SpaceX application: Resort Development Manager--- Blue Origin-style suborbital tourism resort?- Spacediving?- Marsliner LEO AG package?- Other profitable possibilities?
SpaceX application: Resort Development Manager
Quote from: LMT on 08/11/2020 05:29 amSpaceX application: Resort Development ManagerWhen I saw this the other day, I figured SpaceX's intentions are to bootstrap somewhere for engineers and VIPs to go when working on Starship related endeavors, with the benefits of coordinated architectural design and aesthetics, and not needing to rely on speculative commercial partnerships to create a resort that's suitable for their goals of frequent space flights for everything from Department of Defense missions to space tourists.
I find this a bit concerning. Trying to build anything resembling a conventional resort in BC after using "It's too dangerous to live here" as a cudgel to pressure the remaining home owners to sell, would generate a huge amount of fully deserved negative press.I really hope this is either just a fancy job title for Out of Town Employee Airstream Accommodations Manager, or despite saying Boca Chica in the title the actual plan is to build a resort somewhere between BC and Brownsville.
I find this a bit concerning. Trying to build anything resembling a conventional resort in BC after using "It's too dangerous to live here" as a cudgel to pressure the remaining home owners to sell, would generate a huge amount of fully deserved negative press.
Quote from: danneely on 08/11/2020 02:35 pmI find this a bit concerning. Trying to build anything resembling a conventional resort in BC after using "It's too dangerous to live here" as a cudgel to pressure the remaining home owners to sell, would generate a huge amount of fully deserved negative press.I really hope this is either just a fancy job title for Out of Town Employee Airstream Accommodations Manager, or despite saying Boca Chica in the title the actual plan is to build a resort somewhere between BC and Brownsville.Anyone good at GIS? Any large plots available between BC and Brownsville?
The guests at the "resort" (let's just say, "deluxe accommodations") will likely be limited to paying customers awaiting their flight, SpaceX employees from other locations on site to work, and others from among the strictly Space Business crowd. I can't imagine any good reason to be inviting tourists just for the sake of them having a Kodak moment, taking a tour, and heading home. Well, except for space alien tourists, of course.
Quote from: Texsun on 08/11/2020 05:53 pmThe guests at the "resort" (let's just say, "deluxe accommodations") will likely be limited to paying customers awaiting their flight, SpaceX employees from other locations on site to work, and others from among the strictly Space Business crowd. I can't imagine any good reason to be inviting tourists just for the sake of them having a Kodak moment, taking a tour, and heading home. Well, except for space alien tourists, of course.Haven't you seen the crowds that came to watch the FH launch? Now imagine the interest the first manned flight to Mars would create. Or "just" Maezawa san flying around the Moon...
Quote from: Texsun on 08/11/2020 05:53 pmThe guests at the "resort" (let's just say, "deluxe accommodations") will likely be limited to paying customers awaiting their flight, SpaceX employees from other locations on site to work, and others from among the strictly Space Business crowd. I can't imagine any good reason to be inviting tourists just for the sake of them having a Kodak moment, taking a tour, and heading home. Well, except for space alien tourists, of course.Haven't you seen the crowds that came to watch the FH launch? Now imagine the interest the first manned flight to Mars would create. Or "just" Maezawa san flying around the Moon...If (I know it's a big if) #dearmoon launches on schedule in '23, then lunar test flights can't be more than a year away.
I wasn't saying "people" aren't interested. I was saying there is no good reason for SpaceX to build a resort for them. S. Padre is right there and they are accustomed to catering to the masses. Why would SpaceX want to hire resort expertise? This is the question. I don't think the first answer is tourism.Maezawa-san is more in the ballpark for the reasoning behind SpaceX wanting nice digs on hand for VIPs.
