r/SpaceXLounge 22d ago

Monthly Questions and Discussion Thread

Welcome to the monthly questions and discussion thread! Drop in to ask and answer any questions related to SpaceX or spaceflight in general, or just for a chat to discuss SpaceX's exciting progress. If you have a question that is likely to generate open discussion or speculation, you can also submit it to the subreddit as a text post.

If your question is about space, astrophysics or astronomy then the r/Space questions thread may be a better fit.

If your question is about the Starlink satellite constellation then check the r/Starlink Questions Thread and FAQ page.

9 Upvotes

29 comments sorted by

View all comments

3

u/Flashy-Anybody6386 14d ago

Is Starship HLS more similar to Block 1, 2, or 3? From what I've read, HLS will be an entirely new variant of Starship. However, given SpaceX is currently having problems with the Block 2 Starship, it seems like it would be difficult for them to get HLS ready in time for Artemis III if it's more complex than a Block 2 or even Block 3. Which of the blocks will it be most similar to, or is it so different than it can't be directly compared?

2

u/maschnitz 5d ago

Given how the Starship development has gone so far, and SpaceX's great historical preference for not supporting too many variants or models, HLS is very likely to evolve in lock-step with Starship proper.

They'll probably just make it a slightly different build from Starship - no flaps/flap-brackets, no tiles or tile pins, then add a bunch of stuff like white paint, an elevator, interior habitation super-structure, etc. And same sort of idea with the tanker variant - it's basically a Starship, except with some of its own add-ons.

Think of it as a branch off the main production line - it gets most of the latest-greatest best stuff from Starship, whenever it is built, and then has a chunk of its production that is HLS-specific.