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SpaceX’s first BFR manufacturing facility approved by the Port of LA
teslarati ^ | March 19, 2018 | By Eric Ralph

Posted on 03/19/2018 6:49:02 PM PDT by BenLurkin

SpaceX has been given initial approval...to acquire and develop a massive vacant lot into a facility capable of manufacturing the first BFR prototypes and refurbishing the company’s reusable Falcon 9 boosters....

A request summary completed on March 6 details SpaceX’s proposal, laying out a bright future of rocket manufacturing for the abandoned 18-acre lot at Berth 240, one that might soon support “composite curing, cleaning, painting, and assembly [of commercial transportation vessels]” that “would need to be transported by water due to their size.”

This description meshes almost perfectly with past discussion of BFR manufacturing plans from SpaceX executives like Elon Musk and Gwynne Shotwell, both of which have in the recent past affirmed the need for any BFR manufacturing facility to be located adjacent to a large body of water due to the difficulty of transporting rocket hardware as large as BFR.

...

While it is likely to take a fair amount of time to prepare the lot for the construction of a facility capable of manufacturing advanced composite rocket components, the wording in the Port documentation also suggests that SpaceX means to transfer its Falcon 9 recovery work to the new berth as soon as it’s available. Indeed, the comparatively massive space would give SpaceX far more room for recovery operations with the drone ship Just Read The Instructions (JRTI), and could potentially become a one-stop-shop for booster recovery and refurbishment. As of now, boosters recovered on the West Coast are transported to the Hawthorne factory for all refurbishment work, operations that themselves already require brief road stoppages to accommodate the sheer size of Falcon 9. As of 2018, SpaceX is planning for BFR to be 50% taller and close to three times as wide as Falcon 9 (350 feet long and 30 feet in diameter).

(Excerpt) Read more at teslarati.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy
KEYWORDS: berth240; bfr; bocachica; california; elonmusk; falcon9; falconheavy; gwynneshotwell; hawthorne; losangeles; spacex; texas
Isn't it considered inefficient to launch off the west coast?
1 posted on 03/19/2018 6:49:02 PM PDT by BenLurkin
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To: BenLurkin

Isn’t it considered inefficient to launch off the west coast?


Usually needed for polar orbits, secret military launches in a weird orbit, etc., ones that can’t be done from the Cape.


2 posted on 03/19/2018 6:56:14 PM PDT by chaosagent (Remember, no matter how you slice it, forbidden fruit still tastes the sweetest!)
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To: BenLurkin

Sounds like they are going to ship them to Florida. Why didn’t they just find some place in Florida to build them?

I wouldn’t want a BFR I built to be exposed to a sea voyage from California to Florida.


3 posted on 03/19/2018 6:57:36 PM PDT by Gadsden1st
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To: chaosagent

Elon Musk will be glad to have this gig once Tesla goes 7


4 posted on 03/19/2018 6:57:44 PM PDT by vooch (America First Drain the Swamp)
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To: BenLurkin

West coast is great for launching satellites into polar orbit due to the earth’s spin. Satellites launched into GEO are best to be launched as close to the equator to save on maneuvering fuel needed to correct the injection orbit’s initial inclination which will be based off of the latitude of the launch facility. Maybe Elon is going to go the Sea Launch route and ship his BFR down south an launch from there though it would require a flotilla of ships to provide landing support for the spent boosters.


5 posted on 03/19/2018 7:01:18 PM PDT by DoubleNickle
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To: Gadsden1st

The BFRs will likely be launched (and possibly manufactured) at Boca Chica, TX (south of Brownsville)


6 posted on 03/19/2018 7:03:34 PM PDT by golas1964
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To: BenLurkin

BFR? BIG F_____NG ROCKET?


7 posted on 03/19/2018 7:04:08 PM PDT by Mastador1 (I'll take a bad dog over a good politician any day!)
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To: BenLurkin

Big F’ing Rocket?


