Video shows hulking rocket cause traffic snarl near SpaceX launch site
Drivers have long been cautioned to share the road with cyclists, but what about massive space rockets?
Well, for scores of commuters in Texas, they didn't really have much of a choice recently when a rocket, spotted leaving SpaceX's launch site near Brownsville, didn't so much as share the road, as take it over completely.
A video shared online captured the surreal moment as vehicles pulled off to the side and stopped to make way for the hulking spacecraft as it slowly lumbered by.
Where the rocket was headed and whether it will be part of an upcoming launch is anyone's guess. SpaceX did not immediately respond Wednesday to USA Today's request for comment. USA TODAY also left a message with the Texas Department of Transportation's media relations team to see if the state agency knows any details about what the rocket was up to.
The rocket was sighted in the same month that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk announced his intentions to move his company, as well as social media platform X's headquarters, from California to Texas.
Woman films rocket near Starbase: 'I was amazed'
The behemoth was reportedly spotted recently near Starbase, SpaceX's launch site near Brownsville, according to the Small World News Service.
Heather Garza, a 31-year-old Amazon warehouse manager, was leaving Starbase when the rocket crossed her path, the outlet reported. The video Garza took shows the immense silver cylinder fastened securely to a metal base being transported along the road on motorized wheels.
"I was amazed to see the rocket," Garza told SWNS. "It was a very awesome sight to be able to see in person."
Elon Musk to move SpaceX HQ to Texas
News of the space rocket's sighting emerged about two weeks after Musk announced that he is relocating the headquarters of SpaceX and X to Texas.
Musk's decision seemingly stems from personal frustrations over a public school policy in California. A state law recently signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom – the SAFETY Act – drew Musk's ire over its aims to protect LGBTQ+ students from having their sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression revealed by schools without consent.
The new SpaceX headquarters will now be based at Starbase.
Under construction since the late 2010s, Starbase is a company town being built about 23 miles from Brownsville in South Texas. The complex houses a landing pad, launch facility, launch control center and tracking station for SpaceX.
Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected]