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SpaceX’s Starship prototype proceeds at breakneck pace towards hop tests
Well illustrated by recent drone photos of SpaceX’s up-and-coming Boca Chica, Texas facilities, dozens of SpaceXers and local contractors have congregated at the company’s Starship prototype work site over the last few weeks, progressing it from an empty tent and a collection of parts to a handful of large assemblies for what appears to be the first full-scale Starship hopper.
Much like Falcon 9’s Grasshopper and F9R (Reusable) hop test articles, this ungainly Starship hopper – standing an impressive 9m (29.5 ft) wide and ~40m (131 ft) tall – appears all but guaranteed to become the first integrated BFR hardware to take flight, hopefully supporting a productive series of low-altitude hop tests from a roughly-prepared South Texas pad.
https://twitter.com/austinbarnard45/status/1079402956603248641
Since SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter to provide a number of updates on and photos of the company’s dramatically refigured approach to BFR (now Starship and Super Heavy), employees and local contractors have been working almost around the clock to keep building the first full-scale, integrated Starship test article. To be dedicated to low-speed, low-altitude hop tests, Starhopper has been a spectacle and scandal from the start thanks to an unshakable visual aesthetic reminiscent of 1950s science fiction or an elaborate and slow-burning April Fool’s prank.
As of now, several dozen tweets and tweet replies from Musk in just the last week offer extensive support for the unorthodox new design – replacing carbon composites and an ablative heat shield for a new stainless steel alloy and liquid cooling – while also firmly indicating that the object taking shape in South Texas really is a Starship hopper that will eventually take to the skies on a pillar of Raptor engine exhaust. Those inaugural hop tests could apparently begin as early as March or April 2019. Given Musk’s statements, it seems that this highly unusual Starship hop test program simply cannot be judged accurately by its cover, at least not easily.
Even for SpaceX, building an aerospace-grade prototype of a massive orbital spaceship outdoors – adjacent to soggy Texan marshland and Gulf of Mexico sea spray, no less – is utterly and completely unexpected, especially in an industry where rocket hardware is routinely fabricated indoors, if not in medical-grade clean rooms. The most likely explanation here is that we are seeing something more akin to the aeroshell or cocoon of a Starship hopper, with a huge amount of thought and debate ultimately landing on this oddity as the fastest, most affordable, and most data-rich path forward for full-scale BFR testing.
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- A welder can be seen attaching a patch layer over each panel layer gap on Dec. 30. (NASASpaceflight /u/bocachicagal)
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- A lifting sling is seen here attached to Starhopper’s bottom half prior to its first lift and move. (NASASpaceflight /u/bocachicagal)
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- Before the move… (NASASpaceflight /u/bocachicagal)
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- And after the move. (NASASpaceflight /u/bocachicagal)
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- The leftmost mockup was stitched together from NASASpaceflight user bocachicagal’s on-site photos by Thomas Lacroix. The TL;DR of this is that Starhopper appears to be a solid three-quarters the height of a full 2018 BFS. (SpaceX, NASASpaceflight, Thomas Lacroix)
In this speculative instance, the sensitive liquid methane and liquid oxygen propellant tanks – as well as Starhopper’s triple-Raptor thrust structure and spaghetti plumbing – would be fabricated in SpaceX’s Hawthorne, CA factory or McGregor, TX test facilities before being shipped to Boca Chica for integration with the large structures already in work there. Those Raptors, propellant tanks, and a general program of fit-and-finish optimizations are next on the list of significant Starhopper-related events expected to occur within the next several months.
The latter task has already begun, showing up in the form of sheet metal refinement by way of essentially stitching together loose panel gaps between and within sheet-covered sections of Starhopper’s shiny silver nose. SpaceX workers also conducted the first move of the fully-integrated hopper’s base section, previously built and then sat atop a ready-made concrete stand that may or may not have come from a water tank design. While the move was slight, the base and nose sections are now roughly side-by-side along the apron of SpaceX’s temporary tent, where a third Starhopper hull segment is being built up.
2019 is going to be wild and March/April simply cannot come soon enough.
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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.
News
Tesla China extends its 7-year financing promotion once more
The move marks Tesla’s second extension of the program this year.
Tesla has extended its seven-year ultra-low-interest and five-year interest-free financing programs in China once more, pushing the offers through March 31, the end of the first quarter.
The move marks Tesla’s second extension of the program this year. The financing plan was first introduced on January 6 as a strategy aimed at offsetting higher ownership costs ahead of China’s planned 5% NEV purchase tax in 2026.
The original promotion was set to expire at the end of January but was extended to the end of February. This has now been extended again through March.
The repeated extensions reflect growing competitive pressure. Tesla’s 2025 retail sales in China totaled 625,698 units, representing a 4.78% year-on-year decline, as per data compiled by CNEV Post. That being said, this decline is partly caused by the Model Y’s changeover to its new variant in Q1 2025, which resulted in lower sales during the quarter.
In early 2026, the Model Y also lost its position as China’s top-selling EV in January to Xiaomi’s YU7, though this was also a month when Tesla primarily exported vehicles to foreign territories, which pushed local delivery numbers lower.
During January 2026, Tesla China exported 50,644 vehicles, roughly 1.7 times higher than the same month a year ago and more than 15 times higher than December’s level.
Tesla’s financing push has not gone unanswered. BYD this week introduced its own seven-year low-interest plan across its Ocean lineup and Fang Cheng Bao sub-brand, also valid through March 31. Other competitors including NIO, XPeng, Li Auto, and Geely Auto have already rolled out extended-term loan programs as well.
Elon Musk’s Starbase, TX included in $84.6 million coastal funding round
The Boring Company wins key approval for Nashville Music City Loop
