SpaceX (general discussion)

sferrin said:
Thanks! :) That's basically what I figured (I know there are pictures of part of a wing on a flatbed semi) but wasn't sure. The notion of a SH booster under construction is new to me. I also wonder how the tall, fabric-covered building will be used.
Click to expand...

Your best bet to locate images of the SH is to look on the relevant threads on NASA Spaceflight Forum.

By the way the two Starship prototypes are known as the Mk1 & Mk2 dependant on location.
 
Flyaway said:
sferrin said:
Thanks! :) That's basically what I figured (I know there are pictures of part of a wing on a flatbed semi) but wasn't sure. The notion of a SH booster under construction is new to me. I also wonder how the tall, fabric-covered building will be used.
Click to expand...

Your best bet to locate images of the SH is to look on the relevant threads on NASA Spaceflight Forum.

By the way the two Starship prototypes are known as the Mk1 & Mk2 dependant on location.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm mulling over re-upping my membership to the L2 section.
 
sferrin said:
Flyaway said:
sferrin said:
Thanks! :) That's basically what I figured (I know there are pictures of part of a wing on a flatbed semi) but wasn't sure. The notion of a SH booster under construction is new to me. I also wonder how the tall, fabric-covered building will be used.
Click to expand...

Your best bet to locate images of the SH is to look on the relevant threads on NASA Spaceflight Forum.

By the way the two Starship prototypes are known as the Mk1 & Mk2 dependant on location.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm mulling over re-upping my membership to the L2 section.
Click to expand...

I’d strong recommend it.
 
Flyaway said:
...

By the way the two Starship prototypes are known as the Mk1 & Mk2 dependant on location.
Click to expand...

That's something I didn't know. I thought they were both Mk1's. Is it because Texas started first and Florida, while learning from Texas, isn't tied to the Texas build methodology?

Very interesting.
 
NeilChapman said:
Flyaway said:
...

By the way the two Starship prototypes are known as the Mk1 & Mk2 dependant on location.
Click to expand...

That's something I didn't know. I thought they were both Mk1's. Is it because Texas started first and Florida, while learning from Texas, isn't tied to the Texas build methodology?

Very interesting.
Click to expand...
The Mk[x] refers to model / serial number rather than (eg) developmental block number. They will almost certainly be slightly different, but those differences should mainly just be in exact manufacturing technique (welding methods, etc) rather than capability.
 
news and bomb shell

seems the test for Starship heatshield went good on the CRS-18 mission
https://twitter.com/x/status/1167146806108512256

in McGregor, Texas completed a static fire test today of the Falcon 9 booster that will launch Crew Dragon
https://twitter.com/x/status/1167234510796263425

At 28 August Elon Musk answer On Question This:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1166856662336102401
www.teslarati.com

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk says Starship could be followed by a dramatically larger rocket

Hinted at in a brief tweet on August 28th, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk says that SpaceX’s massive Starship and Super Heavy launch vehicle – set to be the most powerful rocket ever built upon completion – could eventually be followed by a rocket multiple times larger. SpaceX is currently in the process...
www.teslarati.com www.teslarati.com


18 meter or 60 ft diameter Booster that NOVA class Heavy lift rocket
 
Dragon029 said:
NeilChapman said:
Flyaway said:
...

By the way the two Starship prototypes are known as the Mk1 & Mk2 dependant on location.
Click to expand...

That's something I didn't know. I thought they were both Mk1's. Is it because Texas started first and Florida, while learning from Texas, isn't tied to the Texas build methodology?

Very interesting.
Click to expand...
The Mk[x] refers to model / serial number rather than (eg) developmental block number. They will almost certainly be slightly different, but those differences should mainly just be in exact manufacturing technique (welding methods, etc) rather than capability.
Click to expand...

It's of note that so far SpaceX hasn't ever managed to count past 3 while remaining on the same, consistent public version numbering system. The mess that is F9 versioning being the prime example.
 
To be fair, that's just for versioning; they've had a consistent booster serial number system for a while on their Falcons.
 
Tuna said:
Dragon029 said:
NeilChapman said:
Flyaway said:
...

By the way the two Starship prototypes are known as the Mk1 & Mk2 dependant on location.
Click to expand...

