The explosion of the starship prototype thwarted the great plans of Elon Musk
Everything indicates that space observers were right. You can't weld rockets under the cloud and put them in makeshift hangars. SpaceX people have collided with reality.
After the explosion of the starship prototype, which took place two weeks ago in Boca Chica, Texas, SpaceX radically changed its approach to the development of a new rocket. The Cocoa, Florida test center has been virtually shut down, and steel rings produced for the rocket will most likely go to Los Angeles, where they will be used in subsequent Cybertruck prototypes.
We can no longer count on building the versions of Mk2 and Mk4, whose elements were in Cocoa. A large number of employees were laid off, and the rest went around the company's facilities in Boca Chica and Hawthorne. SpaceX plans to build the Mk3 version in completely different conditions, i.e., as it has been done so far in other concerns, in certain, proven and professional production halls.
The Elon Musk company will also have to tighten the belt, so all activities in the subject of building the Starship and SuperHeavy prototype will be focused only on the first center in Boca Chica. Experts believe that the explosion of the prototype fuel tank and the awareness that the rocket should be folded in different conditions will make the work delayed considerably. Starship's first suborbital flight can take place only at the end of next year, i.e. a year after Musk's suggested date.
As for Starship's first space flight, we can expect it at the beginning of 2021, and SuperHeavy at the end. The combined flight around the moon of both vehicles will take place no earlier than in 2022. Despite the slide, SpaceX may be able to land on the surface of the Silver Globe in 2022 or 2023, and with astronauts by 2024, which is faster than the official NASA mission under the Artemida program.
Elon Musk continues to be idol of many entrepreneurs, that’s right. SpaceX has thousands of great projects that make our dreams come true. However, they should be more careful for the future. Their aim is to discover other planets and make them ready to live. It’s not something easy as we all know.