Live rocket launch

[Ags]

Not any more complex then what they do already with Mars landings - heatshields, sequenced parachutes, skycranes, airbags...

Edited December 9, 2020 by Ags

[JamesF]

1 minute ago, Ags said:

I was worried on the way up, it looked like there was a fire or malfunctioning engine as the the rocket tail was irregular and smokey.

I thought that too.  Perhaps that's just the way they shut down, but there did seem to be a big flare at one point.

James

[JamesF]

3 minutes ago, Sunshine said:

Hmm, if this is the way Starship is supposed to touch down on Mars, it just seems like an awful complex maneuver to undertake, too much that can go wrong.

I wonder if there's enough atmosphere on Mars to "fly".  Perhaps somewhere like that the landing would be done differently?

James

[Jonk]

Here's how it will land on Mars, in theory at least...

 

[Ags]

Maybe due to the issue on the way up there wasn’t enough fuel for landing. That was the cause of at least one Falcon 9 landing fail.

[Jonk]

Elon on Twitter: "Fuel header tank pressure was low during landing burn, causing touchdown velocity to be high & RUD, but we got all the data we needed! Congrats SpaceX team hell yeah!!"

[Moonshed]

An incredible achievement, pick your own superlatives. The fact that it came so close to complete success on its first flight and using techniques never used before is nothing less than absolutely amazing. It’s only a matter of time before this becomes a safe and reliable routine.

Congratulations to the SpaceX team.

Keith

Edited December 9, 2020 by Moonshed

[CedricTheBrave]

very impressive looked like they had good glide control and the rotation at the end to bring it to landing position was incredible.

 

[Ags]

Not sure It is my preferred means of transport to Australia though....

[rnobleeddy]

Success and a massive explosion. What more could one ask for!

[JamesF]

"All they need to do for SN9 is fill in a big hole in the landing pad"

James

[maw lod qan]

I also noticed a couple sputters in the engine flame on ascent, then it appeared one engine shut down, but that shutdown could have been planned.

[JamesF]

Oh dear.  BBC News headline for this story today:

"Elon Musk's Starship prototype makes a big impact"

James

[Mick J]

'Rapid unscheduled disassembly'   love it 

[johnfosteruk]

27 minutes ago, JamesF said:

Oh dear.  BBC News headline for this story today:

"Elon Musk's Starship prototype makes a big impact"

James

Yep. Just heard the R2 news, they went with ‘A revolutionary new SpaceX rocket exploded last night’

Edited December 10, 2020 by johnfosteruk

[JamesF]

1 hour ago, johnfosteruk said:

Yep. Just heard the R2 news, they went with ‘A revolutionary new SpaceX rocket exploded last night’

I think that tends to give an impression that perhaps misrepresents what happened :)

James

[johnfosteruk]

Just now, JamesF said:

I think that tends to give an impression that perhaps misrepresents what happened

James

Just a bit! The Present Mrs Foster rolled her eyes as I ranted at the Google noise machine thingy!

[JamesF]

I'm very much looking forward to seeing how SN9 does now.  Last night they seemed to think it wouldn't be too long before it is ready to go, though I guess they need to address the fuel pressure issue first.

James

[Davey-T]

How's it going to cope with re-entry ? won't that stainless steel glow a bit ?

Dave

[Jonk]

Depending on the grade, 1400-1500 degrees C is the melting point.

They may have designed their own stainless with much higher heat thresholds.

[Davey-T]

Just now, Jonk said:

Depending on the grade, 1400-1500 degrees C is the melting point.

They may have designed their own stainless with much higher heat thresholds.

Apparently it's only got a single skin as well so be nice and warm inside 😂

Dave

[Davey-T]

Double post deleted

Dave

Edited December 10, 2020 by Davey-T

[Jonk]

20 minutes ago, Davey-T said:

Apparently it's only got a single skin as well so be nice and warm inside 😂

Dave

I thought it was 2 skins with an air gap in between, with a honeycomb structure as the ‘meat in the sandwich’?

[JamesF]

I think it was mentioned last night that there is intended to be additional shielding for re-entry.  It's possible they also said that they were "upgrading" the construction to use 314 stainless, but they'd not switched over to it completely as yet.

James

[Moonshed]

41 minutes ago, JamesF said:

I think it was mentioned last night that there is intended to be additional shielding for re-entry.  It's possible they also said that they were "upgrading" the construction to use 314 stainless, but they'd not switched over to it completely as yet.

James

Apart from upgrading the stainless steel to their own spec they have also been looking at attaching heat shield tiles to the “belly” side of the ship, similar tiles to those used on the Space Shuttle but easier to apply and of a modern material. Seems a good idea!