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SpaceX's next Starship rapidly coming together as Elon Musk shares latest progress
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has shown off a rarely-seen phase of Starship construction, further confirming that the next full-scale rocket ship is rapidly coming together after operator error destroyed its predecessor on April 3rd.
Around 5 am local time (10:00 UTC) on April 5th, Musk shared a photo of a smaller secondary tank’s installation inside Starship SN4’s full-size liquid methane tank. The photo is the first time SpaceX or its CEO has offered a glimpse inside this lesser-known part of Starship production and assembly and simultaneously offers insight into a design that’s been a mystery for months. Over the last few weeks, local residents-turned-unofficial-SpaceX-photographers have captured several photos of an internal Starship header tank design far removed from the nosecone tank Musk has previously discussed.
Those header tanks are a necessity to enable Starship’s ability to quickly, reliably, and safely reignite its Raptor engines for recovery and landing-related burns. For a ship like Starship SN4, those header tanks are a sign that SpaceX may want to use the ship to perform Starship’s most crucial test short of orbit — a ~20 km (12.5 mi) flight test meant to demonstrate a skydiver-style landing maneuver. While that skydiver landing test remains several consecutive milestones distant, Musk’s April 5th photo confirms that Starship SN4 is making significant progress towards final assembly.
Known as header tanks, SpaceX’s large Starship launch vehicle upper stage and orbital spacecraft requires smaller, secondary tanks aside from the main liquid oxygen and methane propellant tanks that make up the bulk of its body. In these early stages of prototype development, those tanks serve one main purpose: reserve a small portion of pressurized propellant for Starship landing burns.
While Starship’s main tanks still need to be pressurized at all times to ensure the rocket’s structural integrity, smaller header tanks make it much easier to safely feed Raptor engines fuel during even the most chaotic of aerial maneuvers. For rocket engines, even the slightest introduction of pressurization gas or voids into the combustion process can lead to immediate destruction — a bit like how a tiny air bubble can be almost instantly fatal for humans. Starship header tanks thus ensure that only a fraction of the overall tank volume is in play during the ship’s most critical maneuvers.
Requiring both a fuel and oxidizer, Starships thus need two header tanks. Currently, Starship’s design places the liquid methane header tank directly inside the main methane tank itself. The liquid oxygen header tank, however, is situated in the very tip of Starship’s nose section, a location chosen to optimize the vehicle’s center of gravity for stability during a radical skydiver-style landing maneuver.
Musk’s April 5th photo and caption revealed that SpaceX began installing Starship SN4’s methane header tank just an hour or two after it had flipped the ship’s partially-completed liquid methane tank dome. Thanks to SpaceX’s more efficient use of a common dome design in their Falcon and Starship rockets, that dome also serves as the upper dome of the ship’s larger liquid oxygen tank. After the methane header tank is installed, a funnel-like sump will be the last addition needed to finish the section.
With the majority of Starship SN4 already in work around SpaceX’s Boca Chica, Texas rocket factory, the ship could be just a week or less away from kicking off the stacking phase of assembly. Stay tuned!
Elon Musk
Starlink powers Europe’s first satellite-to-phone service with O2 partnership
The service initially supports text messaging along with apps such as WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Google Maps and weather tools.
Starlink is now powering Europe’s first commercial satellite-to-smartphone service, as Virgin Media O2 launches a space-based mobile data offering across the UK.
The new O2 Satellite service uses Starlink’s low-Earth orbit network to connect regular smartphones in areas without terrestrial coverage, expanding O2’s reach from 89% to 95% of Britain’s landmass.
Under the rollout, compatible Samsung devices automatically connect to Starlink satellites when users move beyond traditional mobile coverage, according to Reuters.
The service initially supports text messaging along with apps such as WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Google Maps and weather tools. O2 is pricing the add-on at £3 per month.
By leveraging Starlink’s satellite infrastructure, O2 can deliver connectivity in remote and rural regions without building additional ground towers. The move represents another step in Starlink’s push beyond fixed broadband and into direct-to-device mobile services.
Virgin Media O2 chief executive Lutz Schuler shared his thoughts about the Starlink partnership. “By launching O2 Satellite, we’ve become the first operator in Europe to launch a space-based mobile data service that, overnight, has brought new mobile coverage to an area around two-thirds the size of Wales for the first time,” he said.
