Author Topic: SpaceX News  (Read 126809 times)

Jim147

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #275 on: February 22, 2021, 07:33:35 PM »
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MechAg94

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #276 on: February 22, 2021, 09:03:55 PM »
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TomJo

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #277 on: February 23, 2021, 02:18:11 PM »
Jeff Bezos, like Elon Musk, sees the future of humanity in space. But instead of meaningless (according to Bezos) colonization of Mars, Jeff proposes to explore space using O'Neill cylinders. How to do it and what are the advantages?
I think that both options are meaningless at the current level of technology development.
We still don't have a debris cleanup program. But there are a bunch of ideas on how to send even more garbage there.

AZRedhawk44

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #278 on: February 23, 2021, 02:29:15 PM »
Jeff Bezos, like Elon Musk, sees the future of humanity in space. But instead of meaningless (according to Bezos) colonization of Mars, Jeff proposes to explore space using O'Neill cylinders. How to do it and what are the advantages?
I think that both options are meaningless at the current level of technology development.
We still don't have a debris cleanup program. But there are a bunch of ideas on how to send even more garbage there.

Debris cleanup will never happen with disposable mentality to everything sent up.  The only people who have a prayer of having a valid opinion on the matter right now are SpaceX.  BO can keep its trap shut until it makes orbit and has reusable hardware capable of doing so.

About the only viable debris cleanup tech I can envision, available on today's horizon, would be a laser based satellite which tracks space debris and discovers new targets, and with the laser it vaporizes a small portion of the debris to create thrust to push the trash into Earth's atmosphere.  The trouble with that is it isn't far off from being considered a weapon.  And could even target manned or unmanned operational spacecraft, or even terrestrial targets, with devastating results.

As-is, I think what Musk is doing with Starlink is genius.  It's going to make all the GEO comms satellites obsolete when fully deployed.  They self-immolate inside of about 5 years, no need for clean up.  The rest of the stuff at 400km or lower will eventually fall into Earth's atmosphere on its own.  Even the ISS needs periodic boosts or it will fall out of the sky.

The other glorious thing about Musk's plan is it doesn't matter what detractors think.  He's paying for it himself.  People who support colonization of Mars can buy Starlink internet deliberately to support the effort.  For the most part, it's funded by Starlink, by SpaceX launch contracts, and Musk's Tesla stock.  No tax money.  So naysayer opinions just don't matter.
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WLJ

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #279 on: February 23, 2021, 04:56:13 PM »
Quote
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has already cleared Starship serial number 10 (SN10) for flight, cutting short any potential licensing drama facing SpaceX’s latest high-altitude Starship launch efforts.
https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-starship-third-launch-landing-faa-clearance/
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kgbsquirrel

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #280 on: February 23, 2021, 07:06:38 PM »
Jeff Bezos, like Elon Musk, sees the future of humanity in space. But instead of meaningless (according to Bezos) colonization of Mars, Jeff proposes to explore space using O'Neill cylinders. How to do it and what are the advantages?
I think that both options are meaningless at the current level of technology development.
We still don't have a debris cleanup program. But there are a bunch of ideas on how to send even more garbage there.

Bezos is full of hot air.  His space company is older than SpaceX and an arguably closer relationship wit NASA.  And how much useful payload has it ever launched?  None? 

TomJo

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #281 on: February 24, 2021, 08:01:19 AM »
Bezos is full of hot air.  His space company is older than SpaceX and an arguably closer relationship wit NASA.  And how much useful payload has it ever launched?  None?

