Despite two recent spectacular failures of SpaceX’s Starship, the FAA has concluded that Starship launches from its Boca Chica, Texas, base “will not significantly affect the quality of the human environment,” allowing Elon Musk’s company to pursue its aggressive launch schedule of 25 per year.
The 53-page report listed the measures that SpaceX has agreed on to mitigate the effects of the launches on 17 historic structures in the area and the habitats of sea turtles, as well as committed to funding necropsies for piping plovers and red knots that will look for signs of hearing damage.