Elon Convo Part 2 [GO UP THE LAUNCH TOWER!]

Missed this when it came out. Really good. I could have liked more tour of the other parts of the base. A few parts on the tower have an alarming amount of rust for just a year. Main structure isn't, but systems fail on small components. Railings and there was a piece of equipment bolted to the tower. The camera looked at it a couple of times on the first stop going up the tower. It's going to be a very corrosive environment with the salt air. I wonder if zinc plates would help, just like they do on ships?

Absolutely loved this interview. I hope he does more.

Thanks, Tim, your access to Elon is a true testament to trust and hard work...

excellent

Daniel

Are we going to get early release on 1:100 scale Falcon 9 Model!!!!!?????

Wow. Great video.

I'm glad I am a patreon supporter. You post excellent videos. I can tell a lot of thought goes into everything you do. Please accept my congratulations on another excellent project

I sort of feel like I'm standing on the deck of the Santa Maria and listening to Columbus talk about the possibility of getting east by going west. Of course, he had a lot of misconceptions. The only way to address them is to grasp the future and see where it leads. Inspirational! Thanks, Tim. Excelsior, Elon!

Michael S Wilhelm

Really fine piece of work. This will be on Vintage Space in about 50 years. Truly history in the making. Capturing a relaxed and reflective Elon is worth more than thousands of tech details.

Thanks so much Tim. This is why I consider your Patreon a must. I live for these videos.

Tim, This series is pure GOLD. This gem is due to your ability and hard work to develop a relationship and trust with Elon. Thanks for all you do.

Jack Ellis

Terrific video. I love the pacing so that it can all be taken in without feeling rushed. It seems like it was Elon's first time up in the tower?

this is great. love the "philosophical Elon" that we get up at the top of the tower. (last time i was at Boca Chica the tower was only started, its amazing how big it is now!)

Joseph Pistritto

just like the first part, this was awesome! I like how when yous reached the top of the tower there was times when there wasn't much commentary, just taking in the surroundings and how starbase has evolved over the last couple years. looking forward to part 3 now :)

Wow. The sheer size is not able to be appreciated until you see it from up close. Well done Tim!

This is my favourite quote "At SpaceX we specialize at converting things from impossible to late." - Elon fantastic work

Looks GREAT to me. Though I must admit you definitely triggered my nerves looking over edges there a few times.

X-Aero

Amazing and overwhelming to realize just how tall it is.

I tried to jot down some notes for later posting when it is public (free): Taking notes: (EDA StarBase Elon interview 2 part 2) "At SpaceX we specialize at converting things from impossible to late." - Elon 250 tons booster, making it lighter over time. Landing tanks full: Landing tanks empty: Ullage mass: Air mass: Thinks they can get well under 200 tons. Engine start at more than half the speed of sound (~mach .5), several hundred meters in the air. Correct any X,Y error Drop the velocity to basically 0 Come in between the arms that are wide, as it comes in the arms will close, and the vehicle will be descending through the arms, and those tiny little lugs will attach the top of the arms, and hopefully not sheer off and crumple. That launch ring is really difficult to make. "We have not found a reason yet why it will not work." - Joe Petrzelka Success is one of the possible outcomes. Arms are off to the side. Booster come back, engines will start, it will slow down and translate over, and get in between the arms. Arms need to close, and when they close, they need to close in such a way they do not crush the rocket as well. There's a lot of ways to fail. Close on the methane tank - Joe Elon talks about what it will look like. It will look like the booster is descending through the arms for quite a while. 10s? Chines will be away from the tower. Tallest building South of San Antonio. HLS? Already have the first StarLink 2 Satellite at StarBase, and it is 7 meters long. StarShip is the only thing that can launch the StarLink 2 Satellites. 1.25 tons each. Comparing dingy to supertanker. (Awesome word use.) Big motivator now is StarLink. StarLink 2 are almost an order of magnitude more capable than StarLink 1 (bits/second). They can use the tower elevator as long as the generator is on. The boss can fire it up. The bottom of the tower hums loud. 480V elevator. Nap time for Elon in the elevator They gave the stop order. Stopping at the arms first. Wow what a nice view Insane custom designed gigantic hardware. Stainless steel welds. Arm cables clapping. Hydraulic switches near the arm. Floor height reading said x15m, x21m, 1x6m, x32m When they get out, they are above some of the low haze. "138m maybe" tall. Elon thinks of getting a hang glider. EDA thinks of a zip line to the High Bay. Elon gets vertigo loking into the elevator shaft. The key to making like multiplanetary is making a fully reusable rocket. A great talk about why to do it (to save life) The probable lifespan of life is much greater if we are multiplanetary and ultimately multistellar. EDA talks about a very important aspect of human kind financial priorities. Elon explains it is a positive sum game. The economic output per person is massively greater than it was in the past. (People who believe it is zero sum think that if one person spends it, someone else cannot.) If one creates great products and services (wealth), that is something that should be applauded. It increases the standard of living of the country and perhaps of the world. Sometimes people think of consumption and wealth as the same thing, but they are not. Consumption is fun but capital allocation is a job. Propellant storage for the vehicle is quite difficult. If you have to scrub, how long does it take to recycle? Booster is going to take a long time to scrub and recycle. Over time it should be very fast. But they shouldn't be scrubbing. Falcon 9 in the beginning, they had like a dozen scrubs before taking off. Elon brought the kids with him to the Cape and stayed there a lot.

YESSSSS YOU'RE THE BEST