SpaceX Will Use a Massive Water-Cooled Steel Plate for the Starship Launchpad

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SpaceX needs to rebuild and reinforce its launch pad after the powerful SpaceX Starship tore up hundreds of tons of concrete and dirt. SpaceX will not be using a flame diverter for the rebuilt Starship launch facility. They have been building a massive water-cooled steel plate for the past 3 months. The half-power static fire test had given them false-confidence that the concrete would withstand the full power launch.

Dr. Phil Metzger believes the water-cooled steel plate will work. The water will take away the heat and prevent the steel plate from melting.

SpaceX cannot dig into the ground deep enough for a flame diverter and flame trench. The water table is too near the surface.

Building up large structures above ground would require rebuilding the launch tower and other systems. The built up structure for the Space Shuttle was huge.

29 thoughts on “SpaceX Will Use a Massive Water-Cooled Steel Plate for the Starship Launchpad”

  1. Is there a table for distance from ground for Starship and related effects to ground level (forces, temperatures, emissions, chemical reactions) and engines parameters on public display? (Thx)

  2. I’m a believer. Musk is doing wonderful things for the future of space travel. How awesome it is to have someone wealthy enough and brimming with enthusiasm to make our dreams come true. I just enjoy watching all of it , they’ll get it right.

  3. Think again.
    Its pretty simple phys.
    It just need to have a concave top on the middle with a reflux shape on the perimeter pressing the remaining water back with the stream from the center.
    It just need enough water for absorbing the fist 5-7 sekunds of thrust.
    I can draw a model if needed?

    • Yeah I bet SpaceX thought it very funny that their launch pad, thought to be fine by their “real” engineers, turned into a crater.

  6. Any “massive” steel plates or structures will need some sweating cooling areas on hot spots to be sure nothing melts…
    CFD detailed analysis’ to validate.

    • I believe that if they take the time to make a platform that will drop under water at a rapid speed as the Srar Ship lifts off, you will find that the water will take more of a blast than near any other substance. Simply use a release with an empty vault below and a full rush of water to absorb the heat and blast.

  7. Assuming they get approved for another starship launch anytime soon may be unlikely. They’ve got at least three separate federal agencies yelling at the FAA for giving them this permit over their separate objections, and the launch failure has embarrassed the FAA for expediting that permit.

    FWS is furious over the incineration and shotgunning of an endangered wildlife refuge, EPA is angry that they dumped liquid nitrogen and tank effluent into a riverbed off their site without ever bothering to even apply for a clean water act waiver or permit, and ACOE is pissed they never even tried to continue the permitting process for a flame trench and deluger system and are unlikely to fast track it now after they tried to blow off their obligation. And because of all that, a lot of people will be yelling at FAA for their lax scrutiny and pushing them hard.

    I would be surprised if another starship and superheavy stack is allowed off the ground until nearly 2025 if not later, and if boca chica is allowed as a large stack launch site ever again; the remediation needed to make it in code and safe is going to be eye wateringly expensive and complicated, and the permitting they ignored will take years. If they hadn’t abandoned all that permitting in 2020 it’d be finishing up about now. Instead they’re going to be delayed years getting into legal compliance and FAA will be strongly dosincentivized to let them skip steps again. Assuming they even try to get in compliance.

    • Disagree. Prototypes should be tested, not licensed. Lax licensing on prototypes is not bad, it is required. Drowning test programs in red tape is kind of defeating the whole point of such programs.

    • Its very simple- Musk will get a permit the next time the military need something launched.

      Maybe he’ll launch from another country if the USA is too much hassle! Russia does OK..

    • 1 to 2 launches this year. you are making it out to be way worse than it was.
      are you a blue origin employee?

  8. I don’t think we need detailed engineering calculations on this one. We can clearly see what happens underneath the rocket.

    A water cooled flame diverter, directing the flames and exhaust away from the base, is a practical solution I would say….

  9. 5000 tonnes of force over a 10 m radius circle is about 16 tonnes/m2. 16 meters or water depth. Possibly 1.5x to 2x that depth needed considering the displacement cone. Doesn’t seem too crazy, many sandpits and quarries are deeper. It’ll have the be much bigger in radius to displace the water without making a tsunami, but digging holes is cheap.

    • Possibly cheap – but spanning loads over the hole, maintaining (dredging) the bottom, and retaining the sides of the hole are not cheap and very sensitive to vibration – constant maintenance and restoration is not worth the hassle.

      • Pile driving foundations should be cheap. Hollow steel piles filled with water would allow good cooling. Alternatively, a floating rig could be considered. Steel floats with a water jacket for cooling. Though that is bulky due to the large weight of the rocket so I think simple piles would be the way to go. very standard civil engineering stuff.

        The slope of the pit should be mild for stability. Basically just a little lake. Generally a 30 degree slope is stable for most soils. But probably a shallower slope would be needed for this application due to the high forces. A very shallow bowl is likely the best shape. For a hard rock site it won’t matter, drill and blast. Doubt that maintenance of the pit is a cost issue. A digger or a bulldozer rather is in the financial noise when you got a 5000 tonne rocket to pay for.

    • Consider the soil at Boca Chica: sand and silt with a high water table. A 100′ deep water pit would be a challenge, and preventing that water from becoming salty would be a bigger challenge.

  10. The site is very tight. Debris everywhere and far flung. Maybe Boca is not the long term main facility for such launches that are multiples of Saturn V. Also, why not inland and perhaps a bit more west but not near any faults?

  11. It was a surprise to me when I saw the short thick of the concrete slab. It should be shackled as a batter head, resonating with the shockwaves of the engines. They needs a thicker concrete foundation below and attached to the water cooled jacket

  12. I still think a flooded pit is the way to go. Much cheaper than massive cooling systems. Especially if the ground water level is close to the surface.

    Any foundation supports would be flooded so inherently cooled. Structures above could be hollow steel with water fill. Critical heat flux on such structures is over 10e6 J/s/m2. Should be plenty.

    It would be a simple analysis too, to figure out the pit depth and diameter.

    • Nah, the pressure of the exhaust is such that it would just punch through to the bottom of any feasibly deep water filled pit, while causing a massive steam explosion. Remember, that exhaust is supporting a 5,000 ton rocket, that’s how much force it applies to whatever it hits.

      Rather, the exhaust needs to be diverted sideways by a structure that can survive exposure to conditions not terribly different from what the interior of the engine is facing.

      A water cooled steel plate IS just what they need. Probably with a refractory leading edge, too.

      • That’s nice Brett. Please provide your detailed engineering analysis showing a pit of water doesn’t work. The last thing we need here is more unsubstantiated opinions!

        • Every reply or post is just someone’s opinion. No one here knows the design that Elon has been working on already. They did not know it was already being made. Even if they had desined a diverted for the thrust ,they would not know what Musk is having made. Stop trying to act as if you know.

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