RCgothic

Static fire

60% GO for Sunday

I don't really object to the idea that NASA needed to develop a superheavy lift launcher and a capsule. But I very much object to the price tag, the time taken, the low flight cadence, and the end result.

Tiny. But then Gateway isn't intended to be continuously inhabited, it's just a place to change from Orion to the Lander. Still not clear what experiments they think people will want to do there but not at ISS.

Like for your collation, but very much dislike. What a colossal waste of money. Aside from fairing volume and monolithic payloads (unnecessary for a moon landing) there's nothing SLS can do that commercial vehicles can't do by EOR.

Yes, I had noticed. We're definitely overdue some hops!

Darn!

Testing is still on to begin tomorrow morning:

That's what I get for not watching the video before posting. The tweet I was referencing also asserted that the ring stack this nose cone had been assembled onto was one that had collapsed in the storms and been hammered back into shape, therefore not being in optimum condition. But I'm understandable skeptical about that now!

I retract!

The crib notes are no flight currently envisaged for SN6. Skip straight to SN8. SN7.1 test tank gets a weird naming convention, because Elon hasn't changed the naming convention recently enough.

No, that's the next Starlink mission B1051.5 currently on 83 days and counting, launch TBD. ANASIS-2 is the potential record breaker reusing the Demo-2 booster 1058.2. It's targeting Sunday. If it takes off on either Sunday or the Monday backup window it will break the turnaround record. 50 or 51 days. Record is 54.

Tory Bruno casting some slight shade here: Also doing a bit of maths: With EOR Falcon Heavy can send 32t to TLI. EOR of ten Falcon 9s - 3x15.6t payloads, 1 transfer core, 6 drop tanks could send 46.8t TLI powered by dracos. Under $600m in booster costs. With on orbit propellant transfer Falcon Heavy can send about 67t to TLI. Starship can obviously send 150t to the moon with propellant transfer. But with a Raptor powered third stage it can send 90t direct to Jupiter whilst retaining enough propellant to brake Starship back to earth aerocapture. That's insane.

Yes, oops!

I guess we're going to have to wait and see what the cargo delivery systems turn out like!

Edit: wrong thread.

I guess this is Artemis?

Sad face.

I think it would be awesome If Starship jacked itself up on its landing legs leaving the cargo pods on the surface, Thunderbird 2 style. Bit impractical though. More likely to be removable skirt panels for access.

More delays. Missing the breakneck pace of SN3 SN4 testing tbh.

The header tanks are placed forward for aerodynamic reentry trim. Without re-entry they don't need to be all the way in the nose.

Well there goes this attempt on the turnaround record. I wonder if the new date will be within 9 days?

Geopolitically not great news.

That really is a huge internal volume!