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Tesla changed the way the public views electric cars. CEO Elon Musk’s other company, SpaceX, is disrupting the aerospace industry in the same way. But their newest creation is by far the wildest yet. Today we’re looking at why SpaceX built a stainless steel starship.
The new Starship is novel for a number of reasons but the most remarkable feature is its steel frame. For those who don’t know, steel is many times heavier than aluminum, carbon fiber and other materials usually used in rockets. This makes a huge difference when a rocket is trying to break through the Earth’s atmosphere. Even an extra ounce of weight can adversely affect the success of a mission. In fact, WD-40 was initially invented to spray over an Atlas missile to prevent water from forming on the outside—simply because this would reduce the weight added by painting the missile. So why exactly is SpaceX using stainless steel when lighter materials are available?