With just one photo, SpaceX sent a not-so-subtle message to FAA regulators

Almost a century ago, humans first built skyward at an unprecedented rate. It was the age of skyscrapers.

In the half-century before 1920, the American population doubled. At the same time, the Industrial Revolution was brewing, reaching a boiling point as America leaned into World War I and produced the machinery and equipment to fight in Europe. After the war, population growth and large gains in industrial productivity led to a dramatic increase in the need for office space – from 1870 to 1920, the demand for office space in the United States increased tenfold.

As a result, with this high demand and cheap financing, the construction of skyscrapers exploded during the Roaring Twenties. First, the 71-story Bank of Manhattan Trust Building, with 71 floors, was built in New York City. Next come the Chrysler Building, with 77 floors, and finally the Empire State Building, with 102 floors.

It was a time of prosperity and promise in America. Standing in front of drawing tables, engineers designed these structures in reinforced concrete and daring architectures. Then ordinary workers built them higher and higher in the sky, eating their lunches in the clouds.

Now we may be about to do it again.

SpaceX technicians and engineers stacked a spacecraft and its Super Heavy booster for the first time on Friday. The full pile was about 120 meters, roughly the height of a 30-story building. The only difference? This skyscraper was not attached to the bedrock dozens of meters below its foundation. This skyscraper was supposed to fly.

Starship is the tallest rocket ever built, and when it launches later this year or early 2022, it will be the most powerful rocket to ever fly. The initial ship can explode on the launch pad. After all, the first stage is powered by an unprecedented 29 rocket motors, and grouping them together so close together means that if one motor fails, it can be difficult to contain the breakdown. And that would be nice, because SpaceX has the ability to build a lot more vehicles as Starship gets closer to a final product.

After that “fit check” was completed on Friday, a large crane pulled the spacecraft off the top of the Super Heavy rocket. Much work remains to be done before the vehicle is launched. In the short term, more heat shield tiles need to be applied to the Starship stainless steel exterior. These are necessary to manage the heating during atmospheric reentry.

The company also has technical work to do on the extensive ground systems needed to power the vehicle. Then there is a myriad of testing the Super Heavy booster itself, including checking its ability to withstand high pressure and static test shots from the propulsion system.

Perhaps the biggest hurdle will be clearance from the Federal Aviation Administration, which is working with SpaceX to conduct an EA to launch such a gigantic rocket from these South Texas wetlands. After the publication of a “draft” of this assessment, there will be a period of approximately 30 days for public comments. This will be followed by other steps, including a determination by the FAA on whether the environmental mitigation measures proposed by SpaceX will be sufficient or if further work is required.

Musk sent a clear message to the FAA and other federal regulators on Friday. One evocative photo, in particular, made its message clear to all who watched. It showed workers standing under the spaceship, as it was lowered onto the first-stage rocket. By posting a black and white version, Musk knew exactly what he was doing going back to the era of skyscrapers.

21st century skyscrapers are being built right now, screams the photo, by modern engineers and welders. Such rockets are no longer found in PowerPoints or wooden models. They are living breathing machines almost ready to breathe fire.

At the FAA, Musk seemed to be saying, federal regulators must do their part to ensure the future arrives on schedule. Just as the skyscrapers of the 20th century heralded the start of a new era and ultimately launched America into a prosperous future of finance, communications, marketing, etc., the 21st century is now looming.

The era of skyscrapers will soon give way to the space age.

Retaining Starship means stopping that progress, Musk wanted regulators to understand. Because our vision no longer stops in the clouds, it extends far beyond them. Over the past five decades, humans have started to explore the solar system. Now is the time to expand commerce there and move humans to new worlds. Some people oppose this view, of course, but Musk is counting on the government to ultimately be on the side of industry and progress.

And so Musk sent a clear message on Friday, “We’re ready,” without saying anything at all. The photos have made people talk.