Texas' Remote Town Is One Of America's Newest Cities With A Wild Space Exploration Origin Story

Some towns have backstories that stretch back centuries, like the early 18th-century French-founded port city of Mobile in Alabama, or St. Augustine, Florida, a Spanish-controlled settlement dating back to 1565. However, a new Texan city is going a different route with its origin story — and it's pointed straight at the stars. Meet Starbase, Texas: America's newest city and one whose main industry revolves around getting humans to Mars.

Starbase was officially incorporated in May 2025, 11 years after this remote southeastern tip of Texas was claimed as the launch facility for Elon Musk's company, SpaceX. The area has seen groundbreaking developments for over a decade, and it's seen a record-breaking 165 rocket launches in 2025 alone, per Space.com. Today, Starbase's official residents amount to about 500 people, composed of SpaceX employees and their families (per Bloomberg), while thousands of other employees live in surrounding cities like Brownsville and Port Isabel. 

But don't go packing your bags just yet. Starbase is very much a company town. It's a city built around a single employer or corporation, with its employees and families pretty much making up its entire population. Unless you've got a company ID, moving to Starbase isn't an option. Still, whether you're a rocket nerd or just casually curious, launch viewings in Texas are a perennial bucket-list favorite, so there's plenty to get excited about here.

Starbase occupies 1.5 square miles of what was once Kopernik Shores — and later Boca Chica Village — and sits next to the massive SpaceX factory. A CNN feature on the new city reported single-family homes and Airstreams lining palm tree-fringed streets, with residents getting around on bikes, electric scooters, and Teslas. "There are still a few houses that aren't owned by SpaceX and occupied by non-employees these days, but back in the early days there were a couple dozen publicly owned houses," explains Everyday Astronaut in a Starbase visit YouTube video. Meanwhile, a Bloomberg report likened the town to a science-fiction movie set, "complete with futuristic manufacturing facilities, tidy rows of near-identical houses and a massive bronze bust of Musk." 

To date, daily amenities and commercial establishments are still only available at nearby Brownsville, Port Isabel, and South Padre Island, all roughly 40 minutes to an hour away from Starbase. But in typical Elon Musk fashion, bigger and better facilities are in the works: Slated for completion in 2026 is a school for kindergarten to Grade 12 students, aptly named Ad Astra (Latin for "to the stars"). Construction costs are estimated at a cool $20 million.

In the meantime, Starbase residents are keeping busy with organized activities in and around town. There are Boca Chica Beach cleanups together with Cameron County and Texas Adopt-A-Beach volunteers; space-related immersive exhibits for children at nearby Brownsville; and the sponsoring of other community-led initiatives.

However, it seems that not everyone is over the moon about Starbase. The strongest reactions concern Boca Chica Beach, a spacious beach with tropical vibes and one of Southern Texas' best-kept secrets. After much debate and opposition, Starbase authorities were granted the power to close Boca Chica Beach access for SpaceX launches, the Texas Tribune reported — a significant blow to Cameron County, which had held this authority since 2013. 

SpaceX's control over the local beach isn't the only issue raising eyebrows. Surfrider Foundation voiced concerns over the environmental impact of SpaceX launches on what is largely national wildlife refuge land, home to wading birds, piping plovers, and sea turtle nesting sites, making Boca Chica's beaches a unique spot to see sea turtle hatchings. A recently proposed land swap — with SpaceX seeking a land trade with the U.S. government to expand its operations — was not well-received, either. "It's deeply disturbing that the hundreds of earth-bound species who rely on these public lands are becoming collateral damage in the corporate space race," Ashley C. Nunes, Center for Biological Diversity's public lands policy specialist, told Courthouse News Service. 

And so, controversies a-plenty still surround Starbase on the ground, and it seems like there are still some kinks to iron out on Earth before heading off to space. Still, it's hard not to be awed by the sheer futuristic experiment unfolding before our eyes. If you're planning to catch a rocket launch, South Padre Island — a Texas island known for its tropical charm, stunning wildlife, and miles of beach — remains the undisputed spot to watch them from across the bay.