Quote from: Texsun on 08/12/2020 01:49 amI wasn't saying "people" aren't interested. I was saying there is no good reason for SpaceX to build a resort for them. S. Padre is right there and they are accustomed to catering to the masses. Why would SpaceX want to hire resort expertise? This is the question. I don't think the first answer is tourism.Maezawa-san is more in the ballpark for the reasoning behind SpaceX wanting nice digs on hand for VIPs.South Padre has a rather roundabout route to Boca Chica as well.
Quote from: RotoSequence on 08/12/2020 01:51 amQuote from: Texsun on 08/12/2020 01:49 amI wasn't saying "people" aren't interested. I was saying there is no good reason for SpaceX to build a resort for them. S. Padre is right there and they are accustomed to catering to the masses. Why would SpaceX want to hire resort expertise? This is the question. I don't think the first answer is tourism.Maezawa-san is more in the ballpark for the reasoning behind SpaceX wanting nice digs on hand for VIPs.South Padre has a rather roundabout route to Boca Chica as well.The view of the skies above BC from S. Padre leave little need for most to travel to BC to watch the show. It is quite a haul between the two by road. Line of sight from the tip of S. Padre appears to be roughly four or five times the distance between the SS build site and the launch site. It is close enough that I heard tell that some folks already are watching the action from cameras on S. Padre. (should we all raise out hands?)The tourists don't have to go to BC to see the show, though it might be nice if there were a place to visit in BC to buy SpaceX trinkets, and to have a Starship Bacon Blastoff Burger, Raptor Fries and a LOX Shake while gazing upon the wonder of the place.
Line of sight from the tip of S. Padre appears to be roughly four or five times the distance between the SS build site and the launch site.
Quote from: jpo234 on 08/11/2020 08:09 pmHaven't you seen the crowds that came to watch the FH launch? Now imagine the interest the first manned flight to Mars would create. Or "just" Maezawa san flying around the Moon...They will all go to South Padre Island where launch viewing facilities have already been installed: https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=46358.0
Haven't you seen the crowds that came to watch the FH launch? Now imagine the interest the first manned flight to Mars would create. Or "just" Maezawa san flying around the Moon...
And why? For the same reason NASA does: To inspire people to support their endeavors and of course for profit.
Quote from: jpo234 on 08/12/2020 02:30 pmAnd why? For the same reason NASA does: To inspire people to support their endeavors and of course for profit.Okay, you nailed the Why, now consider "Where?"Would such a museum/display better serve the goal of public inspiration at a location with frequent seasonal tourist traffic (i.e.: Spring Break?) and the highway/lodging/dining infrastructure to support it, or, would it be more effective in this role if located on an obscure, dead-end two-lane road with a Border Patrol checkpoint and frequent closures for testing rockets?
Quote from: taidman on 08/11/2020 03:51 pmQuote from: danneely on 08/11/2020 02:35 pmI find this a bit concerning. Trying to build anything resembling a conventional resort in BC after using "It's too dangerous to live here" as a cudgel to pressure the remaining home owners to sell, would generate a huge amount of fully deserved negative press.I really hope this is either just a fancy job title for Out of Town Employee Airstream Accommodations Manager, or despite saying Boca Chica in the title the actual plan is to build a resort somewhere between BC and Brownsville.Anyone good at GIS? Any large plots available between BC and Brownsville?Think you can get a medium to large cruise ship really cheap right now. As long as you don't pack it up beyond 16% of it's rated capacity and maintain strict health protocols it should be worked. It is a lot easier than finding enough land between Boca Chica and Brownsville to developed from scratch into some sort of resort. Could be a floating launch viewing stand for Starship test flights.
I'm pretty sure my credentials as a SpaceX fan are fairly well established. Trouble is, I''m also so a bit of a tree hugger. I'm not too sure about abandoning even the pretense of being a wildlife refuge out here. The factory and the launches aren't the problem. The traffic is. My one hope is that the heavy construction traffic that does most of the killing will taper off eventually. I'd hate to see it replaced by a couple hundred tourists every day.
