELCOME BACK... AND THANKS FOR TUNING INTO EPISODE 30 OF LABPADRE'S SPACEX
AND STARBASE WEEKLY UPDATES. WE'VE GOT A QUICKY FOR YOU TODAY, SO LET'S DIG IN!
IN THE NIGHTTIME HOURS OF FRIDAY, A NEW METHANE PUMP WAS INSPECTED BEFORE BEING LAID BACK DOWN.
IN FLORIDA, DOUG RETURNED TO PORT WITH JUST READ
THE INSTRUCTIONS AND B1067 AFTER THE SUCCESSFUL LAUNCH OF STARLINK 4-24.
CREWS WERE QUICK TO FREE UP JUST READ THE
INSTRUCTIONS, AND SOON HAD FALCON 9 BOOSTER B1067 LIFTED ONTO THE DOCKS.
RETURNING TO BOCA CHICA AND ITS SHIPPING CHANNEL,
TUGS WERE SEEN BRINGING A SEMI-SUBMERSIBLE RIG INTO PORT.
A BUSY WEEK OF ORBITAL LAUNCH MOUNT UPGRADES
BEGAN ON SATURDAY WITH SHIELDING BEING ADDED TO THE BOOSTER QUICK DISCONNECT.
SATURDAY ALSO SAW THE LAUNCH OF FALCON 9 WITH STARLINK 4-35 ON
BOOSTER 1073 FROM SPACE LAUNCH COMPLEX 40 IN CAPE CANAVERAL.
AS SATURDAY NIGHT ROLLED INTO SUNDAY MORNING AT STARBASE,
A BOOSTER STAND WAS MOVED INTO THE MEGA BAY AHEAD OF THE FIRST COMPONENTS OF BOOSTER 9.
THE NEXT DAY, BOOSTER 7 WAS ATTACHED TO BOTH OF THE BRIDGE CRANES IN MEGA
BAY TO PROVIDE EASY ACCESS FOR ENGINE SWAPS AND OTHER UPGRADES.
AS THE SUN ROSE IN FLORIDA,
RECOVERY SHIP MEGAN LEFT PORT CANAVERAL WITH THE DRAGON TRAINING CAPSULE ONBOARD.
BACK AT BOCA CHICA, TWO NEW LIQUID OXYGEN
PROPELLANT PUMPS WERE DELIVERED AND UNLOADED AT THE LAUNCH SITE.
OVER AT THE SANCHEZ SITE, A NEW CRYO TANK WAS DELIVERED AND UNLOADED AS WELL.
LATE THAT AFTERNOON, DOUG TOWED JUST READ THE INSTRUCTIONS OUT
TO SEA FROM PORT CANAVERAL AHEAD OF THE CREW 5 LAUNCH.
WITH STARSHIP 24'S STARLINK DISPENSER DOOR NOW WELDED SHUT,
THE TEMPORARY SCAFFOLDING WAS REMOVED FROM THE SHIP, CLOSING OUT A VERY BUSY MONDAY.
IN THE EARLY MORNING HOURS, BOOSTER 9'S THRUST SECTION WAS ROLLED INTO MEGA BAY.
WITH THE HYDRAULIC POWER UNITS DELETED FROM THE VEHICLE, THIS BOOSTER WILL BE THE FIRST TO USE
THE UPCOMING, ELECTRICALLY DRIVEN THRUST VECTOR CONTROL ARMS.
AS THE GROUND TRACK FORECAST FOR HURRICANE IAN BECAME MORE CERTAIN,
NASA OFFICIALS ULTIMATELY MADE THE DECISION TO ROLL
ARTEMIS I BACK TO THE VEHICLE ASSEMBLY BUILDING OVERNIGHT, WHERE IT WOULD SHELTER AGAINST THE
COMING STORM. THE VAB, BUILT FOR THE APOLLO PROGRAM,
IS DESIGNED TO WITHSTAND A DIRECT HIT FROM A CATEGORY 3 HURRICANE.
OVER AT THE PORT CANAVERAL DOCKS, FALCON 9 BOOSTER B1067 WAS LAID
ONTO THE HORIZONTAL TRANSPORTER AND RETURNED TO ROBERTS ROAD.
WITH HURRICANE IAN BEARING DOWN ON THE FLORIDA PENINSULA,
MEGAN LEFT PORT TO RIDE OUT THE WEATHER AT SEA.
