Elon Musk’s ambitions are on fire! Soon, traveling to Mars will be like taking the train to the next station. Starship rockets will carry up to 100 people at once, being launched up to three times per day.
The rocket will be able “to be relaunched an hour after landing, with zero nominal work. The only thing you expect to change regularly is propellant,” said Musk. After the success with the reusable Falcon 9, Musk has all the reasons to trust his new goals are realistic.
Also, he intends to make some changes to the rocket prototypes. Like, change the alloy Starship rockets are built from. The 301 stainless steel alloy used since the ‘50s is old fashioned. “We should be able to do better in the 2020s than they did in, like, the ’50s, you know?” stated Musk.
SpaceX Factory Will Produce One Starship Rocket Every 72 Hours
He didn’t say want the new material will be, but it has to do better than the 301. And it will have to do so within a month, or so.
Stainless steel is a family of iron-based alloys that contain a minimum of approximately 11% chromium. This composition prevents the iron from rusting as well as providing heat resistant properties.
Resistance to corrosion and staining, low maintenance, and familiar luster make stainless steel an ideal material for many applications where both the strength of steel and corrosion resistance are required. 301 is highly ductile, for formed products. It also hardens rapidly during mechanical work. It has excellent weldability, better wear resistance, and fatigue strength. But it isn’t enough anymore.
The new SpaceX factory in Boca Chica, Texas, has a lot on its plate. It can’t be easy to produce one Starship rocket every 72 hours, but when Elon Musk stars dreaming for the hundreds or even thousands of people that will get to Mars, the universe must comply.
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