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SpaceX’s Starship booster-catching ‘launch tower’ begins to take shape in Texas
Aerial photos show that SpaceX has rapidly begun building the first of two planned skyscraper-sized Starship ‘launch towers’ in South Texas – towers that could one day catch the Super Heavy boosters out of the air with huge arms.
CEO Elon Musk first revealed that outlandish Starship booster recovery plan around the turn of the year, followed three months later by an even wilder claim that the same booster-catching tower could also catch Starships. Around the time the idea was first floated, SpaceX was beginning to build one of two planned towers that might be outfitted with arms in the future. Progress was mostly invisible at first, hinted at only by the presence of a self-propelled drill and a few muddy holes in the right spot.
By mid-March, SpaceX had begun clearing away some of the dirt on top, revealing a beefy foundation with 25 two-foot-thick (~1m) piles buried at least 100 ft (30m) deep in the sandy wetlands. Two weeks later, the foundation has been encased in concrete and the framework for massive base is nearly ready for its first concrete pour.
In other words, SpaceX’s first South Texas launch tower has just begun to take shape and grow vertically. First and foremost, its purpose is to provide an extremely sturdy base with which SpaceX can install Super Heavy boosters on the launch mount and then install Starships on top of those boosters. Standing at least 122 meters (~395 ft) tall from tip to tail without even accounting for the launch mount/stand Starship will attach to, that seemingly simple task ends up being not so simple at all.
Situated less than a mile from the Gulf of Mexico, Boca Chica is typically an extremely windy environment at sea level – let alone hundreds of feet above ground – and the South Texas coast is almost constantly at risk of torrential rain, thunderstorms, hurricanes, and flooding. As far as building giant, sturdy towers and performing work as sensitive and precise as vertically mating rocket stages, it’s hard to imagine a viable launch site with less favorable conditions short of Siberia or the Russian steppe.
According to Musk, SpaceX’s Boca Chica launch tower will have a “hook height” (the distance from the crane hook to the ground) of at least 140m (~460 ft), meaning that the top of the tower’s crane will likely be 150-160m (490-520 ft) tall when configured to mate Starship to Super Heavy.
Beyond those general details and the occasional official SpaceX render of possible launch facilities, not much else is known about how Boca Chica’s launch tower will look and function, particularly with respect to vague plans to catch Super Heavy boosters. However, SpaceX appears to have aggressively turned its attention to building out Boca Chica’s first orbital launch facilities and the progress made in the last two months suggests that it wont be long before what was recently a dirt apron will be ready to support Starship and Super Heavy testing.
According to Musk, SpaceX’s internal goal is to attempt Starship and Super Heavy’s first orbital launch as early as July 2021. If the company continues to work around the clock on rocket’s orbital launch site as it has for the last two months, it’s far from inconceivable that the pad will be ready for that orbital launch debut even if Starship is not. Stay tuned for more updates as the pad and launch tower continue to take shape.
News
Starship Flight 9 nears as SpaceX’s Starbase becomes a Texan City
SpaceX’s launch site is officially incorporated as Starbase, TX. Starship Flight 9 could launch on May 27, 2025.

SpaceX’s Starbase is officially incorporated as a city in Texas, aligning with preparations for Starship Flight 9. The newly formed city in Cameron County serves as the heart of SpaceX’s Starship program.
Starbase City spans 1.5 square miles, encompassing SpaceX’s launch facility and company-owned land. A near-unanimous vote by residents, who were mostly SpaceX employees, led to its incorporation. SpaceX’s Vice President of Test and Launch, Bobby Peden, was elected mayor of Starbase. The new Texas city also has two SpaceX employees as commissioners. All Starbase officials will serve two-year terms unless extended to four by voters.
As the new city takes shape, SpaceX is preparing for the Starship Flight 9 launch, which is tentatively scheduled for May 27, 2025, at 6:30 PM CDT from Starbase, Texas.
SpaceX secured Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approval for up to 25 annual Starship and Super Heavy launches from the site. However, the FAA emphasized that “there are other licensing requirements still to be completed,” including policy, safety, and environmental reviews.
On May 15, the FAA noted SpaceX updated its launch license for Flight 9, but added: “SpaceX may not launch until the FAA either closes the Starship Flight 8 mishap investigation or makes a return to flight determination. The FAA is reviewing the mishap report SpaceX submitted on May 14.”
Proposed Texas legislation could empower Starbase officials to close local highways and restrict Boca Chica Beach access during launches. Cameron County Judge Eddie Trevino, Jr., opposes the Texas legislation, insisting beach access remain under county control. This tension highlights the balance between SpaceX’s ambitions and local interests.
Starbase’s incorporation strengthens SpaceX’s operational base as it gears up for Starship Flight 9, a critical step in its mission to revolutionize space travel. With growing infrastructure and regulatory hurdles in focus, Starbase is poised to become a cornerstone of SpaceX’s vision, blending community development with cutting-edge aerospace innovation.
News
The Boring Company accelerates Vegas Loop expansion plans
The Boring Company clears fire safety delays, paving the way to accelerating its Vegas Loop expansion plans.