OVER AT LC-39A, BUCKNER'S LR11350 WAS LOWERED AHEAD OF HURRICANE IAN'S ARRIVAL. UPRIGHT
CRAWLER CRANES ARE TYPICALLY RATED FOR WINDS UP TO 60 MILES PER HOUR.
BACK IN BOCA CHICA, A SHIP NOSE CONE WAS MOVED DOWN HIGHWAY 4,
BEFORE RETURNING TO THE BUILD SITE THROUGH THE RING YARD GATE.
AS PART OF SPACEX'S ONGOING ENGINEERING DEVELOPMENT EFFORTS, THE CAN CRUSHER
CAP COULD BE SEEN BEING LIFTED ONTO THE SHIP AFT SECTION TEST ARTICLE.
ON WEDNESDAY MORNING, STARSHIP 26'S FIVE
RINGS TALL PAYLOAD BAY SECTION WAS MOVED INTO THE HIGH BAY.
LATER, AFTER THE SUN ROSE THE SHIP'S PAYLOAD BAY SECTION WAS
ATTACHED TO THE HIGH BAY CRANE AND PLACED ONTO THE TURNTABLE.
OVER AT THE LAUNCH SITE SCAFFOLDING BEGAN TO BE PLACED AROUND
THE LEGS OF THE ORBITAL LAUNCH MOUNT.
PROPELLANT LOADING INFRASTRUCTURE WORK ALSO CONTINUED, AS THE NEW
METHANE PUMP MOTOR WAS LIFTED AND PUT INTO PLACE.
THE STUDDED BUT OTHERWISE TILELESS AND FLAPLESS NOSECONE TENTATIVELY IDENTIFIED
FOR STARSHIP 26 WAS MOVED INTO THE HIGH BAY...
BUT THE RELATIVELY BARE NOSECONE WAS ROLLED OUT OF THE HIGHBAY ABOUT AN HOUR LATER.
SHORTLY AFTER, A SHEET METAL ASSEMBLY,
POSSIBLY SHIELDING FOR THE BOOSTER'S CENTER ENGINES, WAS MOVED INTO THE MEGA BAY.
ON THURSDAY, HURRICANE IAN MADE LANDFALL. THE FAR REACHING STORM'S IMPACT WAS FELT ACROSS THE STATE
INCLUDING IN PORT CANAVERAL, WITH CHOPPY SEAS AND HEAVY RAIN BATTERING SHIPS, PLANT LIFE, BUILDINGS,
AND INFRASTRUCTURE ACROSS THE COASTLINE THROUGHOUT THE DAY.
AS IAN RAGED IN FLORIDA, WORKERS AT BOCA CHICA ATTEMPTED TO LIFT
A NEW METHANE PUMP, BEFORE LOWERING IT BACK DOWN.
A SECOND ATTEMPT WAS MORE SUCCESSFUL,
AND THE NEW PUMP WAS PUT INTO PLACE AT THE METHANE SIDE OF THE ORBITAL LAUNCH TANK FARM.
WITH THE PUMP INSTALLED, THE MOTOR WAS PULLED OFF OF SPOT FOUR AND PLACED ON TOP OF THE NEW PUMP.
LATER, THE PUMP IN THE FOURTH SPOT WAS REMOVED AND PLACED ONTO A NEARBY PALLET
TO BE PREPARED FOR TRANSPORT AWAY FROM THE FARM.
FINALLY FOR THIS WEEK, THANKS TO A TIMELY HEADS-UP FROM OUR FRIENDS AT RGV AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY,
THE E-DOME TEST TANK THAT WAS RELOCATED TO MASSEY'S FORMER GUN RANGE APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN
TESTED TO FAILURE. WHETHER OR NOT THIS WAS INTENTIONAL IS STILL UNCLEAR.
AND THERE YOU HAVE IT. ANOTHER SPACEX AND STARBASE WEEKLY UPDATE BROUGHT TO YOU BY LABPADRE.
MAKE SURE YOU SUBSCRIBE AND HIT THE ALERT BELL FOR NEW VIDEO AND LIVE STREAM NOTICFICATIONS.
WE’LL SEE YOU NEXT WEEK AND THANKS FOR WATCHING. LABPADRE – OUT!