SLS - On the Scent of Inevitable Capitulation

[mongo]

They recovered and re-used the shuttle SRBs. Are they not planning to recover the SLS ones?

Nope, no chutes, no recovery, more performance, and they have years to make the next set...
https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/sls_solid_rocket_booster_fs_03122018.pdf

 

[Grendal]

They recovered and re-used the shuttle SRBs. Are they not planning to recover the SLS ones?

I've heard nothing about it - so no.

 

[ecarfan]

Eric Berger writes today:

Jim Free, the engineer who leads the development of exploration systems for NASA… said Nicole produced significant winds over the spaceport in Florida. However, he did not provide precise numbers, nor exact design specifications that the Space Launch System rocket is designed to withstand. However, Free said that at no point was the rocket exposed to wind gusts above its design limits. This appears to check out, based on publicly available data. For example, the National Weather Service reported a maximum wind gust of 93 mph at an altitude of 200 feet at the rocket's launch pad, which is close to, but not above, the rocket's limit of 97 mph at that height.

 

[scaesare]

Analogy: Your Tesla can't haul an 80,000lb load.

PepsiCo's can!

 

[scaesare]

Eric Berger writes today:

There seems to a lot of conflicting reports about this.

 

[Electroman]

Signed into the SLS launch live feed when someone linked it for me.

They didn't mention it's 7 hours to launch! LOL

Regardless. Hopefully it launches... though I'm not sure what the future looks like for it in a world where Starship exists.

Both LOX and LH2 loading 100% complete !

 

[dhanson865]

They sure think they are launching it, last I saw they said 90% likely to launch.

Ugg, 2 hour launch window.

Reporting that the old leak from the prior test is a non issue (supposedly fixed).

They are trying to replace a bad ethernet switch and the launch might slip later in the launch window or past the launch window as they verify the new equipment after it's installed. Made it sound like someone just drove down to Best Buy to grab a new switch.

 

[dhanson865]

Artemis I Liftoff at November 16, 2022 1:47 a.m. EST.
November 16, 2022 1:50 am - Solid Rocket Booster separation
November 16, 2022 1:51 am - Service module fairing jettison, launch abort system jettison
November 16, 2022 1:56 am - Core stage main engine cutoff, core stage separation
November 16, 2022 2:24 am - Orion solar array deploy complete
November 16, 2022 2:41 am - Perigee Raise Maneuver Complete
November 16, 2022 3:44 am - 18-minute trans-lunar injection (TLI) burn completed

So it finally launched. Billions of dollars spent but they got one off the ground.

 

[ecarfan]

Billions of dollars spent but they got one off the ground.

And then the entire rocket was thrown away.

Though we get the Orion capsule back. But the Orion service module and launch abort system won’t be reused, along with some other miscellaneous pieces. So partial reuse for Orion.

 

[Grendal]

The good views happen about 30 minutes into the video.

 

[bxr140]

Congrats SLS!

Sorry to everyone here that wanted to see it RUD.

 

[SO16]

Congrats SLS!

Sorry to everyone here that wanted to see it RUD.

I’m glad it didn’t RUD. Would have been a major black eye for NASA and have Congress question the viability of our space program. That said, it’s still good to have that program be replaced by Starship.

Since Starship isn’t a viable option yet (nor was it during SLS), SLS was the best option at the time.

 

[Grendal]

 

[Grendal]

Congrats SLS!

Sorry to everyone here that wanted to see it RUD.

I would very much doubt that an SLS RUD would be any sort of boost to SpaceX. You'd just have years of committees figuring out what went wrong. Endless discussions while SpaceX would continue along the path they intend to go with little to no changes. Let's just say that Congress decided that SpaceX was the way to go for everything space and threw $5 billion at the company. The way they are going, I can't see where SpaceX could suddenly advance their SH-Starship development. $5 billion wouldn't hurt but development is development....

 

[bxr140]

I would very much doubt that an SLS RUD would be any sort of boost to SpaceX.

Totally agree. My comment was 100% poking the bear.

 

[dhanson865]

I guess Time is one of the bears now

url ends with time.com/6238248/spacex-starship-nasa-sls-rocket-launch

SpaceX Plans to Beat NASA in Launching the Biggest Rocket Ever

SpaceX tests its Starship rocket engines, setting the stage for a launch more powerful than NASA's moon rocket

time.com

 

[bxr140]

Not SLS specific, but useful context all the same.

NASA’s economic impact? Hundreds of thousands of jobs.

 

[scaesare]

Ars article on the future of SLS and why the scudule for upcoming flights is a bit convoluted:

After the Artemis I mission’s brilliant success, why is an encore 2 years away?

"I would say that we’re going to try our best to get there."

arstechnica.com

 

[Grendal]

 

[scaesare]

Well.... not a "capitulation" article per se, but Berger talks about the gross (in my opinion) mismanagement of cost control for SLS's propulsion:

A new report finds NASA has spent an obscene amount of money on SLS propulsion

Nugget: An RS-25 build (excluding management costs) = $100 million. SpaceX is targeting $1 million per Raptor... you know the only full-flow staged combustion rocket engine ever put into production... the one already on it's 2nd or third revision and has just demonstrated record-setting chamber pressures...