Episode Transcript
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Hey everybody. Welcome back to the Elon Musk
Podcast. This is a show where we discuss
the critical crossroads that shape SpaceX, Tesla X, The
Boring Company, and Neurolink. I'm your host, Will Walden.
SpaceX plans to fly Starship from Starship's Starbase in
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Texas. It'll be flight 10, you'll have
booster 16, ship 37, and the company aims to execute a full
end to end test that covers liftoff stage separation, a tower
catch of the booster in a controlled re entry, and
splashdown of the ship. The flight plan targets a near
orbital trajectory that reaches space, gathers that in vacuum
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and finishes with the plan splashdown in the Indian Ocean.
Now the recent test history setsa clear benchmark for what
success must look like because each flight closed some gaps and
exposed others. Now.
Flight 7 in January 2025 returned the booster
successfully. Flight 8 in March 2025 and
Flight 9 in May 2025 lost the ship before splashdown, and
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Flight 9 also suffered a loss ofattitude control during breakup.
Now can Flight 10 complete the entire test profile for the
first time? Now Flight 10 sets a precise
sequence. Booster 16 will lift off, burn
through a set, and separate under hot staging.
The booster will flip light engines for return and attempt a
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tower catch with the mechanical arms known as the chopsticks.
Ship 37 will ignite its engines during separation, arc to space
in a high velocity path, run in space checks and then perform a
guided reentry three that targets a splashdown in the
Indian Ocean. The vehicle will carry mass
simulators only, which keeps thefocus on propulsion guidance and
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thermal protection rather than payload delivery.
Now this is the Block 2 configuration the SpaceX has
refined across several flights. Booster 16 stands about 69
meters tall and carries 33 Raptor engines that burn liquid
methane and liquid oxygen. The booster includes upgraded
igniters that address a low power igniter issue seen during
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a boost back attempt on Flight 7, and the upper section of the
booster also carries hot staginghardware with a vented
interstage and additional shielding that protects it
against the ship's plume during second stage ignition. 4 grid
fins in a reinforced structure provides steering authority and
strength during ascent and return.
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Now. SpaceX validated Booster 16 with
a full duration 33 engine staticfire on June 6th of 2025.
The test confirmed engine performance, plumbing integrity,
and avionics behavior at scale, and SpaceX removed the booster
from the pad for inspections andpost test work after the run
plan calls for a catch at the launch tower after separation
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and return. Now, SpaceX also maintains A
contingency plan that allows a splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico
if a catch attempt presents a risk to the pad or the tower.
Now let's move on to the ship. Ship 37.
It's roughly 50 meters tall and 9 meters in diameter, and it
mounts 3 sea level Raptors and three vacuum Raptors.
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The ship includes A payload Bay door in the nose, which lets
SpaceX test mechanisms for future cargo development, even
if this flight carries only masssimulators of Starlinks.
SpaceX covered the Leeward side of the ship with thousands of
heat shield tiles that protect the structure during re entry
and the Team Titan tile attachment and spacing based on
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prior losses to reduce tile shedding.
Engineers also added new vents and nitrogen purge system in the
aft attic above the engine Bay to prevent propellant buildup
and fires that previously destroyed the vehicle.
Now the ship completed its cryogenic proof testing back in
May on the 29th at Massey's. The vehicle later returned to
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the pad and ran a single engine static fire for about 6 seconds
on July 31st, followed by A6 engine static fire for about 9
seconds on August 1st. 2 firingsexercise startup transients,
throttle profiles and shut down timing under flight load.
Flight like loads. SpaceX destacked the ship on
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August 2nd and brought it back for final inspections and tile
work. The ship also rolled back to the
booster and will mate when assembly starts.
Now hot staging sits at the center of the performance
envelope for the stack. SpaceX now lights the ship's
engines while the booster is still attached, which keeps
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acceleration up and reduces velocity loss during separation.
The design requires A vented interstage that roots exhaust
and reduces pressure spikes. The added shielding protects
critical wiring and plumbing inside the booster's upper
section. This technique is very complex
and in return you get some high performance.
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And the recent flights proved the mechanical changes can't
survive real loads and real engine firings.
Now let's go back down to Earth.The pad infrastructure changes
enable the lift off environment.The 33 Raptors create SpaceX, of
course. There's a water cooled steel
plate under the orbital launch mount.
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It's a deluge inflamed deflectorsystem.
The system sprays high volumes of water to dampen acoustic
energy and thermal loads at ignition and throttle up.
Now the first Starship test in April 2023 completely
obliterated the pad and then they redesigned it.
The plate in the deluge system now prevent concrete splation
and debris in the US Fish and Wildlife Service described the
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water output as comparable to a heavy rainstorm, and no
significant environmental impacts have been seen.
Now. Engine and propellant system
tuning addresses failures seen in this flight, and SpaceX has
traced A harmonic oscillation inpropellant lines to conditions
that triggered leaks, which engineers reproduce during an
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extended ground run. Now, harmonic oscillation is
another word for crazy vibrations.
So there's fuel tubes inside of the ship.
It just shook violently and caused leaks.
