SpaceX Purchased Massive Tank Tracks from Germany
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When you are challenging the status quo like Elon Musk, you need to rely on some powerful systems to do the heavy lifting. The technical teams at SpaceX and Tesla must be applauded for bearing with Musk and his radical ideas. But when it comes to literally lift things off the ground, SpaceX has relied on German manufacturer Liebherr and now they seem to have placed a grand order, according to some Twitter exchanges.
The purchase came to light after a Twitter user, Max, spotted some tank tracks with the SpaceX logo branded on them. As Max revealed in the tweet, these were spotted on the A2 Autobahn in Germany and the trailer carrying these behemoths was coming in from Austria.
@TeslaratiTeam
— Max._. (@Max9907826460) September 1, 2021
Hey, I just saw this on the German Autobahn (A2 near Magdeburg) this morning. It's coming from Austria and might be heading to Hamburg or Rotterdam port.
Looks like a part of a future transport vehicle for getting Starship to the launch pad.
Any other ideas ? pic.twitter.com/nLkkFLp3CM
Max also made a guess about the supposed use of these tracks and the likely location they were heading to.
Twitter became abuzz with plausible applications of the tracks, some even saying that they could be an upgrade to the Cybertruck following its delayed deliveries.
It was only after Chris Bergin, Managing Editor of NASA Space Flight, jumped in that the waters calmed. Bergin not only said that they belonged to a crawler crane for SpaceX but also they were purchased by the company.
@TeslaratiTeam
— Max._. (@Max9907826460) September 1, 2021
Hey, I just saw this on the German Autobahn (A2 near Magdeburg) this morning. It's coming from Austria and might be heading to Hamburg or Rotterdam port.
Looks like a part of a future transport vehicle for getting Starship to the launch pad.
Any other ideas ? pic.twitter.com/nLkkFLp3CM
SpaceX has already been using cranes from Liebherr at its Boca Chica facility in Texas. Last year, the 'Bluezilla' came to life to put together the Super Heavy High Bay at the facility.
According to this report, the crane in use is being rented out by SpaceX. With Starbase, becoming the prime location for all SpaceX launches and trials, it only made sense that the company procured one of their own. With the branding and Musk tweeting, "Our new crane", this is quite a confirmation that the company has purchased one of its own.
Back in March, Musk had tweeted some images of their new crane. Guess the order for this one was placed back then and Musk could not help himself but declare it cryptically.
Users on Reddit have been debating the possible colors that the crane will be painted in. Apart from fluorescent pink and green, all black seems to be a popular choice. But would that be a good option in the Texas heat? We'd need to wait a few weeks to find out about that.
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