SpaceX’s Starship Launch Tower Got A Set Of Monstrous 'Mechazilla' Robotic Arms

Featured Image Source: @LabPadre via Twitter & YouTube

SpaceX’s Starship launch tower got a set of monstrous robotic arms just in time for Halloween season. SpaceX founder Elon Musk calls the claw-like metallic structures ‘Mechazilla,’ a reference to the ‘Mechagodzilla’ character from the Godzilla film franchise. The claws are designed to ‘catch’ the Starship launch vehicle(s) as it returns from space. The robotic tower will also enable engineers to stack the 160-foot-tall Starship spacecraft atop the 230-foot-tall Super Heavy rocket that will propel it to orbit. It is the tallest launch vehicle in the world, taller than the U.S. Statue of Liberty. Starship/Super Heavy is also set to become the most powerful rocket ever developed.

On Wednesday, October 20, SpaceX teams at Boca Chica Village installed the Mechazilla arms to the 400-foot-tall orbital launch tower that will support the Starship launch system’s development in the coming year. Local resident, @LabPadre, has cameras documenting SpaceX’s Starship development, the featured image is the new set of arms the tower got this week. The tower is equipped with a couple sets of arms designed to grab the giant Super Heavy rocket and Starship, like chopsticks, as they descend down to the launch pad. This technique of recovering spacecraft will enable the company to rapidly reuse the vehicles in under an hour. “SpaceX will try to catch largest ever flying object with robot chopsticks,” Musk said last month, “Success is not guaranteed, but excitement is!”

So endeth the day...#SpaceX #Starbase #BocaChica #Texas #Starship pic.twitter.com/yefaTPmkDi

— LabPadre (@LabPadre) October 21, 2021

SpaceX has not released an official render depicting how the booster will be caught yet. An incredible render by @ErcXspace on Twitter shows how SpaceX could catch Starship and Super Heavy with Mechazilla. Musk replied to the render animation, stating it is “pretty close” to how the vehicles will be caught. “Booster & arms will move faster. QD [quick disconnect] arm will steady booster for ship mate,” Musk said about the video. “[Star]ship will be caught by Mechazilla too. As with booster, no landing legs. Those are only needed for moon & Mars until there is local infrastructure,” he added. 

Very close to real! Arms are able to move during descent to match exact booster position.

Catch point is off to side, in case catch fails – don’t want to hit launch mount.

Booster is transferred back to launch mount for next flight.

Designed to have <1 hour turnaround.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 3, 2021

SpaceX is prepping for its first orbital flight attempt. They will fly the booster for the first time then attempt to land it in the Gulf of Mexico, and plan to launch the Starship SN20 prototype to orbit from South Texas and land in the ocean off the coast of Kauai, Hawaii. So, SpaceX will not test out the Mechazilla arms during the first flight attempt because if the booster does not land and explodes it could destroy the launch tower and all ground support equipment that Musk calls ‘Stage Zero.’ Musk previously said they will attempt to catch the stainless-steel spacecraft until the second orbital flight.

Earlier today the "chopstick part" (which looks bigger than it looked on the ground) was installed on the Orbital Launch Tower. This part will help "catch" the Super-Heavy Booster with its mechanical arms.

📸@LabPadre #SpaceX @elonmusk pic.twitter.com/oo1CgvPnpv

— TankWatchers (@WatchersTank) October 20, 2021

The company is still pending regulatory approval from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to obtain a launch license. The Administration is currently working on an environmental assessment of the Starbase launch site, so it is not known when the gigantic rocket will lift off with its 29 methane-fueled Raptor engines. It will be the first time SpaceX ignites over 3 Raptors on a single mission. Starship SN20 will be equipped with 6 Raptors, it already initiated its preflight testing campaign. Engineers installed and test-fired a single R-Vac engine, this engine is designed for propulsion in the vacuum of space. You can watch SpaceX Starbase Launch Site operations in the 24/7 Livestream video below, courtesy of LabPadre via YouTube.

Watch LabPadre's 24/7 SpaceX Starbase Launch Site Livestream! 

Featured Image Source: @LabPadre via Twitter & YouTube