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SpaceX Discussion Thread


Skylon

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1 hour ago, tater said:

You post was fine, I was just trying to suggest that they are maybe a little more methodical than they are often given credit for.

I think people confuse a different than familiar method as being less methodical rather than merely being less canonical

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Yeah I think so long as they're reasonably confident they aren't going to bore a hole in the earth testing as many systems as they can on another launch attempt makes the most sense. Im sure lots of systems aren't there yet so it gets to the point where doing it all at once for real is the most efficient path. 

Edited by Pthigrivi
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Big issue is that the vehicle is too large to move, so anyplace where vehicle testing is to occur essentially has to be next to the factory. Starbase is tiny. drawing really broad property lines on the map makes it a couple hundred acres, and the testing area 20-40 of those acres. Stennis is in the middle of 125,000 acres of "acoustic buffer zone."

They could have fit all of the Apollo program on Merit Island (KSC), but that would have failed at the goal of putting the program in as many districts as possible. So we have the spread out centers we have.

So even if the goal was to build a billion dollar test rig at Stennis, they'd have to build the vehicle there just for the test.

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16 hours ago, RCgothic said:

I'd give odds of 4:1 that the FAA approval comes through just when SpaceX need it to, like it has every time so far.

Yeah SpaceX is just too critical to the US space program and goals. I expect them to get a pretty long leash. 

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1 hour ago, Pthigrivi said:

Yeah SpaceX is just too critical to the US space program and goals. I expect them to get a pretty long leash. 

It would be nicer if the DOJ wouldn't be sent after SpaceX for not hiring foreign refugees (which would conflict with ITAR), but yeah, SpaceX is critical.  Depends on the mood of the moment at the other end of the leash(es) I suppose

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26 minutes ago, darthgently said:

It would be nicer if the DOJ wouldn't be sent after SpaceX for not hiring foreign refugees (which would conflict with ITAR), but yeah, SpaceX is critical.  Depends on the mood of the moment at the other end of the leash(es) I suppose

Hiring permanent residents (including refugees) does not conflict with ITAR. You can be a "US Person" for ITAR and EAR legal purposes without being a US citizen. You just need to have permanent resident status.

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1 hour ago, mikegarrison said:

Hiring permanent residents (including refugees) does not conflict with ITAR. You can be a "US Person" for ITAR and EAR legal purposes without being a US citizen. You just need to have permanent resident status.

SpaceX will hire them if they are permanent residents and are otherwise qualified

Strangely, it is DOJ that requires  US citizenship

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1695484357333631134?t=9OdqtW8Blaz317UHquy5-Q&s=19

Edited by darthgently
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1 hour ago, mikegarrison said:

Hiring permanent residents (including refugees) does not conflict with ITAR. You can be a "US Person" for ITAR and EAR legal purposes without being a US citizen. You just need to have permanent resident status.

Do companies have any liability for violations? Not hiring violations, technology transfer violations.

Ie: Say they hire a barista (one of the example jobs at Starbase) and employees are having lunch, and talking about rocket stuff. Obviously if any employee was to sell information to a state actor that's an ITAR violation, regardless of citizenship status, then SpaceX gets fined? Lack of diligence in hiring reliable people? Or are employees at a company facility not allowed to talk about work (maybe SpaceX needs to invent the Cone of Silence (when the kids were little I totally would have bought one ;) )? Assuming they do any sort of background check on people, is such a check possible at the same level for someone whose history is mostly outside the US and hence unavailable? Is it more expensive to hire such a person (checks, etc, presumably carry some cost)?

Also, does this mean literally no "US Persons" in this refugee category have ever applied for and been denied from any other defense contractor, or is the DOJ going against all defense contractors all the time for this, or does LockMart, etc, simply hire them?

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2 minutes ago, tater said:

Also, does this mean literally no "US Persons" in this refugee category have ever applied for and been denied from any other defense contractor, or is the DOJ going against all defense contractors all the time for this, or does LockMart, etc, simply hire them?

They have. Aerojet is the most recent to be sued

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9 minutes ago, mikegarrison said:

Yes. EAR and ITAR laws carry heavy penalties for violations. Both fines and prison time are possible.

Wouldn't this create incentives for the employer to be extra careful? Seems like someone coming from not the US or EU would lack a paper trail to properly vet them. Even stuff as simple as criminal records.

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