Watch Starship Hopper Tests Live
Video Caption:
*** FIRST RAPTOR/HOPPER TEST TODAY THURSDAY 3/21/2019 10am-4pm CST -5UTC
STARSHIP CAM is located on South Padre Island, 6 miles away from Boca Chica Launch Pad. Visibility and clarity is relative to atmospheric conditions.
HOPPER AND RAPTOR engine tests begin the week of March 20, 2019.
SUBSCRIBE for frequent updates from SpaceX Boca Chica, launch viewing information and important local insider tips for those traveling to South Padre Island to film or view launches.
SPADRE.COM STARSHIP CAM views the Spacex Starship and Hopper prototype, the Boca Chica Launch Pad, Isla Blanca Beach Park which is the closest possible launch viewing area, and the beach at South Padre Island Texas. Enjoy free continuous live streams and recordings of all upcoming launches, Starship launch schedules and the latest SpaceX Boca Chica news. Marine fog occurs in early spring due to cool water temps and warming air, limiting or obscuring visibility. Check SPadre Youtube channel for frequent video updates from Boca Chica with closeup views of activity.
FIRST TEST LAUNCHES and landings of this world’s largest spaceship “Starship” orbital prototype may begin this summer. South Padre Island is the closest viewing area for launches, check https://www.SPadre.com for hotels, launch dates and area information. Make plans and book your hotel as soon as launch date is announced, as this will be the largest event by far in SPI history with worldwide interest and massive crowds for this incredible historic milestone in space flight! Check back for more videos of the progress and launch dates of the first Starship and the Boca Chica Spaceport.
THE BEST PLACE TO WATCH launches is on South Padre Island. Boca Chica beaches will be closed. The southern tip of SPI is county owned Isla Blanca Beach Park, and is the closest possible viewing area. A new waterfront ampitheater has already been built for public viewing of launches. It is a short walk on the beach from most hotels to Isla Blanca, beachfront hotels will have excellent views from south facing units. If you are unable to make it for a launch, you can view it live on the Starship Cam. All launches will be recorded and uploaded to this youtube channel.
DIRECTIONS TO SEE STARSHIP: from SPI, go over the bridge to Port Isabel, turn left by HEB on Hwy 48 for 16 miles, turn left on Minnesota Ave 313 for 2 miles, then turn left on Boca Chica Blvd Hwy 4 east for 19 miles to Boca Chica beach and SpaceX. There is a US Border Patrol checkpoint on this route where every vehicle is stopped for inspection. The Boca Chica launch site is not open to the public, but is easily seen from the beach access road Hwy 4. Although Boca Chica is just a few hundred yards across the Brownsville ship channel from SPI, it is approx 1 hour drive from SPI to Boca Chica. All public access is closed on launch dates.
HOPPER TEST LAUNCH DATES will be frequent with little advance notice, but we will post any information on launch dates on https://www.SPadre.com as soon as it becomes available.
BEST AND CLOSEST LAUNCH VIEWING IS AT SOUTH PADRE ISLAND. For hotel reservations, area information and more to help you plan your South Padre Island rocket launch vacation, please visit SPadre.com.
ABOUT STARSHIP: Originally named The Big Falcon Rocket (BFR), the Starship is the new fully-reusable super heavy-lift launch vehicle with a payload capacity to Earth orbit of at least 220,000 lb. Including both a launch vehicle and spacecraft, as well as infrastructure for rapid launch and relaunch capabilities, and zero-gravity propellant transfer technology to be deployed in low Earth orbit (LEO). The Starship could be capable of launching over 150 tons to low earth orbit. Test hopper flights begin in March 2019, with the first orbital flight tentatively planned for summer 2019. The launch vehicle design incorporates Raptor rocket engines, which are cryogenic methalox-fueled engines to be used for both stages of the super heavy-lift launch vehicle. The Starship system will be launched from the SpaceX South Texas Spaceport in Boca Chica, and is intended to completely replace all of SpaceX’s existing space hardware including the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launch vehicles, as well as the Dragon spacecraft.
Starship Cam hosted by South Padre Surf Company: https://www.southpadresurfcompany.com