8 posted on 03/19/2018 7:05:43 PM PDT by freedumb2003 (robert mueller is an unguided missile)
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To: BenLurkin
Isn't it considered inefficient to launch off the west coast?

It depends own the final orbit desired.

The west coast is preferred for polar orbits because the launch goes over water. This is mostly earth observation satellites, both DoD and commercial.

Canaveral is preferred for all other launches because they get a boost from the earth's rotational velocity.

I think the plan would be to load it on a ship and transport to a launch facility on the east coast. I don't know if the Panama canal is involved, but I bet it is.

9 posted on 03/19/2018 7:07:15 PM PDT by CurlyDave
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To: chaosagent

Barge to Vandy and Panama Canal for KSC use. Just like was done with the External Tank for shuttle. We shipped some to Cali but obviously never launched from there. Picked them up and sent them to KSC eventually. Sound would have scared some sea gulls or something at Vandy. ;-)


10 posted on 03/19/2018 7:13:16 PM PDT by rktman (Enlisted in the Navy in '67 to protect folks rights to strip my rights. WTH?)
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To: freedumb2003

Well they will formally call it Big Falcon Rocket, but the other name will last in the public mindset. Lol


11 posted on 03/19/2018 7:38:40 PM PDT by Empireoftheatom48 (All hands on deck/ suit up!!!)
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To: Gadsden1st

“Sounds like they are going to ship them to Florida. Why didn’t they just find some place in Florida to build them? I wouldn’t want a BFR I built to be exposed to a sea voyage from California to Florida.

I wonder why they wouldn’t build it in a facility adjacent to the Cape?


12 posted on 03/19/2018 7:42:24 PM PDT by plain talk
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To: Gadsden1st

Launch facility near South Padre Island close to the border?


13 posted on 03/19/2018 8:01:56 PM PDT by Ozark Tom
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To: plain talk

Synthetics construction?


14 posted on 03/19/2018 8:03:41 PM PDT by Ozark Tom
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To: BenLurkin; Moonman62; DiogenesLamp; AdmSmith; AnonymousConservative; Berosus; Bockscar; ...
It's Musk's stated intent to scale up BFR production and reuse by setting up suborbital service, point to point from various spots on the Pacific rim. It's more efficient to launch toward the east, but that has an impact on total payload capacity, rather than making orbit impossible. And the mightly Elon says the BFR will be SSTO. Thanks BenLurkin.

15 posted on 03/20/2018 12:47:20 AM PDT by SunkenCiv (www.tapatalk.com/groups/godsgravesglyphs/, forum.darwincentral.org, www.gopbriefingroom.com)
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To: golas1964
That'll probably be the main launch site for BFR launches into orbit and beyond, but the size of the Hawthorne facility's big door was apparently a consideration when the latest spec was dreamed up. BFR launches from 39A might be preferred for romantic or historical considerations, but it doesn't look likely, at least not at first, and assuming the BFR ever flies.

16 posted on 03/20/2018 12:50:53 AM PDT by SunkenCiv (www.tapatalk.com/groups/godsgravesglyphs/, forum.darwincentral.org, www.gopbriefingroom.com)
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To: BenLurkin

the drone ship Just Read The Instructions (JRTI)


Sounds like a (Iain M Banks) Culture vessel name ...


17 posted on 03/20/2018 1:49:50 AM PDT by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now it is your turn ...)
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To: plain talk

I wonder why they wouldn’t build it in a facility adjacent to the Cape?

...

Good question. SpaceX already builds their current rockets not far away in Hawthorne, CA. And there are more aerospace people in Southern CA than in FL. Plus they’ll be launching in more locations than Cape Canaveral.

Since a BFR is reusable, it will only have to transported by barge one time.


18 posted on 03/20/2018 3:29:00 AM PDT by Moonman62 (Make America Great Again!)
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To: Moonman62

Thanks! Maybe they love those high taxes and higher employee salaries in California.


19 posted on 03/20/2018 7:42:18 AM PDT by plain talk
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