After overcoming fire safety hurdles, the Boring Company is accelerating its Vegas Loop expansion. The project’s progress signals a transformative boost for Sin City’s transportation and tourism.
Elon Musk’s tunneling company, along with The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) and Clark County, resolved fire safety concerns that delayed new stations.
“It’s new. It’s taken a little time to figure out what the standard should be,” said Steve Hill, LVCVA President and CEO, during last week’s board meeting. “We’ve gotten there. We’re excited about that. We’re ready to expand further, faster, than we have.”
Last month, the company submitted permits for tunnel extensions connecting Encore to a parcel of land owned by Wynn and Caesars Palace. The three tunnels are valued at $600,000 based on country records.
Plans for a Tropicana Loop are also advancing, linking UNLV to MGM Grand, T-Mobile Arena, Allegiant Stadium, Mandalay Bay, and the upcoming Athletics’ ballpark. Downtown extensions from the convention center to the Strat, Fremont Street Experience, and Circa’s Garage Mahal are also in the permitting process.
“Those are all in process,” Hill noted. “We’ve got machines that are available to be put in the ground. I think we’ve reached a framework for how these projects are going to work and how they’ll be permitted from a safety standpoint, as well as a building standpoint.”
The Boring Company has six boring machines, with three currently active in Las Vegas. Last week, TBC announced that it successfully mined continuously in a Zero-People-in-Tunnel (ZPIT) configuration, enabling it to build more tunnels faster, safer, and at a more affordable rate.
Tunneling under Paradise Road is underway as The Boring Company works on the University Center Loop. The University Center Loop is expected to connect to the Las Vegas Convention Center within two months, linking to the Westgate tunnel. The full Vegas Loop will span 104 stations and 68 miles. Even though The Boring Company’s tunnel network in Las Vegas isn’t nearly finished, it has already become a key attraction in the city.
“It’s such a great attraction for shows that are looking at this building (convention center) and we’re going to be connected to everybody in town,” Hill said. “It’s a real difference-maker.”
A few Vegas Loop stations are already operational, including those connected to Resorts World, Westgate, Encore, and all the Las Vegas Convention Center Loop stations. The Downtown Loop, which connects to the downtown area, and the Riviera Station, the hub that leads to Resorts World with Westgate destinations, are also operational.
As The Boring Company accelerates the Vegas Loop, its tunnels are poised to redefine mobility and tourism in Las Vegas, blending cutting-edge technology with practical urban solutions.
News
Neuralink Blindsight human trials expected to start in the UAE
Neuralink aims to restore vision with its Blindsight BCI implant. First human implant for Blindsight may happen in UAE.

During Elon Musk’s interview at the Qatar Economic Forum, he announced that Neuralink aims to implant its Blindsight brain-to-computer interface (BCI) device in a human patient by late 2025 or early 2026.
Blindsight focuses on restoring vision. A few years ago, Musk mentioned that Neuralink’s BCI devices would restore vision for people, even those born blind.
“The first two applications we’re going to aim for in humans are restoring vision, and I think this is notable in that even if someone has never had vision ever, like they were born blind, we believe we can still restore vision. The visual part of the cortex is still there. Even if they’ve never seen before, we’re confident they could see,” Musk said during Neuralink’s Show & Tell in 2022.
Musk said Blindsight could be implanted into a human patient in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Neuralink plans to partner with the Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi to implant the first human patient with Blindsight.
Elon Musk’s neurotechnology company is partnering with the Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi to conduct the first clinical trial of the UAE-PRIME study. Like Neuralink’s PRIME study in the United States, UAE-PRIME will focus on human patients with motor and speech impairments.
Neuralink received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval to conduct the PRIME and CONVOY studies in the United States. PRIME tests the capabilities of the company’s Link implant to restore or enable motor and speech in participants. Meanwhile, the CONVOY study explores Link’s ability to control assistive robotic devices. Neuralink already has an assistive robotic arm called ARA that could expand patients’ autonomy beyond smart devices.
Blindsight would probably require a separate study from PRIME and CONVOY. As such, Neuralink might need FDA approval in the United States to start human trials for Blindsight. However, Blindsight already received a “breakthrough device” designation from the US FDA.
In April 2025, Neuralink opened its patient registry to participants worldwide. The neurotechnology company has already implanted its Link BCI device into five patients. Earlier this year, Neuralink welcomed one of its first PRIME study participants as the first patient in its CONVOY study.
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