Straddled by Brazos Island and Boca Chica State Park, the construction and expansion of the site has created divergent interpretations regarding what this landscape actually is. In 2014, SpaceX began construction on what has since been named by the company, Star Base. One thing learned is undoubtedly that the company will have to rebuild the launch pad, from which pulverized concrete reportedly travelled six and half miles away, when it too was destroyed (Davilla 2023). As per SpaceX quality systems coordinator Kate Tice, just clearing the launch pad was “a win,” while NASA Administrator Bill Nelson noted that “from great risk, comes great reward…looking forward to all that SpaceX learns” (Musunaga and Hussain 2023).

Intriguingly, while the 400-foot rocket exploded, it turns out that for many, it was nothing to lament. “Learned a lot,” noted CEO Elon Musk, “for the next test launch in a few months” (Chang 2023). “Excitement guaranteed,” assured management of Space Exploration Technologies Inc. I was not among the crowds of spectators, some wearing “colonize Mars” t-shirts, on South Padre Island or Port Isabelle roughly two years later, when the world’s largest ever rocket exploded about 25 miles above the Gulf of Mexico.

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