SpaceX Roberts Road a focal point for East Coast Starship preparations

Date:
Sat, 13 Dec 2025 03:09:07 +0000

Description:
SpaceXs Roberts Road facility, the companys primary hub for Starship operations on Floridas Space Coast, The post SpaceX Roberts Road a focal
point for East Coast Starship preparations appeared first on NASASpaceFlight.com .

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SpaceXs Roberts Road facility, the companys primary hub for Starship operations on Floridas Space Coast, is experiencing a surge of activity as
the company prepares for a significant increase in Starship launches from Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in 2026 and beyond.



A major milestone in 2025 was the return of orbital-class Starship launch hardware fabrication to Roberts Road.

In recent months, crews completed construction of a new orbital launch mount intended for Launch Complex 39A. The mount, built under a protective rolling tent, has since been transported to the pad and installed over the flame trench.

Aerial footage during the latest NSF flyover shows the now-empty assembly stands that once supported the structure during fabrication.

Attention is already shifting toward future hardware. SpaceX plans to construct two dedicated Starship launch pads at the nearby Space Launch Complex 37 (SLC-37). Is it likely that new launch mount components could soon begin arriving at Roberts Road for assembly, mirroring the process used for the LC-39A mount.

The most visible progress involves the first of two planned launch-and-catch towers for SLC-37. All nine structural modules for the initial tower have
been fully assembled at Roberts Road and are awaiting transport once pad foundation work begins at SLC-37.

The modular design follows the proven Starbase pattern: Modules 13 form the lower third, including access platforms for the towers chopstick arms and carriage system, Modules 45 house the ship quick-disconnect arm and
associated plumbing, Modules 68 are simpler sections without cryogenic lines, while Module 9 forms the top section containing the pulley and crown block assembly. Outfitting is well underway, with handrails, internal staircases, elevator shafts, and other auxiliary hardware already installed across the modules. Teams are expected to add cryogenic plumbing and high-pressure gas lines closer to rollout.

Once foundations are poured at SLC-37, stacking is anticipated to proceed rapidly, potentially using the Liebherr LR13000 crane currently stationed at LC-39A.

Adjacent to the tower modules, SpaceX has begun assembling the first set of chopstick arms and carriage system for SLC-37. Recent welding work has joined the shoulder sections of the arms, and half of the rail-connection hardware for the carriage has been installed.

Progress continues on components specifically destined for the existing Starship facilities at LC-39A. The ship quick-disconnect (QD) arm has seen substantial advancement inside the rolling tent, with most major subsystems now matching the design used at Starbases Pad 2. The other half of the tent shelters the booster QD carriages for the recently installed orbital launch mount.

East of HangarX2, remaining tank farm equipmentincluding pump sleds and valve assembliescontinues to be staged before transport to LC-39A, regularly
passing in front of NSFs Space Coast Live (SCL) camersas.

Perhaps the clearest signal of SpaceXs long-term commitment to Florida operations is the rapid construction of the Starship Giga Bay, a massive high-bay facility that will eventually manufacture and refurbish Starship vehicles on-site. Since the last NSF aerial survey, two additional tower cranes have been erected, and steel erection is progressing quickly. The eastern foundation slab, previously incomplete, now appears finished. Construction crews have reached Level 2 on the western wall, Level 3 on the central wall, and Level 1 on the eastern wall.

Even the tallest sectionthe central wallremains only about halfway to its final height, underscoring the immense scale still ahead. The pace at which this building is rising is not a surprise, as SpaceX hopes to begin full Starship operations from Florida as early as possible. Until the facility is enclosed, incoming Version 3 boosters and shipsexpected to arrive by bargemay require temporary outdoor storage solutions.

With Starbase in Texas having long held priority for Starship development,
the simultaneous advancement of launch mounts, catch towers, quick-disconnect systems, and a Florida production factory marks a decisive shift.

SpaceX appears to be preparing the Space Coast for a dramatically increased Starship launch cadence in the coming years, with at least three launch
towers and the future potential of LC-49 returning into the reckoning.

(Lead image via Julia Bergeron, with 100s of hi-res photos per flyover available to L2 Members).







The post SpaceX Roberts Road a focal point for East Coast Starship preparations appeared first on NASASpaceFlight.com .



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Link to news story: https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2025/12/spacex-roberts-road-east-coast-starshi p/


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