That's something I didn't know. I thought they were both Mk1's. Is it because Texas started first and Florida, while learning from Texas, isn't tied to the Texas build methodology?

Very interesting.
Click to expand...
The Mk[x] refers to model / serial number rather than (eg) developmental block number. They will almost certainly be slightly different, but those differences should mainly just be in exact manufacturing technique (welding methods, etc) rather than capability.
Click to expand...

It's of note that so far SpaceX hasn't ever managed to count past 3 while remaining on the same, consistent public version numbering system. The mess that is F9 versioning being the prime example.
Click to expand...

That's not a bad thing. That means progress.
 
What Tuna's talking about isn't really about SpaceX progress, but just how particularly for the Falcon 9 they've described the rocket variants inconsistently:

Falcon 9 "v1.0"
Falcon 9 "v1.1"
Falcon 9 "Full Thrust"
Falcon 9 "Full Thrust Block 4"
Falcon 9 "Full Thrust Block 5"

People have simply been (especially back when Full Thrust and Block 4 came out) confused as to which Falcon 9 variant was the successor to which, etc. It doesn't ultimately mean much, but it would be nice if for Starship they start off and then keep a consistent naming system (even if it doesn't have an impact on development progress, etc).
 
There's a high-stakes traffic issue in the space around our planet. The European Space Agency's Aeolus Earth observation satellite had to perform a maneuver to prevent collision with SpaceX's Starlink satellite 44.
Click to expand...

www.engadget.com

SpaceX wouldn't move its satellite despite collision warning, ESA claims (updated)

There's a high-stakes traffic issue in the space around our planet. The European Space Agency's Aeolus Earth observation satellite had to perform a maneuver to prevent collision with SpaceX's Starlink satellite 44.
www.engadget.com www.engadget.com
 
Flyaway said:
There's a high-stakes traffic issue in the space around our planet. The European Space Agency's Aeolus Earth observation satellite had to perform a maneuver to prevent collision with SpaceX's Starlink satellite 44.
Click to expand...

www.engadget.com

SpaceX wouldn't move its satellite despite collision warning, ESA claims (updated)

There's a high-stakes traffic issue in the space around our planet. The European Space Agency's Aeolus Earth observation satellite had to perform a maneuver to prevent collision with SpaceX's Starlink satellite 44.
www.engadget.com www.engadget.com
Click to expand...

Note how they paint SpaceX as the bad guy.
 
The ESA is being a little cheeky, it reads as if SpaceX simply came to a different conclusion on the collision risk and declined to expend the fuel to move. The issue of lacking orbital "rules of the road" is a good one they should continue to talk about. But that message gets lost when they turn it into a chance to zing SpaceX on Twitter.
 
There is also the financial mattress that get in the way. Why bother swallowing the extra cost when state subsedies trump the game.
 
Updated report on this matter.

but SpaceX says the bad communication was not intentional and that a bug in the company’s “on-call paging system” prevented the Starlink team from getting additional email correspondence from ESA.

“SpaceX is still investigating the issue and will implement corrective actions,” a company spokesperson said in a statement. “However, had the Starlink operator seen the correspondence, we would have coordinated with ESA to determine best approach with their continuing with their maneuver or our performing a maneuver.”
Click to expand...

www.theverge.com

A bug in SpaceX’s communication system kept the company in the dark about potential satellite collision

Space traffic drama.
www.theverge.com www.theverge.com
 
SpaceX has reaffirmed its prioritization of the Arcadia Planitia – a low Martian plain – and adjacent areas as some of the most promising locations for early Starship landings, tasking a NASA satellite to gather updated photos of six potential landing sites.

First discovered and analyzed by author Robert Zimmerman on August 28th, SpaceX requested the landing site prospecting images from the University of Arizona, tasked with operating NASA’s JPL-built HiRISE spacecraft. Back before Red Dragon’s 2017 cancellation, SpaceX began the process of landing site analysis, a canvassing that ultimately settled on four possible locations, of which the Arcadia Planitia was viewed as most promising.
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www.teslarati.com

SpaceX acquires new photos of Starship landing sites with Mars-orbiting NASA satellite