Satellite-based mobile connectivity is gaining traction globally. In the U.S., T-Mobile has launched a similar satellite-to-cell offering. Meanwhile, Vodafone has conducted satellite video call tests through its partnership with AST SpaceMobile last year.
For Starlink, the O2 agreement highlights how its network is increasingly being integrated into national telecom systems, enabling standard smartphones to connect directly to satellites without specialized hardware.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk’s Starbase, TX included in $84.6 million coastal funding round
The funds mark another step in the state’s ongoing beach restoration and resilience efforts along the Gulf Coast.
Elon Musk’s Starbase, Texas has been included in an $84.6 million coastal funding round announced by the Texas General Land Office (GLO). The funds mark another step in the state’s ongoing beach restoration and resilience efforts along the Gulf Coast.
Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham confirmed that 14 coastal counties will receive funding through the Coastal Management Program (CMP) Grant Cycle 31 and Coastal Erosion Planning and Response Act (CEPRA) program Cycle 14. Among the Brownsville-area recipients listed was the City of Starbase, which is home to SpaceX’s Starship factory.
“As someone who spent more than a decade living on the Texas coast, ensuring our communities, wildlife, and their habitats are safe and thriving is of utmost importance. I am honored to bring this much-needed funding to our coastal communities for these beneficial projects,” Commissioner Buckingham said in a press release.
“By dedicating this crucial assistance to these impactful projects, the GLO is ensuring our Texas coast will continue to thrive and remain resilient for generations to come.”
The official Starbase account acknowledged the support in a post on X, writing: “Coastal resilience takes teamwork. We appreciate @TXGLO and Commissioner Dawn Buckingham for their continued support of beach restoration projects in Starbase.”
The funding will support a range of coastal initiatives, including beach nourishment, dune restoration, shoreline stabilization, habitat restoration, and water quality improvements.
CMP projects are backed by funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act, alongside local partner matches. CEPRA projects focus specifically on reducing coastal erosion and are funded through allocations from the Texas Legislature, the Texas Hotel Occupancy Tax, and GOMESA.
Checks were presented in Corpus Christi and Brownsville to counties, municipalities, universities, and conservation groups. In addition to Starbase, Brownsville-area recipients included Cameron County, the City of South Padre Island, Willacy County, and the Willacy County Navigation District.
Elon Musk
The Boring Company wins key approval for Nashville Music City Loop
The approval allows The Boring Company to use state-owned right-of-way along Tennessee’s highway system.
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee announced that the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) have jointly approved The Boring Company’s lease application and enhanced grading permit for the Music City Loop.
The approval allows The Boring Company to use state-owned right-of-way along Tennessee’s highway system, clearing a key hurdle for the privately funded tunnel project that aims to connect downtown Nashville to Nashville International Airport in approximately eight minutes, the Office of the TN Governor wrote in a press release.
“Tennessee continues to lead the nation in finding innovative solutions to accommodate growth, and in partnership with The Boring Company, we are exploring possibilities we couldn’t achieve on our own,” Gov. Lee said in a statement.
“The Boring Company is grateful for the leadership and hard work of federal, state, and local agencies in bringing this project to a shovel-ready point,” The Boring Company President Steve Davis said. “Music City Loop will be a safe, fast, and fun public transportation system, and we are excited to build it in Nashville.”
With lease and permitting approvals secured, The Boring Company will move forward with the Loop system’s construction immediately. The first segment of the Loop system is expected to be operational by the end of the year.
The Music City Loop will run beneath state-owned roadways and is designed to connect downtown Nashville to the airport, as well as lower Broadway to West End. The project will be 100% privately funded.
“The Music City Loop shows what’s possible when we leverage private-sector innovation and American ingenuity to solve transportation challenges,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. “TDOT’s lease approval will help advance this ambitious project as we work to reduce congestion and make travel more seamless for the American people.”
The Boring Company described the Loop as an all-electric, zero-emissions, high-speed underground transportation system that will meet or exceed safety standards. The Vegas Loop, for one, earned a 99.57% safety and security rating from the DHS and the TSA, the highest score ever awarded to any transportation system.
Starlink powers Europe’s first satellite-to-phone service with O2 partnership
Elon Musk’s Starbase, TX included in $84.6 million coastal funding round
