Elon Musk's New Starship Moonbase design update...

in 2020 Elon Musk declared that spacex's Starship can serve as part of Moonbase Alpha with no need to bring early ships back over a year later NASA announced Starship as the Victor among two other competitors securing a $2.9 billion contract to construct the Artemis lunar lander the November 18th test flight of Elon Musk Starship launched from Bach chica on the Texas Gulf Coast signals the impending reality of this Mega rocket future iterations hint at its Readiness for Missions to the moon this progress prompts questions how might a lunar base assembled from Starship take shape what could life be like there this marks an update on the design of the Starship moon base exploring the intricacies of lunar development reveals an enduring challenge the disparity in transport between Earth and the moon this discrepancy arises due to a greater mass shuttle from Earth to the Moon than what returns it's projected that if spacex's Starship serves as the primary lunar Logistics vehicle as many as nine out of 10 Starships could return to Earth empty this not only signifies a substantial waste of fuel and resources but also presents the issue of abandoning these rockets on the moon which would in turn be wasteful however within this challenge lies a groundbreaking proposition instead of allowing these Starships to return empty why not transform them into permanent fixtures integral to the emerging lunar infrastructure this novel idea calls for the creation of specialized variants of the lunar Starship each uniquely tailored to fulfill pivotal roles in establishing and sustaining lunar bases and habitats the requisites for such a comprehensive lunar infrastructure mandate the development ment of two variants of these oneway lunar Starships the first variant mirrors the hls or human Landing system designed to facilitate permanent lunar facilities its cargo section undergos A transformative process during construction allowing it to evolve into a horizontal lunar habitat vehicle service center agricultural space or other essential functions upon reaching the moon and unloading its cargo the cargo section can be detached from the HL starship's tankage section using a mobile crane previously sent to the Moon A specialized lunar crawler akin to spacex's bachik version transports the cargo section to its designated location at the facility positioned horizontally or connected with other cargo sections it's then shielded with lunar regolith for protection against radiation and microm meteorites the lower section housing fuel tanks undergos a process of repurposing its Raptor engines are removed for Earth shipment to be reused on subsequent Starships repurposed as part of a storage tank farm this section is insulated with regolith or if upright shielded with a canopy to reduce the boil off of cryogenic liquids the lower lunar gravity greatly facilitates construction converting Surplus lunar Starships into productive components of habitats are the broader lunar infrastructure efficient space utilization within a lunar base necessitates multi-functional zones accommodating various d activities such as sleep eating Recreation work and maintenance it demands private and public spaces each serving different purposes and accommodating fluctuating noise levels throughout the day the second variant derived from the tanker variant surfacing Earth's Fuel Depot addresses the volatile needs of lunar facilities these facilities require substantial masses of hydrogen methane nitrogen and water to sustain agricultural and Industrial operations hydrogen fuels or produces water in combination with oxygen from lunar reguli while methane fuels returning Starships nitrogen crucial for lunar Agriculture and industries might necessitate water transport to the Moon via these tanker Starships if local sources are insufficient modified tanker Starships reduce their launch mass by removing heat shield tiles and steering fins enabling larger payload delivery to the lunar surface once on the moon the tanker Starship integrates into the lunar facilities tank far removal of unnecessary flight systems and Raptor engines ensures efficient resource utilization within the lunar environment these Innovative variants represent a pivotal shift from wasteful to productive use of lunar Starships fostering sustainable lunar exploration and settlement repurposed as integral components of infrastructure these spacecraft signify a Visionary approach to lunar development there are several reasons why Starship derived lunar facilities should significantly lower the cost of creating infrastructure exploring these strategies for lunar infrastructure unveils a multifaceted approach aimed at harnessing the potential of the Starship spacecraft First Construction for lunar facilities primarily occurs on Earth rather than on the moon itself second the mass production capability of spacex's Starships on an assembly line forecasts considerably lower cost for these one-way lunar shuttles compared to alternative options for lunar infrastructure third these Starship based components the fundamental elements of lunar facilities can be fully equipped and tested on Earth before launch ready for occupation by astronauts or for immediate use as storage tanks upon arrival at the moon the primary objective behind employing Starship as a Cornerstone of lunar bases is to initiate surface operational capacity at an economically sustainable able cost for instance if a Starship base can effectively support a crew of 20 individuals for 6 months between crew changes the entire program could potentially operate below $150,000 us per person per day this stands in Stark comparison to the cost of the ISS program estimated at $10 million per person per day moreover a low earth orbit or Leo space station utilizing similar Hardware would be significantly more costeffective due to lower Delta V requirements consequently lunar facilities constructed using Starship spacecraft could serve as a source of additional revenue for SpaceX one approach involves the rapid cost recovery by selling these facilities to commercial companies or governments another option inails SpaceX retaining ownership of the lunar facilities and leasing them to customers generating an ongoing Revenue stream with SpaceX functioning as a lunar landlord alternatively SpaceX might retain ownership of the Starship derived storage tanks and charge for the volatiles used on a per kilogram basis collaborative ownership with other corporations and some lunar facilities could also be pursued the revenue Strategies employed by SpaceX will likely reflect the market needs for lunar facilities possibly utilizing a combination of these approaches this proposed strategy of repurposing Surplus Starships as infrastructure maximizes the starship's potential both as a transportation system and as a cat IST for Rapid infrastructure development utilizing the Starship to establish lunar facilities accelerates lunar Commerce and expedites the emergence of a lunar economy by repurposing Surplus spacecraft these facilities save substantial labor during the early stages of lunar infrastructure and industrialization furthermore strategies harnessing these aspects of the Starship could also be implemented effectively on Mars accelerating the human settlement of the solar system by years it's essential to note that a sustainable program wouldn't limit itself to a single lunar Starship base instead aiming to deploy them at a Cadence of around four per year would be more feasible each base would be tailored to support its specific Mission adjusting based on Lessons Learned collectively they represent a significant opportunity to establish a series of self-sufficient habitats along the rim of for instance Shackleton crater articulating Landing legs could potentially enable closer proximity by moving and joining the bases with pressurized tubes looking ahead envisioning a scenario where one of these bases contains a massive power system and vertically oriented tunnel boring machine could initiate excavations for the Next Generation lunar base this futuristic Vision includes enormous underground caverns and Towers derived from Starship components showcasing the potential for transformative Development Across the lunar surface well folks that's about it for today's episode thank you so much for tuning in and if you want support our Channel even further you can hop on over to our patreon through the link in the description below sign up and become a patron today to gain access to exclusive content sounds exciting right in any case we still appreciate your generosity and your passion for space exploration as always this is Kevin from great SpaceX and until next time keep looking up and happy holidays