e-FTW
New electron smell
I want one of those!
(Also, suit and tie: he cleans up nice for a massive stoner amirite?
)
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(Also, suit and tie: he cleans up nice for a massive stoner amirite?
)
I want one of those!
(Also, suit and tie: he cleans up nice for a massive stoner amirite?
He's put on weight which makes me nervous for him.
e-FTW
New electron smell
He has indeed. Probably not the healthiest lifestyle working as much as he does...
boonedocks
MS LR Blk/Blk 19”
e-FTW
New electron smell
But the restaurant next to SpaceX HQ has beet burgers! But am sure food is not the only challenge...
Man, are we ever off-topic. My bad!
Nikxice
Active Member
The last 24 hours have seen several articles published detailing a redacted version of the SpaceX lawsuit against the Air Force's launch service agreement (LSA) 2018 awards. From Spacenews, "The entire complaint is a harshly worded condemnation of the Air Force’s criteria for selecting launch providers and is especially critical of what SpaceX contends is an institutional bias toward longtime launch provider ULA." Meanwhile the worried winners, Blue Origin, Northrup Grumman, UAL, have recently filed motions to intervene to protect their interests. Love the knock by SpaceX, linking the LSA winners proposals to "paper rockets". SpaceX is seeking an independent third party to review the awards.
SpaceX launches new legal battle against U.S. Air Force - SpaceNews.com
SpaceX launches new legal battle against U.S. Air Force - SpaceNews.com
SpaceX also raises a good point that many of the winners cross share parts, so the goal of risk mitigation is not achieved to the level one might think.
OldSpace pulling their BS on SpaceX and BO.
ULA and its launch industry competitors in pitched fight over regulations - SpaceNews.com
ULA and its launch industry competitors in pitched fight over regulations - SpaceNews.com
How the tables have turned. SpaceX will be the one sure winner and the question is who comes in second. It will be ULA but the grumbles have begun as the second article shows. Four paper rockets versus one successfully launching rocket....
ULA, SpaceX, Blue Origin, Northrop Grumman submit bids for national security launch procurement contract - SpaceNews.com
Blue Origin protested the contracts even before the decision is made:
Blue Origin files protest over ‘flawed’ Air Force launch procurement - SpaceNews.com
ULA, SpaceX, Blue Origin, Northrop Grumman submit bids for national security launch procurement contract - SpaceNews.com
Blue Origin protested the contracts even before the decision is made:
Blue Origin files protest over ‘flawed’ Air Force launch procurement - SpaceNews.com
Logically one would conclude that SpaceX will be one of the two winners. I sure hope so. Great revenue stream. And logically it would seem that given ULA’s influence and launch history they will be the other one.
BO is being a bit of a spoilsport...
adiggs
Well-Known Member
Interesting change of pace (assuming that SpaceX will be #1, and one of the others will be #2). It wasn't all that long ago when SpaceX was on the outside looking in. Now everybody else wishes they had a flight proven / certified rocket to bid with.
SpaceX - the safe / reliable / easy / low risk choice.
SpaceX - the safe / reliable / easy / low risk choice.
ULA is working hard to be the number two company for the Air Force launch contract. They begun building the Vulcan rocket.
Atlas, Delta rocket factory begins transition to Vulcan Centaur - SpaceNews.com
Atlas, Delta rocket factory begins transition to Vulcan Centaur - SpaceNews.com
mspohr
Well-Known Member
Nikxice
Active Member
Number 2 can also be linked to what stinks at ULA. Their solids taking a dump in the drink. That'd be them pairing either 2, 4, or 6 solid rockets onto Vulcan's core. Quoting from the article ULA's VP Mark Peller, “The only change we make to tailor the performance for a particular mission is how many solid rocket motors we attach,” Peller said. The vehicle can handle up to six Northrop Grumman-built solid boosters. “That is really the breakthrough”. I don't believe there's any plan to recover or reuse those SRBs. As to the reusability of Vulcan's core (2 BE-4's from Blue Origin), ULA has yet to demonstrate their planned hypercone heatshield, followed by a parasail chopper catch. Probably doable, but still plenty of challenges ahead.