The team modified Raptor vacuum feed hardware, adjusted
propellant conditioning, and updated throttle profiles to
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avoid this resonance. Ship 37 will test these changes
under flight loads, and the planalso includes in Space Engine
restart checks to collect ignition and thermal data that
matter for future orbital burns.Going forward with the next few
flights, reusability goals drivethe tower catch attempts.
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In the turn around logic, SpaceXcaught the Super Heavy boosters
on Flight 7 and 8, which removedsalt water corrosion from the
refurbishment cycle and cut handling time.
SpaceX Reflew Booster 14 on Flight 9, which showed that an
inspected and refurbished Super Heavy can fly once again.
Flight 10 uses a new booster, though SpaceX designed it for
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turn around efficiency. SpaceX will not attempt to ship
catch on Flight 10 because the program still focuses on
validating controlled splashdowns before approaching a
landing. Back at the pad, SpaceX has
already built a second tower at pad B to stage future ship catch
tests. Now preflight preparation
included a serious set back the SpaceX absorbed into the
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schedule. Ship 36, which initially held
the Flight 10 slot, exploded during a ground test at the
Massey site on June 18th, 2025. The blast occurred as the
vehicle neared a static fire ignition sequence and SpaceX
traced the cause to a composite overwrapped pressure vessel in
the nose cone that failed below rated pressure and triggered the
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explosion. The test stand was obliterated.
It suffered heavy damage, but the area was clear to personnel
and no injuries occurred. Luckily, and SpaceX just swapped
in ship 37, which already had major tests underway and then
advanced that ship through static fires and inspections.
Stack integration marks the final sequence before launch.
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SpaceX will roll booster 16 to the orbital mount and lift Ship
37 on top to build the full 120 meter stack.
The team may run a wet dress rehearsal, the test full
propellant load, countdown logicand interfaces, but most of the
time they don't need to. They've already tested the ship
and a booster separately, and just putting together they don't
really need to do a full test. The team may also run a brief
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spin prime or short duration check on the fully stacked
booster to confirm the quick disconnect and pad systems After
recent configurations. SpaceX already removed the
temporary static fire adapter from Pad A on August 3rd, which
cleared the tower for stacking. Local notices for road and beach
closures and maritime hazard zones will bracket the countdown
windows near the launch day. Now the test windows depends on
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regulatory clearance as much as hardware readiness.
The FAA required extensive corrective actions after the
April 2023 launch damage the pad, which SpaceX satisfied with
the new deluge system and other mitigations before subsequent
flights. Environmental Groups sued the
FAA in March or in May of 2023 over the prior review, and the
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case continues while the agency maintains strict oversight.
The FAA and the US Fish and Wildlife Service cleared later
flights after additional assessment and monitoring, and
debris from Flight 7 stayed within planned corridors.
SpaceX coordinated with authorities to recover fragments
when necessary and to document any effects on surrounding
areas. Now Flight 9.
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The loss of that ship on May 30th of 2025 triggered a new
mishap investigation that must close before Flight 10 can fly.
Ship reached space and remained aloft for about 46 minutes, lost
attitude control and broke apartduring re entry.
After saving, the FAA opened an investigation into root causes
and corrective actions, which SpaceX must document.
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Our friends over NASA spaceflight reported on August
6th that launch documentation was in preparation for the FAA,
and the FCC granted a special temporary authority for SpaceX
telemetry for Starship that started on August 4th, which
covers communications from the coming flight.
Elon Musk said that Flight 9's loss is barely a bump in the
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road and suggested in mid-july Flight 10 was about 3 weeks away
before later saying next month, which points to a late August or
early September attempt if approvals arrive in time.
So a clean Flight 10 profile would solidify the path for
orbital operations. For Starship, the booster must
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execute a reliable separation, aflip, a nominal boost back, and
an accurate catch. The ship must maintain stable
guidance after house aging, perform an engine restart in
space, protect its structure behind a robust thermal
protection system during re entry and splashdown.
Intact. The data must confirm that
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engine throttling avoids destruction oscillations and
that leak mitigation works in the aft compartment.
The splashdown must occur withinthe designated hazard area to
confirm predictability for future recovery and relocation
plans, so the mission also teststhe scaffolding behind
reusability economics. A reliable catch reduces pad
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downtime and recovery labor. A survivable reentry with intact
structure reduces redesign churnand confirms that the current
tile layout and attachment strategy meet requirements.
A clean in space restart clears a clear block for true orbital
insertion on later flights. Every validated element reduces
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uncertainty for payload customers and technical partners
who need consistent performance profiles and turn around times
before committing to missions. Flight 10 asks Starship to bring
all the pieces together under 1 profile.
The booster must fly out and return to the chopsticks on
command ship. Must reach space restart.
Engines survive re entry, heating and touchdown in the
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ocean in one piece. The regulators must sign off
that the mitigations from Flight9 and the Ship 36 accident
aligned with safety requirementsand the pad must handle the
acoustic and thermal blast within design limits.
The vehicles must deliver clean telemetry that proves the fixes
work. SpaceX prepared the hardware,
tuned all the engines, upgraded the pad and queued.
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The paperwork company now needs a clean countdown and a flight
that meets its own checklist. Flight 10 will measure whether
the program can stitch together booster recovery and ship
survival in the same attempt andkeep the runway clear for the
first true orbital mission. Hey, thank you so much for
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