tater Posted January 5, 2022 Share Posted January 5, 2022 59 minutes ago, mikegarrison said: Either it will seem normal, or it will seem like a seemingly crazy idea that turned out to be just an actually crazy idea. I have my fingers crossed for normal—but all the "land on the launch mount" ideas since the very first BFR announcements have seemed insane to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tater Posted January 5, 2022 Share Posted January 5, 2022 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikegarrison Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 7 hours ago, tater said: I have my fingers crossed for normal—but all the "land on the launch mount" ideas since the very first BFR announcements have seemed insane to me. Well, consider the CATOBAR system for aircraft carriers. I mean, when you say it like this -- We will fling the airplanes off the carrier with high-speed catapults; and then when they land they will drag a hook behind them that grabs onto the ship -- doesn't that sound kind of crazy? And yet ... well, OK, it actually is kind of crazy. That being said, it works. Most of the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tater Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 26 minutes ago, mikegarrison said: Well, consider the CATOBAR system for aircraft carriers. I mean, when you say it like this -- We will fling the airplanes off the carrier with high-speed catapults; and then when they land they will drag a hook behind them that grabs onto the ship -- doesn't that sound kind of crazy? And yet ... well, OK, it actually is kind of crazy. That being said, it works. Most of the time. Agreed. I think it's a function of the sheer size of the thing that makes it seem so crazy—but that should not actually matter as long as things are built right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tater Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 17 hours: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AVaughan Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 3 hours ago, mikegarrison said: That being said, it works. Most of the time. The "most of the time" is part of what worries me. Even an occasional failure could mean extensive repair and downtime to the launch tower/catch arms. I hope they have enough control authority to handle gusting wind swirling around that launch tower while the booster is in a very constrained descent between the catch arms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beccab Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 57 minutes ago, AVaughan said: The "most of the time" is part of what worries me. Even an occasional failure could mean extensive repair and downtime to the launch tower/catch arms. I hope they have enough control authority to handle gusting wind swirling around that launch tower while the booster is in a very constrained descent between the catch arms. To be honest failures would have to be very late for damage to happen, since they will probably target a point that is far from the tower before relighting the engines like they do with F9. The catch arms are probably not fast enough to fully open in case Superheavy has a big problem while going for the capture, but hopefully at that point they will have figured whether it's able to land or not Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AVaughan Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 1 hour ago, Beccab said: To be honest failures would have to be very late for damage to happen, since they will probably target a point that is far from the tower before relighting the engines like they do with F9. The catch arms are probably not fast enough to fully open in case Superheavy has a big problem while going for the capture, but hopefully at that point they will have figured whether it's able to land or not Swirling wind gusts shouldn't be a problem until very late, ie when the booster is approaching the tower. If they don't have enough control authority at that time, then there is chance of clipping the tower or catch arms. That doesn't require an actual failure from the booster, just not enough margin built in at design time. (And if an engine did fail at that time, well that would reduce their margins even further). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magnemoe Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 6 hours ago, mikegarrison said: Well, consider the CATOBAR system for aircraft carriers. I mean, when you say it like this -- We will fling the airplanes off the carrier with high-speed catapults; and then when they land they will drag a hook behind them that grabs onto the ship -- doesn't that sound kind of crazy? And yet ... well, OK, it actually is kind of crazy. That being said, it works. Most of the time. Yes, but that kind of evolved, they started using catapults to launch seaplanes off cruisers and battleships as this is easier on engine than taking off from the water and this was pretty small recon plane. Carries used the cables and hook to catch the landing plane, in the start this was probably to make landing safer. Don't think WW 2 carriers used catapults but jet fighters needed them and thing evolved to the insane level we see today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sevenperforce Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 7 hours ago, magnemoe said: Don't think WW 2 carriers used catapults but jet fighters needed them and thing evolved to the insane level we see today. World War II carriers all used catapults. Most were hydraulic but some used gunpowder charges or even solid-fueled rockets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brotoro Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 (edited) Starlink launch feed is live! Let's go with getting more Starlink satellites up there so I can get Starlink Internet! T minus 10 minutes. 4th launch for this booster... it practically still has that new rocket smell. Fairing halves are being reused for 5th and 4th times. Edited January 6, 2022 by Brotoro Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brotoro Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 Water tower is taking a whiz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sevenperforce Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 (edited) LOX load complete. Weird that water is spewing out of the top of that water tower. Those darkened, worn fairings have a very ancient-future feel. Edited January 6, 2022 by sevenperforce Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brotoro Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 You can see the rocket wobbling back and forth slightly in the closeups of the fairing, if you look closely. Liftoff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RealKerbal3x Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 Passed Max Q Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sevenperforce Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 Supersonic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brotoro Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 Pop out the waffles. Nice view of fairing sep. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tater Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 Doug, lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sevenperforce Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 For the Starlink launches, they are jettisoning the fairings almost immediately after SES-1. I wonder if they could jettison the fairing prior to stage separation but simply don't need the extra margin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brotoro Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 Huh. The 'stick' that pushes off the upper stage apparently gets retracted. Entry burn looked nice. Aww... lost stage one video. Soggy deck. Landing good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tater Posted January 6, 2022 Share Posted January 6, 2022 If only there was a way to get broadband anyplace on earth, we could get continuous video... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beccab Posted January 7, 2022 Share Posted January 7, 2022 SpaceX is making QD retraction tests quite frequently the last few days, this is test number 4 or 5 I believe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cubinator Posted January 7, 2022 Share Posted January 7, 2022 Nice covers, just like the Shuttle ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beccab Posted January 7, 2022 Share Posted January 7, 2022 49 minutes ago, cubinator said: Nice covers, just like the Shuttle ones. Yup, it looks very similar. This is it without and with the hood Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beccab Posted January 7, 2022 Share Posted January 7, 2022 The ship QD arm now looks cooler Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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