What We Know About Starbase, Elon Musk’s Idea For A Texas Community

Published on March 4, 2021

Elon Musk revealed on Twitter this week that SpaceX is developing a city of its own called Starbase, Texas, which will serve as the launch site for Space X spacecraft in the future. Right now SpaceX develops and tests its prototypes in Boca Chica Village, Texas, a gulf town just south of Corpus Christi. SpaceX began developing and testing rockets in Boca Chica Village in 2014, though it also launches from Cape Canaveral, Florida and Los Angeles.

Information about Starbase is scarce thus far, but Insider was able to confirm with the judge’s office in Cameron County, Texas on the development of the city. Musk also hinted that the city of Starbase will one day travel to Mars, or will house the people that do one day travel to Mars, in a second Tweet. “From there to Mars, And hence the Stars,” Musk posted on Twitter, rather poetically.

One of Musk—and SpaceX’s—most vocal missions is its plans to colonize Mars within the next decade. Musk anticipates that life on Mars is a viable future for humanity—and could prove vital to sustaining the human race should something cataclysmic happen here on Earth. Plans for colonizing Mars are currently live on the SpaceX website, though it doesn’t list an exact timeline.

Right now, even Boca Chica Village has a long way to go before it becomes a functioning city. The unincorporated city less than five miles north of the Mexican border serves almost exclusively as a launch site, and the area around it appears to be pretty swamp-like on Google maps. A report from Insider also reveals it doesn’t have its own water system, though it does have electricity. It’s unclear if Starbase will replace Boca Chica Village, but likelihood seems high as the area is already a launch site for SpaceX.

Musk has not been quiet about his move to Texas. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO has been vocal about his move to Austin from California recently, and revealed plans to expand existing Tesla presence in the Southern state once it begins manufacturing its new Cybertruck on a larger scale. On an episode of the Joe Rogan Show a few weeks ago, Musk discussed Austin’s potential as one of the fastest-growing cities in the United States, calling it “the biggest boomtown America has seen in 50 years.”

Reporters at The Verge also noted this week that new job descriptions posted on the Starlink website hint at the company’s expansion into Texas as well, signaling a strong shift out of California for Musk-owned companies as technology moves out of California in search of more affordable real estate. Starlink, a high speed internet company also pioneered by Musk, launched 60 new satellites into orbit just this week after its launch last month.

Julia Sachs is a former Managing Editor at Grit Daily. She covers technology, social media and disinformation. She is based in Utah and before the pandemic she liked to travel.

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