Exactly. That's why I'm wondering why I still see articles mentioning this on the net.
And the idea could be good in the future when this is backed up by the availability of cheap, durable material for the space elevator. (I doubt the space elevator will ever be built.) I think the time has come when private space companies will set the tone for space exploration. (Will seek profit)

TomJo

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #282 on: February 24, 2021, 08:15:16 AM »
https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-starship-third-launch-landing-faa-clearance/
Clear. You are a fan. It's not bad. (And most of this company's endeavours are well thought out) But
Otherwise, you would know that there are several dozen projects aimed at developing space tugs, foam trash catchers, and so on.
New space companies and startups (which was also SpaceX 12 years ago) are initially developing methods to clean up what they are going to launch into orbit.
Of course, at the moment the closest space debris cleaner is the reusable space tug from Skyrora.
This does not solve the problem with the 50th 2-tonne remnants of rockets in orbit, but it is already a start.

WLJ

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #283 on: February 24, 2021, 09:24:05 AM »
Quote
Mary
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Road closure for today February 24 has been cancelled. 🚀
@NASASpaceflight

Means no testing today.
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AZRedhawk44

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #284 on: February 24, 2021, 09:27:18 AM »
They're swapping an engine.

Last time that happened, the FAA considered the operation to be a completely new rocket and required resubmission of the correct forms in triplicate (you keep the GOLDENROD, not the canary!).

No launch this week most likely.
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kgbsquirrel

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #285 on: February 26, 2021, 08:39:12 PM »
Clear. You are a fan. It's not bad. (And most of this company's endeavours are well thought out) But
Otherwise, you would know that there are several dozen projects aimed at developing space tugs, foam trash catchers, and so on.
New space companies and startups (which was also SpaceX 12 years ago) are initially developing methods to clean up what they are going to launch into orbit.
Of course, at the moment the closest space debris cleaner is the reusable space tug from Skyrora.
This does not solve the problem with the 50th 2-tonne remnants of rockets in orbit, but it is already a start.

A "laser broom" has really good promise for deorbiting debris.  BLUF: You shoot the leading surface of space debris and it ablates off creating thrust that lowers it's orbit so it finally falls into the atmosphere and burns up.

MillCreek

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #286 on: February 26, 2021, 09:30:21 PM »
^^^Do we currently have ground-based lasers capable of delivering that much energy to orbital altitude?
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kgbsquirrel

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #287 on: February 27, 2021, 02:46:44 AM »
^^^Do we currently have ground-based lasers capable of delivering that much energy to orbital altitude?

Yeah but that is a bad place to "shoot" from because of angles and atmospheric attenuation.  This is the sort of thing you put in a geostationary orbit (or farther) so you can shoot the debris and hit its prograde aspect. 

Fly320s

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #288 on: February 27, 2021, 06:46:39 AM »
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AJ Dual

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #289 on: February 27, 2021, 03:27:47 PM »
Jeff Bezos, like Elon Musk, sees the future of humanity in space. But instead of meaningless (according to Bezos) colonization of Mars, Jeff proposes to explore space using O'Neill cylinders. How to do it and what are the advantages?
I think that both options are meaningless at the current level of technology development.
We still don't have a debris cleanup program. But there are a bunch of ideas on how to send even more garbage there.

The advantages of an O'neill cylinder or other space colonies is you can put them wherever you want. Namely closer to Earth and Cislunar space so they're not cut off by significant light lag for communications, and get the fuller benefit of solar power by being closer to the sun than Mars is. Plus once it's going, you can move it anywhere under low thrust, kind of like mobile city. So if there's a good asteroid going by, you could in theory follow it and go mine it.

Other advantages, you can build them to spin and produce 1 earth G, so no issues with bone density or any other gravity related illnesses or developmental problems in children (assuming bio-tech doesn't come up with alternative answers) And you can cover them in asteroid debris to block any/all solar or cosmic radiation. And with a mass of a small asteroid, you've got almost no lift costs to send people or materials away from there to other destinations in the Solar System. Leaving a space colony would be cheaper than even lifting off from the Moon.

And further down the road, if we never develop tech to move really fast in space, just sending an entire space colony can make long distance trips to the outer solar system, or maybe even someday interstellar, do-able since people would be more willing to go if their entire community and all the comforts of home goes with them.