Embrace the power of 'and'. SPI is well organized for tourism (to say the least), has invested in launch viewing facilities already, and presumably has entrepreneurs who will put together related activities and attractions with little or no urging from SpaceX. OTOH, Boca Chica is the real deal for SpaceX fans and space flight aficionados, a classic destination, and folks will endure driving a few miles and some schedule inconvenience to experience it, particularly if they are welcomed.(Remember that you're dealing with a guy who promotes companies by selling flamethrowers, and just said 'super fun'. This could be really good...)
Quote from: Nomadd on 08/12/2020 04:49 pm I'm pretty sure my credentials as a SpaceX fan are fairly well established. Trouble is, I''m also so a bit of a tree hugger. I'm not too sure about abandoning even the pretense of being a wildlife refuge out here. The factory and the launches aren't the problem. The traffic is. My one hope is that the heavy construction traffic that does most of the killing will taper off eventually. I'd hate to see it replaced by a couple hundred tourists every day.There will never be a "couple of hundred" tourist VEHICLES allowed at the launch site, or even the build site. They will stay in a car park at the visitor centre, or for the VIP's in the village. A tour "bus" will take them on a tour to these facilities.Most of the reserve requires waders or a canoe! And managed visitors are less likely to go tramping around the marsh to the back of anywhere, unlike you amazing residents! But I share your worry. It is out of character for me to champion an industrial development in a remote wild nature reserve and beauty spot! However SX/EM is sufficient reason for me!
Quote from: DistantTemple on 08/12/2020 05:29 pmQuote from: Nomadd on 08/12/2020 04:49 pm I'm pretty sure my credentials as a SpaceX fan are fairly well established. Trouble is, I''m also so a bit of a tree hugger. I'm not too sure about abandoning even the pretense of being a wildlife refuge out here. The factory and the launches aren't the problem. The traffic is. My one hope is that the heavy construction traffic that does most of the killing will taper off eventually. I'd hate to see it replaced by a couple hundred tourists every day.There will never be a "couple of hundred" tourist VEHICLES allowed at the launch site, or even the build site. They will stay in a car park at the visitor centre, or for the VIP's in the village. A tour "bus" will take them on a tour to these facilities.Most of the reserve requires waders or a canoe! And managed visitors are less likely to go tramping around the marsh to the back of anywhere, unlike you amazing residents! But I share your worry. It is out of character for me to champion an industrial development in a remote wild nature reserve and beauty spot! However SX/EM is sufficient reason for me! It's a public highway. I don't know how you think anybody is going to "allow" anything. People don't come to buy stuffed spaceships . They come to see rockets, and looking at a hazy view from 5 miles off is a little different than standing in one's shadow. Most aren't going to make an appointment for a shuttle ride when they can just drive there. It's a public beach with parking for well over six vehicles, unless they want to drive on the sand. Something will have to give, and I'm sure lots of people won't like it, whatever it is. The company has a bad habit of making plans without consulting anybody whose cooperation they need, government or otherwise.
Quote from: Nomadd on 08/12/2020 06:30 pmQuote from: DistantTemple on 08/12/2020 05:29 pmQuote from: Nomadd on 08/12/2020 04:49 pm I'm pretty sure my credentials as a SpaceX fan are fairly well established. Trouble is, I''m also so a bit of a tree hugger. I'm not too sure about abandoning even the pretense of being a wildlife refuge out here. The factory and the launches aren't the problem. The traffic is. My one hope is that the heavy construction traffic that does most of the killing will taper off eventually. I'd hate to see it replaced by a couple hundred tourists every day.There will never be a "couple of hundred" tourist VEHICLES allowed at the launch site, or even the build site. They will stay in a car park at the visitor centre, or for the VIP's in the village. A tour "bus" will take them on a tour to these facilities.Most of the reserve requires waders or a canoe! And managed visitors are less likely to go tramping around the marsh to the back of anywhere, unlike you amazing residents! But I share your worry. It is out of character for me to champion an industrial development in a remote wild nature reserve and beauty spot! However SX/EM is sufficient reason for me! It's a public highway. I don't know how you think anybody is going to "allow" anything. People don't come to buy stuffed spaceships . They come to see rockets, and looking at a hazy view from 5 miles off is a little different than standing in one's shadow. Most aren't going to make an appointment for a shuttle ride when they can just drive there. It's a public beach with parking for well over six vehicles, unless they want to drive on the sand. Something will have to give, and I'm sure lots of people won't like it, whatever it is. The company has a bad habit of making plans without consulting anybody whose cooperation they need, government or otherwise.You should try to talk them into contracting with some tunneling company, if one can be found, and giving pad tours that way. Doubles as a quick and safe exit for pad crew in the case of something unfavorable happening with several million pounds of fuel and oxidizer.
