Cuky

Lately I am actively browsing only through the Science sub so that is where I have noticed it. A bit of briwsing that I did through KSP 1 and 2 modding sub didn't have any problems, but it was too small of a sample to really make a good judgement on it

I have a problem on. mobile where the page loads, but pics and links (nost notably X) don't. Then after few seconds the whole page just goes blank white and I have to refresh. On PC I haven't had anny issues. Both on my PC and Android I use the latest available version of Firefox

Christmas eve LES test went (totally not) as planned so instead we informed the media about the big fireworks we've had at Kerbal Space Center

Sadly no. Even starlink today I just happened to be outside at the time they were passing above. The problem I have is that it mostly passes far out of sight and is only visible for few seconds so I don't even try. But now that you asked me I went to check and on December 20th it should pass above just 100-150km north from where I am located and should be visible for around 5 minutes so I might go looking for it if I don't forget

A bit under 3h ago was the first time that I have seen Starlink satellites passing above my island and those weren't as bright as I actually expected. If they didn't move in a perfect line one after the other one could easily mistake them for a star or a plane. But it was nice finally experiencing seeing something man made with my naked eyes in the night sky

I didn't know they launched for 250 times already, let alone landed that many times. Just wow!

Have they stated any reason, other than Elon owning X now, why they stopped streaming launches on YouTube? While they were on even if I forgot about the launch I would get a notification and I'd watch or, in cases where time zone differences meant it was in super early morning for me I'd watch a replay. Since they stopped streaming on YouTube I haven't seen a single launch, X is just not my go to app/site.

If Raptor was an engine that is being used in commercial applications then yes, those failures would be quite worrying. But Raptor is still very much a in development engine and new version is already in the pipeline. As a comparison I would use the F1 engine from Saturn V... they were unable to go through any test without it going RUD, but by the time they got to operational status the bugs were ironed. out and they worked like a charm for the most part

SpaceX confirmed it that all but 2 Raptors did the full duration test

Don't know how trustworthy this article is, but here it states that it was a 33-engine test with 4 shutting off prematurely https://arstechnica.com/space/2023/08/spacex-conducts-a-mostly-successful-test-of-its-super-heavy-booster/

Even then the number of launch pads and possibly range would become a bottleneck.

IMHO that just shows how far Spacex has came. From "they are crazy for talking about landing and reusing boosters, it can't be done" to "landing failures are super rare, but should be counted as launch failures"

It was reinstated, but was lost in this thread as well

When I was a kid I knew Mir mostly from drawings in news. And it was beautiful. The day I read about it being de-orbited I was sad. Now, with couple of decades more under my belt and having seen pictures like that and videos from the outside and inside I can only say: what a mess. I mean it worked, it was first to be built in orbit and obviously it is function over looks. But damn, they could have made some different arrangements for all those antennae

I'd be surprised if that is to be the last delay

I am looking forward to renewing my interest in KSP

just now doing rehearsals for crew flight test.... and they got double the budget of what Spacex had received

1. I haven't read anything specific tbh, but my thought is that they would either be derived from ISS designs or will be fresh design incorporating lessons learned with ISS 2. I guess not, at least not close as much as ISS has too. ISS has to be boosted in large part due to drag from atmosphere that slows it down and lowers its orbit. 3. So far I haven't seen anything about them not going forward with Dragon XL. But I guess Starship will probably replace it

Sorry if this is double post, but I can't seem to find that anyone did post this clip

It is hilarious to see them boasting about being "ahead of schedule" when they are at least 6 years late

I love it how in few short years we went from "will they make the landing" to "how close to the center will the booster land"

If I remember correctly SpaceX was nearly ready for first launch, but the approval process started dragging out a lot so they decided to implement changes they had in pipeline whilst waiting for the approval. And since they haven't been sitting still all this time but actually working I'd say there was a lot of modifications and upgrades to be made and there's no point in stopping mid way.

SuperDraco are those 8 engines used for abort which were originally intended to be used for landing as well. Draco engines are all those RCS thrusters