Tesla Powerpack battery storage units were recently spotted in SpaceX’s launch facility in Boca Chica, Texas. As revealed in a series of pictures taken by an esteemed member of the online NASA Spaceflight community, work on SpaceX’s Mars rocket testing grounds in the Lone Star state seems to be progressing at a steady pace.
The pictures of the Boca Chica site’s Tesla Powerpack battery system were shared online by one of NASASpaceflight.com’s most respected users, Nomadd. Using a camera that was mounted on top of a tall pole in a nearby lot, the online community’s veteran member managed to capture images of the facility’s latest Powerpack project. Nomadd was also able to capture images showing the facility’s solar installation and a STARGATE radio communication dishes.
Photos courtesy of Nomadd via NASASpaceFlight.com Forum
In his latest post, the NASASpaceflight.com forum member provided a set of pictures depicting the installation of Tesla’s Powerback battery system SpaceX’s Texas grounds.
While official details about SpaceX’s Boca Chica facility remain relatively unknown, speculations are high that the location might be utilized by the Elon Musk-led private space firm as a means to test and possibly launch its manned space missions. Unfortunately for the site, however, its development has been rather slow, as SpaceX focused the bulk of its resources on East Coast launch pads LC-40 and LC-39A. Despite this, and with Falcon Heavy likely to make its maiden flight early this year, it won’t be long before the Boca Chica launchpad starts seeing more activity.
In a lot of ways, the installation of Tesla Powerpack systems on the Texas location makes perfect sense. The SpaceX facility, after all, is located in a rather remote area that’s prone to intermittent power loss. It’s the perfect use case for installing a Powerpack battery backup system.
Tesla’s battery solution which provides power on a commercial scale has proven to be incredibly efficient and reliable. Just last year, Tesla attempted to solve South Australia’s power crisis through the installation of its largest Powerpack battery system to date. So far, Musk’s Powerpack system in SA has performed incredibly well, seamlessly providing backup electricity multiple times in December alone.