You should try to talk them into contracting with some tunneling company, if one can be found, and giving pad tours that way.
People wanting to see the beach might find it a little disappointing for a while. The hurricane really did a job on it. 7 miles of trash and vegetation covering the sand.
I suggest they will be able to purchase a ticket on some kind of tour to the launch site and to the construction area...
I'm pretty sure my credentials as a SpaceX fan are fairly well established. Trouble is, I'm also so a bit of a tree hugger. I'm not too sure about abandoning even the pretense of being a wildlife refuge out here. The factory and the launches aren't the problem. The traffic is. My one hope is that the heavy construction traffic that does most of the killing will taper off eventually. I'd hate to see it replaced by a couple hundred tourists every day.
Quote from: DistantTemple on 08/12/2020 06:41 pmI suggest they will be able to purchase a ticket on some kind of tour to the launch site and to the construction area...Boca Chica beach is open to the public. Texas state laws are somewhat particular about limiting access to public beaches.For every test or launch operation, SpaceX has to get permission to close the beach.They're also not allowed to close the beach on summer weekends or holidays, except in special cases.See here for details.
For all of the posts in this thread talking about tourists, and such, I feel like most of them are missing the point My first, and still only, thought on hearing about this is not for tourists stopping by for tours or something, but as an initial stop and preparation spot for tourists whose real destination is at least a few hundred km in the "up" direction. Even if by that point launches are offshore, the will want a place to gather everyone and make sure they are ready to head to LEO, the moon, or Mars.Maybe there would be accommodations for people staying on the planet too, but that would not be the main purpose.
Some food services and lodging may be built along State Highway 4 to accommodate the increaseddemand of laborers, personnel, and spectators for the launches. Although there is no commercial zoningin this portion of Cameron County, appropriate permitting through Cameron County would be requiredprior to the construction or operation of such projects.
I've been wondering what they would do with SN5/6 and subsequent Starship discards. Could add the fairing, cut out windows, and repurpose them as residences. Would be pretty wild. And a bit like living on Mars in the early days.
My mad obsession... ATM hovercraft... Thus time not for transporting SS and SH to the offshore pad, but as a FERRY from S Padre island. Good businesses there!
Quote from: DistantTemple on 09/14/2020 03:43 pmMy mad obsession... ATM hovercraft... Thus time not for transporting SS and SH to the offshore pad, but as a FERRY from S Padre island. Good businesses there! Asynchronous Transfer Method? Automated Tourist Machine?
Nomadd, are the mud flats of the south Texas coast as infested with feet and hovercraft skirt shredding oysters as the mud flats of the South Carolina coast?
Waiiiillll "nobody will take a hovercraft seriously" !
Quote from: DistantTemple on 09/14/2020 10:55 pmWaiiiillll "nobody will take a hovercraft seriously" !I doubt they would allow it.The whole area around Boca Chica is environmentally protected wetlands.For example, the phrase "sea turtle" occurs 98 times in the Environmental Impact Statement (link here).Hovercraft could easily destroy nesting sites. And that's just 1 environmentally protected species.If they want to allow boats into Boca Chica, the best way may be for SpaceX to build a pier off Boca Chica Beach.Many public beaches have piers. People seem to like them.
