Elon Musk's SpaceX Announced NEW Raptor 3 Upgrade after Starship flight 10 Shocked whole Industry
Elon Musk's SpaceX Announced NEW Raptor 3 Upgrade after Starship flight 10 Shocked whole Industry
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00:00 intro
00:28 Raptor 3’s New Upgrade
07:42 The problem with Raptor 3
10:04 SpaceX’s New Achievement
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#alphatech
#techalpha
#spacex
#elonmusk
#raptor
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Elon Musk's SpaceX Announced NEW Raptor 3 Upgrade after Starship flight 10 Shocked whole Industry
This is insane! The Raptor 3 engine - already known as the world’s most powerful and stable rocket engine, just got a huge update from SpaceX. They’ve fixed all the issues it faced during testing, making it stronger than ever.
So, what are these upgrades? And when will we actually see them in action?
Let’s dive in and find out in today’s Alpha Tech.
Just a few days ago, observers spotted a rare scene inside the Starfactory: all three generations of the Raptor engine, versions 1, 2, and 3, lined up neatly side by side. That arrangement is almost certainly intentional, as Elon Musk has hinted at a major technical update on Starship, with Raptor 3 likely to take center stage.
The most striking detail in the photo is the Raptor SN20. At first glance, it might look no different from the earlier engines. But with the sharp eyes of engineers, it becomes clear that SN20 carries some significant upgrades compared to the SN1 prototype unveiled back in August last year.
To really see what I mean, let’s take a look at this photo. Alright, so as you can see, I’m not exactly sure which SN version these upgrades started on, but on SN20 there are three noticeable changes.
Elon Musk's SpaceX Announced NEW Raptor 3 Upgrade after Starship flight 10 Shocked whole Industry
First, right at the methalox feedline joint, they added a gray collar that basically acts like a protective buffer, shielding the joint from the insane vibrations of Raptor 3, which can push out up to 280 tons of thrust thanks to that full-flow staged combustion cycle.
Just to the left of that collar, you can also spot that SpaceX wrapped the methane turbopump area in a metal casing, probably to tidy things up and give the engine a cleaner, more robust look.
Oh, and I almost forgot, SN20 also comes with a Texas flag, which is pretty interesting. Imagine if Gavin Newsom had been a bit nicer to SpaceX, maybe it would be flying around with a California flag instead.
Elon Musk's SpaceX Announced NEW Raptor 3 Upgrade after Starship flight 10 Shocked whole Industry
Then there’s the third upgrade over at the Hot Gas Manifold part. Elon Musk mentioned there was a technical issue with the Raptor 3 at the connection between the thrust chamber and the manifold. Originally, this joint used a bolted flange, which he described as “ugly, unreliable, and heavy.” The problem was that it added extra weight, could loosen under extreme heat and pressure, and made manufacturing more complex. SpaceX’s solution was to switch to a welded joint, which cuts weight, Raptor 3 now comes in at just 1,525 kilograms, makes the connection stronger and leak-proof, and even improves gas flow inside the engine.
Of course, welding introduces its own challenges, like being harder to maintain and requiring super precise techniques, especially when you’re joining different metals like copper alloys for the chamber and Inconel for the manifold. To deal with that, they added a protective plate over the weld, keeping it safe while the engine stays reliable.
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