Yes, it’s a breakthrough in the amount of rocket trash that can be thrown into the ocean per launch.
SpaceX has created all manner of flight and industrial waste over the years, both in the ocean and on land, in the pursuit of reusability. Why? Because reliable reusability is hard and progress follows a time function that, as it turns out, isn’t a binary step function.
SpaceX hasn’t demonstrated *sugar* on Starship yet they continue to build interim throwaway prototypes that aren’t going to do anything but demonstrate interim technology. Why? Because you have to walk before you can run.
Of course Vulcan isn’t going to be as advanced as a SpaceX product. It will never be as cheap, it will never fly as often, and it will never be as reusable. But, it IS progress, and more importantly it is [essentially] state run progress toward concepts and a bar that SpaceX has set. Being proud of SpaceX for more or less essentially forcing others to up their game is awesome and is encouraged. Being dismissive of others for not being where SpaceX’s years and years of investment has landed them is short sighted and antithetical.
Maybe it’s time we start to be a little more pragmatic here with our thoughts than OMG SUMBUDDY ISNT DOING EXACTLY WHAT SPACEX IS DOING THEY SHOULD DIE IN A FIRE!!!
You know, try to make a little progress of our own?
SpaceX hasn’t demonstrated *sugar* on Starship yet they continue to build interim throwaway prototypes that aren’t going to do anything but demonstrate interim technology. Why? Because you have to walk before you can run.
Of course Vulcan isn’t going to be as advanced as a SpaceX product. It will never be as cheap, it will never fly as often, and it will never be as reusable. But, it IS progress, and more importantly it is [essentially] state run progress toward concepts and a bar that SpaceX has set. Being proud of SpaceX for more or less essentially forcing others to up their game is awesome and is encouraged. Being dismissive of others for not being where SpaceX’s years and years of investment has landed them is short sighted and antithetical.
Maybe it’s time we start to be a little more pragmatic here with our thoughts than OMG SUMBUDDY ISNT DOING EXACTLY WHAT SPACEX IS DOING THEY SHOULD DIE IN A FIRE!!!
You know, try to make a little progress of our own?
I am dismissive of rocket companies that don’t know how to innovate even after watching Falcon boosters landing perfectly for years.
The only additional waste SpaceX created in the quest for reusability was hopper and some landing legs and fins.And I would guess hopper was sold for scrap and recycled. OK, also some extra emission due to engine restart testing (and landing).
Starhopper will become a test stand:
Elon Musk on Twitter
So again, mostly emissions as the byproduct of development.
And its fine for you to do so. Just understand that it comes across as "Hey everyone! Look at that stupid baby! It can't even walk! HA HA HA STUPID NOT WALKING BABY!!!".
Wether one likes it or not, the [seemingly self-evident] reality is that if you're not going to launch SpaceX-like quantities of rockets, the financial case for any kind of reusability is insanely difficult to close. Whether one chooses to believe it or not, every single rocket company out there has investigated reusability...AND, thanks to SpaceX, pretty much every single rocket company has a roadmap to reusability.
Back to reality though, not every single rocket company out there is willing to gamble the massive financial investment that SpaceX did to get reusability, and especially in the state and quasi-state run institutions like ULA, Ariane, KhSC, etc. where--as we know--there's a lot more posturing going on than in a private company run by a genius billionaire. Vulcan, for instance, is going to focus on recovering and reusing motors. They've clearly laid out a case that, for their product, it makes financial sense to discard the rest of the vehicle. Good for them, that's progress. As time moves on they're either going to have to continue to innovate, or fold.
So again, maybe we should focus more on what makes SpaceX so special and less on why everyone else sucks. Maybe we should take a page out of Elon's playbook and focus on encouraging the rising tide instead of torpedoing all the other ships.
--So there's no such thing as a spaceX shop? The machine that builds the machine? Other rocket companies don't have half the resources and associated waste.
--For flight equipment, are we saying SpaceX has reused every core, fairing, and second stage ever?
--Why isn't spaceX smart enough to just build Starship and launch it?
The point: Progress exists in grey space. Shitting on others because your team sets the bar of white and everyone else is a darker shade is, again, short sighted and antithetical. There's no advancement in that perspective; there's no value in that approach.
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