I spent ~15 years working on Asynchronous Transfer Mode - ATM in Telecoms, rising to a VP of the ATM Forum (Most of my 35 patents relate to ATM).
Quote from: waveney on 09/14/2020 05:14 pmI spent ~15 years working on Asynchronous Transfer Mode - ATM in Telecoms, rising to a VP of the ATM Forum (Most of my 35 patents relate to ATM). Interesting. Back in the late 1990's, my local telco (Detroit, MI area) offered a introductory trial of DSL internet service ( a whopping 1 mbps speed ). The interface was an IBM PC hosted ATM card.
TOW what a blast from the past. I loved the thermal optics.
Quote from: ZChris13 on 09/15/2020 08:04 amNomadd, are the mud flats of the south Texas coast as infested with feet and hovercraft skirt shredding oysters as the mud flats of the South Carolina coast? One day in a kayak taught me that you'd better have razor blade proof shoes if you ever need to tow it across the shallows. Those mollusks could also carve up a boat hull pretty efficiently.
Is it actually crazy to suggest some minor channel dredging into South Bay?
You may be overestimating the sensitivity. There are numerous protected wetlands all over the country, even in national parks, that have boat channels in or around them...virtually every estuary is an environmentally protected wetland.https://www.fedcenter.gov/assistance/facilitytour/construction/dredging/basically, they just have to make a case to the Army Corps of Engineers (not the EPA) that is is a worthwhile effort & the benefits outweigh any potential risks to the environment. Very similar to how the environmental impact review of the launch site was originally done. In this case, there is virtually ZERO risk the dredging will disturb harmful chemicals or pollutants, which is one common pitfall in new dredging.It's not too hard to make a case that a single (relatively shallow) channel into South Bay, with relatively light usage, will not have catastrophic effects on Sea Turtle populations....especially since the turtles high risk area is the beach, not the Bay.
I think there would be less dredging, if the (barge) loading quay was in South Bay, immediately across the road from the landing pad. However 4ft deep by at least 50ft wide is not small.... and dredging makes a big mess. Its not just the dredged area its the disturbed sediment in the water, and the wider area where that is then deposited. Maybe the best way here would be to dig it from a pontoon, and lift it ashore, to use to build up low lying areas... although as it is soft mud it would not be good for such fill.A hovercraft would only need the slope up to the road carefully smoothed, and it could then drive straight to the landing pad!The biggest cost would be the hovercraft itself which would have to be custom designed and built, as there are very few large enough, and none intended for large monolithic freight. Also horizontal transport appears essential, (a hovercraft is lighter and more prone to move more quickly with the sea than a heavy barge) ... a point of continuous argument here!
Madder and madder....It would be rather an eyesore but...Build a longish pier on stilts, quite a long way across South Bay, to massively reduce the need for dredging! I assume piled or similar foundations could be done just by pilling, and no cores would have to be drilled out. Even if some were it would still be much less disturbance of the waterway, and life than dredging a channel.Tug and other boat movements however could be destructive, so it should be limited to SS and SH transport, and not SX general marine fleet!
Quote from: DistantTemple on 09/16/2020 07:36 pmMadder and madder....It would be rather an eyesore but...Build a longish pier on stilts, quite a long way across South Bay, to massively reduce the need for dredging! I assume piled or similar foundations could be done just by pilling, and no cores would have to be drilled out. Even if some were it would still be much less disturbance of the waterway, and life than dredging a channel.Tug and other boat movements however could be destructive, so it should be limited to SS and SH transport, and not SX general marine fleet!Nawww...solve all your problems at once!
What idiot designed that crazy thing? Miss all the arresting wires on landing and you probably get sucked into the forward port-side lift fan.
Quote from: launchwatcher on 09/17/2020 09:35 pmWhat idiot designed that crazy thing? Miss all the arresting wires on landing and you probably get sucked into the forward port-side lift fan.Marvel & Disney. In the Marvelverse Helicarrier carries Quinjets, VTOL via lift fans.
