Having seen the one at the Smithsonian, I heartily concur. That's some scary shit.
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SpaceX first rocket launch of NASA astronauts into space set (UP: ISS docking complete!)
- Thread starter .Detective.
- Start date
Having seen the one at the Smithsonian, I heartily concur. That's some scary shit.
We'll get it next time. 'Merica!
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To be fair, it says "DO NOT TOUCH" in quotes, like they don't actually mean it.
Eventually, if we want to have rapid/repeatable launches one after the other, we're going to have to build better weather-resistant rockets. The scrub rate for even just regular satellite launches is really high, and with all the new players entering the rocket arena, there's going to be a traffic jam spacecraft waiting in line on the launch pad.
Sounds like they're saying if T-0 was 10 minutes later they would've been good for launch dang. And the reason why they can't just wait the 10 minutes, Dragon would not be able to match the ISS orbit as the Earth would have rotated away from it. This stuff needs to be super precise.
I know, and that's why I mentioned their track record.
To me, there is some kind of comfort in the tech that was on display with the older rockets. All the often analog equipment, the engineered exterior, etc. It looks the part of crazy piece of engineering. How crude-looking they might have been. With these sleek SpaceX designs, almost all the tech is hidden away. And to me at first glance that looks mighty scary. As if they are being sent to space in an empty shell.
Do the resupply missions have instantaneous launch windows?
Lightning induced by flying a 200 foot long conductive tube through the ambient electrical field.
For Falcon 9 yes. The other reason why its an instant window is because SpaceX uses super cooled fuel in its rocket. They make it super dense to squeeze as much performance as they can. A fueled Falcon 9 can't sit on the pad for long because then the super cooled fuel begins warming up.
A big reason for this is the cost. No one wants a rocket to explode or something else catastrophic to happen. As launches become cheaper (and safer) they'll be more willing to launch when the weather isn't perfect.
Understandable. I've also heard that bigger rockets like Starship and New Glenn will be less prone to wind then say a Falcon 9, so that should certainly help. Plus new launch sites like the one in Boca Chica will hopefully alleviate the NASA launch pads a bit.
Falcon 9 is also more susceptible to high upper winds then some other rockets because of how thin it is. (not sure how much more susceptible though)
Theres a ratio between the length of a rocket to its width. Go too thin and aerodynamic stress will snap the rocket in half. Starship will be much wider and in theory should be able to deal with winds better.
Theres a ratio between the length of a rocket to its width. Go too thin and aerodynamic stress will snap the rocket in half. Starship will be much wider and in theory should be able to deal with winds better.
That seems like the exact opposite of what I'd have expected.
Great interview with Elon and Jim Bridenstine about the launch and how this is not just the next step in replacing the shuttle but how it opens up doors to much more for Nasa's future, Everyday astronaut is awesome and has alot of great content where he looks at the Rockets, the engines and all sorts of cool stuff. Very informative
Not to mention if, God forbid, something catastrophic happens and the astronauts are killed after being sent up in less than ideal conditions. Such a move with this many eyes on the flight could potentially kill SpaceX as a company and kill manned space exploration in the US.
Better to be safe than very, very sorry in this situation.
I get disappointed on a flight delay when on an airplane. Can't imagine the feeling of a space flight delay.
🎵 In the not-too-distant future... 🎵
I wonder which of the numbered ninjas is the janitor...
The ISS orbits on a fixed plane in space, while the earth rotates under it. So even though it completes an orbit every ~93 minutes, it's over a different point of the earth each time.
Each day, a launch site will be on the plane of the target orbit twice, but usually only one of those is meaningful because they want to launch in a particular direction (one would be northeast, one would be southeast).
In addition to having the orbital plane line up, you also want to have the phase line up well enough to be able to rendezvous with the target in a reasonable amount of time. On some days, the target will be directly above you at plane alignment, on some days it might be on the other side of the planet. I don't know exactly what range of phase alignment they look for, but it's limited in some way.
Yeah, seriously. I've learned more about rocketry from KSP than I did in a lifetime of reading and studying it. Best learning is by doing! And losing many, many Kerbals along the way....
Same, I have a physics degree and until I played KSP I had almost no idea how orbital mechanics worked. relevant xkcd
Better than nothing, I hope we see it fly tomorrow.
ALthough KSP does makes it easy for you by having the launch site on the equator...
Yeah but come on, the day after a lunch was going to happen? It would still freak me out a little if I was about to get on a ship.
Nah, the Falcon 9 they're using for Crew 2 is tried and true.
SpaceX is struggling to figure out the Starship prototype, this is the 3rd one they've lost.