SpaceX And/Or Rocketry In General

robl
robl
Joined: 2 Jan 13
Posts: 1709
Credit: 1454481721
RAC: 8753

Will not launch today 2/10/15

Will not launch today 2/10/15 - high winds.

[edit] may not be scrubbed. Seems to be some confusion on local news.

[edit] it is canceled. maybe tomorrow.

archae86
archae86
Joined: 6 Dec 05
Posts: 3145
Credit: 7023454931
RAC: 1808762

Currently scheduled to launch

Currently scheduled to launch today (February 11, 2015 at 6:03 p.m. EST), but no soft landing on the barge will be attempted.

see SpaceX DISCOVR info site

Too high a sea state is expected, plus the landing barge (which they term the "drone ship") has propulsion unit out of service.

They'll still run the soft landing sequence, but at best it will meet the sea surface gently at the desired location.

robl
robl
Joined: 2 Jan 13
Posts: 1709
Credit: 1454481721
RAC: 8753

Lost track of time. I could

Lost track of time. I could hear the rumble but by that time it is gone with only a contrail remaining. Damn. Had not heard about the platforms propulsion problem. Well if they can get it to gently touch down on the water then it will still be of value.

Landing on a platform negotiating 3 story high waves is "another" scenario. :>)

Mike Hewson
Mike Hewson
Moderator
Joined: 1 Dec 05
Posts: 6534
Credit: 284710168
RAC: 110462

RE: While extreme weather

Quote:
While extreme weather prevented SpaceX from attempting to recover the first stage, data shows the first stage successfully soft landed in the Atlantic Ocean within 10 meters of its target. The vehicle was nicely vertical and the data captured during this test suggests a high probability of being able to land the stage on the drone ship in better weather.


Nice effort.

Cheers, Mike.

I have made this letter longer than usual because I lack the time to make it shorter ...

... and my other CPU is a Ryzen 5950X :-) Blaise Pascal

robl
robl
Joined: 2 Jan 13
Posts: 1709
Credit: 1454481721
RAC: 8753

Yes, indeed.

Yes, indeed.

Mike Hewson
Mike Hewson
Moderator
Joined: 1 Dec 05
Posts: 6534
Credit: 284710168
RAC: 110462

Looking at the launch video :

Looking at the launch video :

- I know why previously I thought the landing gear was on fire, when it wasn't. That gear sits out from the main barrel and thus forms a lower pressure pocket behind which encourages some exhaust gas up into it. Higher speed shrinks that pocket and also draws more of the gases into the main flame.

- they launched with no time window dead on sunset. This gives a pretty exact 'initial slingshot' vector from Earth's rotation alone as directly anti-sunward ( the Earth rotates towards the East ).

- also if they had aborted for the third time then they would have waited some ~ 10 days. The position of the Moon was quoted as relevant here. The Moon was ~ half full and waning on the day. I interpret that as needing to miss the Moon, or gravitational effect thereof, on the way past it's orbital radius at a later stage.

- one could briefly see short bursts from thrusters on the top end of the first stage just after it's separation. That quickly aligns it for descent in a bottom-first attitude.

- it's heading for the first Lagrangian point which is sun-wards of the Earth about four Moon orbital radii away.

- may I say it was a pretty launch ? The 'petals' of the exhaust plume - one petal per engine - looked especially nice about 2 minutes in. I feel that technology like that is allowed to be called beautiful, in it's own way .... :-)

BTW - here is pricing for a 2016 launch. Maybe you'd like to put a satellite up, or just strap a Heavy on your back for a spot of door-slamming one weekend .... standing quarter* mile(s) that is. :-)

Cheers, Mike.

* of a million

I have made this letter longer than usual because I lack the time to make it shorter ...

... and my other CPU is a Ryzen 5950X :-) Blaise Pascal

robl
robl
Joined: 2 Jan 13
Posts: 1709
Credit: 1454481721
RAC: 8753

RE: - one could briefly

Quote:

- one could briefly see short bursts from thrusters on the top end of the first stage just after it's separation. That quickly aligns it for descent in a bottom-first attitude.

The video tracking was far better on this launch then on the previous. It did in fact clear up some misconceptions that I had on the previous launch as you pointed out.

I noticed the short bursts also. I was hoping they would stay on the first stage descent for as long as they could (because that is what I wanted to see), but from their perspective the "descent" is gravy. What matters is the payload and whether they can achieve mission parameters.

[Edit] I wonder how much that tracking lens costs?
[Edit] Interesting read on the link you provided regarding "co$t$. I hope that one test platform incorporates enough bolts to keep it tethered. :>)

Variable
Variable
Joined: 6 Oct 13
Posts: 31
Credit: 833166476
RAC: 883287

RE: My only comment to that

Quote:
My only comment to that would be that if he doesn't patent something, someone else will and freeze him out of making his own invention.

Musk's past stated opinion on patents, at least with regard to SpaceX, is that it only serves to give competitors a blueprint by which to copy them. They aggressively try to continuously lower cost & increase performance as the means to outsell and take market share from the competition, instead of patenting a process and then sitting back to collect royalties on it.

Mike Hewson
Mike Hewson
Moderator
Joined: 1 Dec 05
Posts: 6534
Credit: 284710168
RAC: 110462

FWIW : I have done a desktop

FWIW : I have done a desktop 1980 x 1080 image of a close shot of one of the Falcon9 launches :

... which I reckon nicely shows the fury of rocket propulsion.

Cheers, Mike.

I have made this letter longer than usual because I lack the time to make it shorter ...

... and my other CPU is a Ryzen 5950X :-) Blaise Pascal

robl
robl
Joined: 2 Jan 13
Posts: 1709
Credit: 1454481721
RAC: 8753

Great pic. Its hard to

Great pic. Its hard to fathom the heat that thing is generating.

Comment viewing options

Select your preferred way to display the comments and click "Save settings" to activate your changes.