SpaceX’s third custom-made Falcon 9 recovery robot called Octograbber was seen leaving a SpaceX facility in Cocoa, Florida.
We have been tracking the construction of SpaceX’s third droneship, A Shortfall of Gravitas, for a few weeks now. While construction on the ship has been moving relatively quickly, the Octograbber is the first piece we’ve seen that looks to be finished.
SpaceX’s Octograbbers are remotely controlled robots that secure Falcon 9 boosters to the deck of the droneships. This keeps the Falcon 9 safely in place while also saving time over the old, manual securement method. Seeing this octograbber under construction was the first thing to tip us off that A Shortfall of Gravitas(ASOG) construction was underway somewhere.
This Octograbber was first spotted back in March and now seems to be heading to a new home. It was built at SpaceX’s Cidco Road facility in Cocoa, Florida and is most likely heading to the port and be readied to be readied for service.
This could mean ASOG is much further along in construction than we think and could be heading to Port Canaveral in the coming weeks.
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