Extract from NOAA Chart 11302 showing Boca Chica and South Bay, the place under discussion, with soundings (depth) in feet at mean lower low water:
One of the attractions will be "The Esperson Quicksand challenge".
A bar owner in my town tried to re-model one of his places into a tiki bar. He had grown up in Hawaii and really liked the style. Unfortunately, he is White and a local university professor of something-studies started a protest against his businesses for the crime of "cultural misappropriation".
Divine Intervention: Priests on a Floating Tiki Bar Rescue Man on Lake GeorgeA man from Albany was saved from possibly drowning in Lake George earlier this month by a Tiki Tours charter carrying seven Catholic priests from the Paulist Fathers.Jimmy Macdonald, a former amateur boxer who now is a drug treatment counselor, was kayaking along the shore just north of Lake George Village when things started to go badly. ...
And one metallic mystery module.
I've been going through old posts and saw a potential match for this piece in the SpaceX jigsaw puzzle:Quote from: Nomadd on 07/19/2020 02:25 am And one metallic mystery module.Might this be a prototype for the high bar viewing windows? It kind of makes sense to base the bar window design off of the Crew Access Arm at 39A.
Okay - I’ll just toss this out there once...They set up a finished stand behind or beside the high bay. Plunk down SN5 or 6 on it. Add a fairing section to make it full size. Cut out the bulkhead centers. Run an elevator up inside it to a internal deck inside the nosecone. Put in a hatch (door). Connect it with the “swing arm” to the high bay top level - Star Bar. Just sayin
I was reading about the history of Boca Chica on a couple of other websites, including Wikipedia.I'm just trying to understand how many original residents of Boca Chica village are still living there ?It seems to be possibly less than 10.Does anyone here know the answer to this ?I hope that this is appropriate for this forum, if not could you please point to a more suitable place.
Quote from: Kit344 on 12/18/2020 03:57 pmI was reading about the history of Boca Chica on a couple of other websites, including Wikipedia.I'm just trying to understand how many original residents of Boca Chica village are still living there ?It seems to be possibly less than 10.Does anyone here know the answer to this ?I hope that this is appropriate for this forum, if not could you please point to a more suitable place.Check out this thread, much more info and probably a better place to ask: https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=49090.0
Not sure how official it is, but the Boca Chica restaurant has a listing on Google Maps. The Prancing Pony
Pretty sure anyone can add these location names on google maps. Elon called it "The Pranching Pony", while responding to someone on Twitter a few days ago. Probably not serious tho...
Quote from: raivo45 on 01/12/2021 07:04 pmPretty sure anyone can add these location names on google maps. Elon called it "The Pranching Pony", while responding to someone on Twitter a few days ago. Probably not serious tho... AIUI. A tweet by Elon is official notice of something in one of his companies. Unless clarified or cancel in a later tweet.
Quote from: Zed_Noir on 01/14/2021 08:15 pmQuote from: raivo45 on 01/12/2021 07:04 pmPretty sure anyone can add these location names on google maps. Elon called it "The Pranching Pony", while responding to someone on Twitter a few days ago. Probably not serious tho... AIUI. A tweet by Elon is official notice of something in one of his companies. Unless clarified or cancel in a later tweet.I said that he's probably not serious because I assume "The Prancing Pony" is probably copyrighted/trademarked by whoever owns the rights to Tolkien's books. I don't really know how these things work so I might be wrong...
Quote from: raivo45 on 01/15/2021 03:43 pmQuote from: Zed_Noir on 01/14/2021 08:15 pmQuote from: raivo45 on 01/12/2021 07:04 pmPretty sure anyone can add these location names on google maps. Elon called it "The Pranching Pony", while responding to someone on Twitter a few days ago. Probably not serious tho... AIUI. A tweet by Elon is official notice of something in one of his companies. Unless clarified or cancel in a later tweet.I said that he's probably not serious because I assume "The Prancing Pony" is probably copyrighted/trademarked by whoever owns the rights to Tolkien's books. I don't really know how these things work so I might be wrong...Copyright does not work that way (you cannot name a fictional entity in a book/film/etc and then attempt to demands rights for that name from real entities). And there are already multiple pubs (and other establishments) worldwide named 'The Prancing Pony'.
