Is a world like Cyberpunk 2077 possible? Well, you’ll learn about Elon Musk’s dream city, Starbase, and his possible differences with Texas municipal officials. In August, SpaceX billionaire Elon Musk revealed his intention to build a city in Texas.
It was featured in a tweet, and what better name for a futuristic city than Starbase? Now, Elon hasn’t made any press statements on his intentions regarding this matter, but his one-line tweet seems to indicate serious business. The tweet read: Construction of Starbase City, Texas.
We know that Elon intends to build a colony on Mars using the Starships currently being built at the Boca Chica SpaceX facility to launch us to Mars, and Starbase could play an important role. As of now, SpaceX has a facility in Boca Chica, Texas. The SpaceX South Texas Launch Site, also known as the Boca Chica Launch Site, is a private production facility, test site and spaceport built by SpaceX.
Its stated purpose was to provide SpaceX with an exclusive launch site that would allow the company to accommodate its launch manifests and meet tight launch windows. Initially, the site was intended to support launches of the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launch vehicles as well as a variety of reusable suborbital launch vehicles, however in 2019, SpaceX announced a change of plans, stating that The launch site will be used ‘exclusively’.
For SpaceX’s next generation launch vehicle, ‘Starship’. Musk’s subsequent tweets would confirm his intentions: from here to Mars and from there to the stars. A later tweet revealed a photo of his girlfriend, Grimes, and their son, X AE A-XII (pronounced X Ash A Twelve), out in the open in Boca Chica. Although details of his plans remain unclear, the billionaire moved from his home in California to Boca Chica, Texas, late last year. Boca Chica is a small city on the Gulf Coast of Texas. We do know that the area is near Brownsville, an unincorporated city in the southern tip of the state.
Prototype of the 2014 Starship rocket. However, in a later tweet, tech billionaire Elon said the city would be built on an area ‘much bigger than the plant in Boca Chica’. Elon Musk certainly is a strategist. If you have chosen Boca Chica as the location of your city, there must be something strategic about the small village.
Given the fact that Boca Chica lacks some basic amenities such as a potable water system, it would come as a surprise to some that Elon Musk would decide to choose the same village as the site of his proposed Starbase. Besides the fact that it is his Starship rocket manufacturing and test-launch site, Musk chose Boca Chica because there are methane-rich oil wells surrounding the village.
Lone Star Mineral Development, one of SpaceX’s limited liability companies, received oil and gas leases for two such previously inactive oil wells. While Lone Star (a subsidiary of SpaceX) bought the lease for the oil wells from Sanchez Oil and Gas Corporation, another oil and gas company – Dallas Petroleum Group – claimed ownership of the wells and Elon Musk’s Lone Star Mineral Development took it.
While we leave it to the lawyers and judges to settle the matter, let’s examine the intended purpose of Elon Musk’s Starbase City. Although not much has been heard from the billionaire about when development will begin and what Starbase City will cover, speculation is rife as to why Elon may want to rename this beloved spot in Boca Chica. Questions are being raised everywhere with eager media buzz: Is he building a colony? Will it be a futuristic city with high technology like in the Cyberpunk 2077 game?
Some might even believe that this whole idea is a parody of Star Wars. Or could Elon be the real Darth Vader? Our best guess is that Elon’s Starbase will be a megacity for expanding SpaceX operations. Whatever the space engineers do will likely be the private property of SpaceX personnel. It may also include some kind of never-before-seen amusement park that includes unique technology that will make life wonderful for the residents of the area.
Now about the Starship that is currently under construction at the SpaceX facility, Boca Chica. Starship will be a fully reusable transportation system capable of carrying one hundred people to Mars. On Wednesday, March 3, SN10 successfully completed the third high-altitude flight test of SpaceX’s Starship prototype from its site in Cameron County, Texas.
This is not just an uproar. It seems that he wants to build a city that will take humanity to Mars and from there to the stars. However, SpaceX will have to do a few things to make this a reality. If one wants to build or settle a city then certain procedures have to be followed.
To build a new city, SpaceX must get local residents to sign a petition. The petition will be presented to the county judge, who will then order an election as to whether or not the municipality should be incorporated. If the election is successful, the city would have the power to enact its own laws and other ordinances. This would mean that Starbase is a ‘go’. What many people don’t know is that when SpaceX first arrived in Boca Chica in 2014, there were only six permanent residents, as many left the community after it was severely devastated by a hurricane in 1967.
However, as of June last year, SpaceX had 600 employees. And, as of March this year, SpaceX had about 1,800 resident employees in the field. What happened to the six permanent residents? Well, SpaceX paid them, making it possible for Elon to startup Starbase City. There is news on the net that representatives of SpaceX have reached the judge’s office in Cameron County around Boca Chica.
There, Elon’s plans are revealed, but here’s where things get a little weird. Elon’s tweet from Cameron County comes days after his office was contacted by SpaceX representatives, according to Judge Eddie Trevino Jr. From the tone of the conversation, it seemed as if they were asking just like that. A statement from Trevino said: “If SpaceX and Elon Musk wish to proceed on this path, they must comply with all state incorporation laws. Cameron County will process any improper submissions in accordance with applicable law.
We’re guessing this is Judge Trevino’s way of telling Elon not to get over himself. Well, we’ll see what happens with Judge Trev. The idea of the city of the future is very bright. From the Starship currently undergoing development at SpaceX in Texas to the proposed Starbase City and the potential battle between Mr. Musk and state officials, it’s hard to say the billionaire doesn’t have a pretty hot plate. But then again, we’re talking about Elon here; We’ll just have to wait it out. For those out there, what do you think Elon plans to do with Starbase? And for Star Wars fans, what are your thoughts on building a giant starship?