Boca Chica Beach

Elon Musk's SpaceX private launch site

Aka Starbase

SpaceX spaceport plan is an automated station where machines fuel the rocket, stand it up, and send it off, and by including automated equipment for tracking its rockets and monitoring safety, to greatly reduction the time needed between launches.

"Elon Musk wants to construct the kind of spaceport people are used to seeing in sci-fi movies"

SpaceX completed its Starhopper development program and now moving on to the Starship ORBITAL prototype program development "Aiming for 20km flight in Oct 2020 & orbit attempt shortly thereafter," with the DM8 Starship now being constructed at Boca Chica.

Also in the future, SpaceX may develop and launch the Starship/Super Heavy called "Phase 3".

Launch Mount plans Nov 2020

The Original SpaceX spaceport Phase 1 was for launching its Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launches yet due to delays mainly for preparing the land "Phase 1" plans have been dropped (See below for the old Phase 1 design) SpaceX is now proceeding directly to what it calls "Phase 2" for launches of its upcoming Starship system.

Phase 2 Starship Launch Pad design

Some details for "Phase 3" are coming out shortly but are dependent on the current "Phase 2" development.

External link to LIVE camera view of Boca Chica Beach STARSHIP CAM External Link to NOTAM

STARSHIP CAM

Boca Chica has also become a full Starship production factory for mass producing Test Starships and SuperHeavy Boosters.

History

Launch Pad construction Jan 2019

Launch Pad construction 30th Jan 2019

Latest Ready date : Late 2019 (as of August 2018) This has now been accelerated for the first 'Starship' Test Article to March 2019.

SpaceX Boca Chica Site 14 Jan 2019

31st Dec 2018 UPDATE with 3 New Duel Bell Raptor Engines already installed

The new Duel Bell design of the Raptor Engines shown here on the StarHopper test item allow the engines to work efficiently and both high and low altitude

Rocket Bell designs showing Dual Bell

StarHopper Test item progress

29 Dec 2018

StarHopper parts stainless steel Test production

Elon Musk has confirmed that the first 'hopper' tests of the new BFS will be at Boca Chica in March/April 2019.

A lot of building activity has started as from 19 Sept 2018 since work on Pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center is almost completed freeing up the workers so as to have the new site up and running in time for the first development BFS tests by late 2019.

SpaceX are planning Dragon Reentry in the Gulf of Mexico as a possible splashdown location for missions originating from this SpaceX South Texas Launch Site.

SpaceX break ground on Texas rocket launch site on Monday 22 Sept 2014

On 9th July 2014 SpaceX got the go ahead from the Federal Aviation Administration to allow for 12 commercial launches per year of Falcon 9 including up to 2 Falcon Heavy rockets.

Full paced construction had been expected to have started around August 2015. (delayed due to unstable ground and earth works completed mid 2016)

The world’s first private, commercial vertical launch site. located on the south West Texan border with Mexico.

The Boca Chica launch site lies at about 26 degrees north latitude, while Cape Canaveral sits at approximately 28.5 degrees.

“We’re two-and-a-half degrees south of Cape Canaveral, and those two-and-a-half degrees are actually helpful for GTO missions,” Musk said. “We have a strong incentive to try to get Boca Chica active as soon as possible.”

Rockets launching into such orbits receive a performance boost from launch pads at lower latitudes because of the faster spin of Earth closer to the equator. Launching closer to the equator allows rockets to use less fuel to put satellites in orbit.

First construction will include storage facilities, hangars, machine shops, as well as a 28 acre command center.

Looking West along TX-4 25-mile drive on Highway 4 from Brownsville east to Boca Chica Beach

PHASE 1 (2014-2019)

The first stage is to build a Solar Energy Farm

Dogleg Park LLC will use SolarCity (point of interest: A Dogleg is a guided, powered turn during ascent phase of a rocket launch)

Apparently Dogleg Park now owns about 100 acres of land at Boca Chica and the solar panels will be up to 6.5 acres of land in the area and also some more panels next to the launch control center.

Other site being developed by The Flats at Mars Crossing LLC

Possible a well and desalination plant to produce the required water usage including for the suppression system they will use septic tanks at both the pad and also at the launch control and processing locations.

From Oct 2017 it is looking like the first stage construction for the Launch pad is going to be a BFR mount, At this time there is no details of how this change of use will be changed with the FAA and with the original application, it appears that the first flight will be delayed until 2019/20 and be a BFR.

Tracking Facility

Construction of a 12,000 square feet tracking center.

STARGATE project

SpaceX with the University of Texas at Brownsville’s Center for Advanced Radio Astronomy

In 2014 SpaceX’s construction office consisting of a double-wide trailer

Up to May 2015 just preliminary work has been done, full construction expected to start August 2015.

Perimeter Fences erected May 2015

Delays have be incurred mainly due to foundation issues.

"The new soil will be more suitable for supporting the foundations of the launch complex structures than the native clay sand. In addition, SpaceX will ensure that no non-native species will be accidentally dumped to the area.", At least 310,000 cubic yards of new soil has needed to be added.

Feb 2016

Soil-surcharging will take to 2018 to compress the ground.

One of two ground station antenna purchased from NASA for instalment in September 2016

SpaceX’s first launch was set for 2017. The company said the launch site won’t be complete until 2017. They now anticipate their first test launch in 2019.

StarHopper test article on Launch pad at Boca Chica (10 March 2019)

StarHopper fueling test 10 March 2019 at Boca Chica Launch facility

The second stage is to get the launch pad operational before the end of 2015 (now 2018) if possible, getting ready for SpaceX's first manned mission slated for sometime in 2016 (now 2019). NASA is looking for manned flights to the ISS in 2017(now 2018) but these most likely will launch from Cape Canaveral in Florida.

Elon has suggested that there will be a manned fly around the moon and then a possible manned landing to prove the technology.

In a "One on One" at MIT on 24 Oct 2014 Elon suggested a Moon base as "Why not"

A test Starship construction facility has been built Boca in Nov 2018 to produce the first 'hopper' test version of the Starship.

PHASE 2 (2019-2023 estimated)

From Elon Musk earlier statements to the Texas Legislatures that this would be "Logical"

This phase will be to build a completely new super heavy rocket manufacturing plant for construction of the proposed FalconX using the new Raptor engines and possible 10m core, this next generation of larger rockets will have to be built closer to the launch site because they will be too big to transport long distances over highways.

The plan to build a Starship(BFR) construction facility at Boca (2019)

Insert StarHopper Test Article Dec2018

Whether this will be the location of SpaceX's first manned, Moon and Mars launches is still uncertain.

Launch Manifest for Boca Chica Beach

Originally

Two communications satellites owned by SES were booked to fly into orbit from South Texas on a pair of Falcon 9 rockets in 2017, giving SpaceX its first two confirmed payloads assigned to launch from the new commercial spaceport, the two satellites — SES 14 and SES 16/GovSat (Now if launched from this spaceport will be NET 2019)

Now

StarHopper Test launches were performed from February 2019 until Aug 2019

Next Starship MK1 is currently being built and the launch pads upgraded to support Starship MK1 test program know as "Phase 2"

StarLink Version 2 satellites

Possibly Launch of the #dearmoon in 2023

Brownsville Infrastructure

The airport at Brownsville is being upgraded with a new terminal that should be up and running in 2018, SpaceX are pursuing extending the existing runway to accommodating bigger cargo operating planes and the FAA are considering it.

What will also be interesting to see if SpaceX intend to construct rockets on site, transportation of rockets larger than the current F9 first stage would be a problem, SpaceX are looking at building rockets with a larger diameter.