Quote from: edzieba on 01/15/2021 04:16 pmQuote from: raivo45 on 01/15/2021 03:43 pmQuote from: Zed_Noir on 01/14/2021 08:15 pmQuote from: raivo45 on 01/12/2021 07:04 pmPretty sure anyone can add these location names on google maps. Elon called it "The Pranching Pony", while responding to someone on Twitter a few days ago. Probably not serious tho... AIUI. A tweet by Elon is official notice of something in one of his companies. Unless clarified or cancel in a later tweet.I said that he's probably not serious because I assume "The Prancing Pony" is probably copyrighted/trademarked by whoever owns the rights to Tolkien's books. I don't really know how these things work so I might be wrong...Copyright does not work that way (you cannot name a fictional entity in a book/film/etc and then attempt to demands rights for that name from real entities). And there are already multiple pubs (and other establishments) worldwide named 'The Prancing Pony'.Trademarking is a much stronger protection, but it requires it to have been explicitly trademarked and fees paid around the world to maintain the protection. Copyrighting is much much weaker (but free). A phrase such as "The Prancing Pony" is not copywriteable, but it could have been trademarked (but wont have been).
Since Elon called this "The Prancing Pony", I predict that the first settlement on Mars will be called Rivendell. It also suggests that Mars is only the first step, and as Gwynne says, Musk's aim for Mars is limited, but the aim is to be "out there among the stars".I suggest Elon has sold us the Mars objective, as its achievable, and has the justification of preserving the seed of humanity, whereas privately to him this is the beginning of a much longer journey.
Quote from: waveney on 01/15/2021 06:13 pmQuote from: edzieba on 01/15/2021 04:16 pmQuote from: raivo45 on 01/15/2021 03:43 pmQuote from: Zed_Noir on 01/14/2021 08:15 pmQuote from: raivo45 on 01/12/2021 07:04 pmPretty sure anyone can add these location names on google maps. Elon called it "The Pranching Pony", while responding to someone on Twitter a few days ago. Probably not serious tho... AIUI. A tweet by Elon is official notice of something in one of his companies. Unless clarified or cancel in a later tweet.I said that he's probably not serious because I assume "The Prancing Pony" is probably copyrighted/trademarked by whoever owns the rights to Tolkien's books. I don't really know how these things work so I might be wrong...Copyright does not work that way (you cannot name a fictional entity in a book/film/etc and then attempt to demands rights for that name from real entities). And there are already multiple pubs (and other establishments) worldwide named 'The Prancing Pony'.Trademarking is a much stronger protection, but it requires it to have been explicitly trademarked and fees paid around the world to maintain the protection. Copyrighting is much much weaker (but free). A phrase such as "The Prancing Pony" is not copywriteable, but it could have been trademarked (but wont have been).Since Elon called this "The Prancing Pony", I predict that the first settlement on Mars will be called Rivendell. It also suggests that Mars is only the first step, and as Gwynne says, Musk's aim for Mars is limited, but the aim is to be "out there among the stars".I suggest Elon has sold us the Mars objective, as its achievable, and has the justification of preserving the seed of humanity, whereas privately to him this is the beginning of a much longer journey.
By April 1933, Swan lined up an agreement with a newspaper for a spectacular stunt in Texas. As part of a skydiving exhibition at the Del Mar Beach Resort on Boca Chica, he worked out an elaborate routine. He would bail out of an aircraft, dropping flares and rockets on small chutes as he was in free fall. Finally he would ignite a rocket strapped to his back and head toward the beach, to land in front of the crowd.