What is unsaid though is how you actually BUILD such a ginormous tube in space from (presumably) asteroid or Lunar materials. OTOH, we have a pretty good idea of how to dig on Mars or Luna, or use existing caves or lava tubes to hide from radiation. And in theory, the low gravity of Mars or the Moon isn't a show stopper long-term. You could build a city/base as a shallow cone to spin it and create a centrifugal force vector combined with Mars or Lunar gravity to create 1 G like on Earth. And while solar power in Mars orbit or further is not ideal, it still works. Just at less efficiency.

Of course, the correct answer is to try both planetary settlement and space colonies, and see which works best. Since we've really done neither before and it's difficult to extrapolate or simulate all the complex factors in both undertakings.
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AZRedhawk44

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #290 on: February 27, 2021, 10:07:58 PM »
Quote
The advantages of an O'neill cylinder or other space colonies is you can put them wherever you want. Namely closer to Earth and Cislunar space so they're not cut off by significant light lag for communications, and get the fuller benefit of solar power by being closer to the sun than Mars is. Plus once it's going, you can move it anywhere under low thrust, kind of like mobile city. So if there's a good asteroid going by, you could in theory follow it and go mine it.

Initially sounds good, but the dV you'd need to match up with a passing asteroid is ENORMOUS.

Humanity would drive itself into heat-death from expending reaction mass to chase asteroids if that were our objective (pushing an O'neil cylinder to match same vector as asteroids).

Sending robotics to slowly mine the asteroid, eject the useless bits into dust gently orbiting the mass, and use some of the asteroid (H2O, N2, Xenon, whatever) as reaction mass to propel the valuable bits to a manufacturing site, is a far better solution.  But this is thinking trans-generationally, which doesn't really pan out on high risk new technology space ventures.
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WLJ

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #291 on: February 28, 2021, 08:41:09 PM »
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Mary
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I have just received an update that Starship SN10 will not fly until Wednesday March 3. Tomorrow’s attempt has been cancelled. No hop tomorrow. 🔥🚀🔥
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WLJ

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #292 on: March 02, 2021, 03:23:24 PM »
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Mary
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Happy to let y’all know that I have been asked to evacuate for Starship SN10 launch attempt tomorrow. It looks like it will be a beautiful day for a launch. I can’t wait to see SN10 nail the landing!FireRocketFire
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Fly320s

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #293 on: March 02, 2021, 04:24:28 PM »
Where do those people go when they have to evacuate for a launch?  Seems like a real pain to do that.
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cordex

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #294 on: March 02, 2021, 04:35:13 PM »
Where do those people go when they have to evacuate for a launch?  Seems like a real pain to do that.
Probably not far away.

SpaceX wanted to buy them out but my understanding is that the people who live there at this point are mostly space nerds who live there specifically to be close to the launch complex.

MillCreek

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #295 on: March 02, 2021, 05:14:56 PM »
^^^I, for one, would love to be able to sit in my yard and watch space launches.
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Quote from: Angel Eyes on August 09, 2018, 01:56:15 AM
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WLJ

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #296 on: March 02, 2021, 06:10:23 PM »
Quote
Michael Baylor
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1h
Starship SN10 Wednesday launch status:
- FAA approval ✅
- Temporary Flight Restriction ✅
- Evacuation notice ✅
- Marine hazard zone posted ✅
- Road closure scheduled ✅
- Official confirmation from SpaceX  🟡
Quote
Michael Baylor
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*Official confirmation from SpaceX is not technically required, but it would be a great sign. The company previously confirmed the SN8 and SN9 launch attempts ahead of time.
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WLJ

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #297 on: March 02, 2021, 10:39:32 PM »

Quote
Camera with flashTrevor Mahlmann
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- Official confirmation from SpaceXWhite heavy check mark
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WLJ

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #298 on: March 03, 2021, 11:27:51 AM »
They're going for a launch today
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WLJ

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Re: SpaceX News
« Reply #299 on: March 03, 2021, 12:56:14 PM »
Tank farm activity
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