SpaceX has reaffirmed its prioritization of the Arcadia Planitia – a low Martian plain – and adjacent areas as some of the most promising locations for early Starship landings, tasking a NASA satellite to gather updated photos of six potential landing sites. First discovered and analyzed by...
www.teslarati.com www.teslarati.com
 
https://twitter.com/x/status/1169723918082555904

Scoop: We got ahold of some fresh FAA docs about SpaceX's South Texas launch site — where #Starship development is cooking. (But that was totally NOT the original plan, hence the FAA's double-take.) Some interesting data, plans, and pictures herein.
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www.businessinsider.com

New documents reveal SpaceX's plans for launching Mars-rocket prototypes from South Texas

The Federal Aviation Administration's "written reevaluation" is SpaceX's ticket to launching orbital-class Starship prototypes from Boca Chica, Texas.
www.businessinsider.com www.businessinsider.com
 
looking into papers show interesting thing
Starship lies horizontal, that would make thing easy for phase 1 (static test ignition)
but there one question, what or who is putting rocket vertical and move it to launch position ?

and why i have that suspicion that Elon Musk will present A new Feature on Spaceship
What include that rocket move it self in horizontal position.
 
Michel Van said:
looking into papers show interesting thing
Starship lies horizontal, that would make thing easy for phase 1 (static test ignition)
but there one question, what or who is putting rocket vertical and move it to launch position ?

and why i have that suspicion that Elon Musk will present A new Feature on Spaceship
What include that rocket move it self in horizontal position.
Click to expand...

They will be using very large cranes to move it upright.
 
Flyaway said:
Updated report on this matter.

but SpaceX says the bad communication was not intentional and that a bug in the company’s “on-call paging system” prevented the Starlink team from getting additional email correspondence from ESA.

“SpaceX is still investigating the issue and will implement corrective actions,” a company spokesperson said in a statement. “However, had the Starlink operator seen the correspondence, we would have coordinated with ESA to determine best approach with their continuing with their maneuver or our performing a maneuver.”
Click to expand...

www.theverge.com

A bug in SpaceX’s communication system kept the company in the dark about potential satellite collision

Space traffic drama.
www.theverge.com www.theverge.com
Click to expand...
I will take that as an 'Oops'.
 
https://twitter.com/x/status/1170090345901768704

#Starship MK2 should be making the journey to KSC this month. Let's add some perspective to the journey to the river. The move will happen at night due to the need for a contra traffic approach to the water. This is the view of A1A as Starship would come to this vantage point.
Click to expand...

https://twitter.com/x/status/1170090367485693952

They would navigate this stretch of land commonly used by locals to enjoy Indian River Lagoon fishing. The destination is the end of the footing as they travel similar to how Hopper is moved in Texas. #Starship #SpaceX
Click to expand...

https://twitter.com/x/status/1170090431717302277

A set of river barges and tugs to secure them to the footing will await #Starship MK2 here. OCISLY or JRTI are too big to make the transfer from land to barge smoothly. Destination: the tug canal to the Banana River then north to the Turn Basin at KSC. Rough map ⚓ #SpaceX
Click to expand...
 
Despite a number of technical hurdles, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk believes that the company’s next-generation Starship spacecraft could eventually be capable of pad aborts in the event of a Super Heavy booster failure before liftoff.

For a vehicle as large and heavy as Starship, this would necessitate a number of compromises, but would undoubtedly serve as a major confidence-booster for prospective passengers in lieu of an established record of reliability. If Starship were capable of pad aborts like the company’s Crew Dragon spacecraft, high-profile and high-value customers like NASA and other space agencies could be far more willing to place astronauts and payloads on what they perceive to be a bizarre but high-performance launch vehicle.
Click to expand...

www.teslarati.com

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk says Starship pad abort capabilities could come sooner than later

Despite a number of technical hurdles, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk believes that the company’s next-generation Starship spacecraft could eventually be capable of pad aborts in the event of a Super Heavy booster failure before liftoff. For a vehicle as large and heavy as Starship, this would necessitate...
www.teslarati.com www.teslarati.com
 
I wonder why they think it's "bizarre". There have been many concepts over the years with a Shuttle being on the nose of the booster. If anything, the actual Shuttle was a "bizarre" contraption. A collection of duct tape and bailing wire if ever there was one.
 
SpaceX isn't wasting much time now that Starhopper has completed its hover test. The company has filed an FCC communication permissions request that, as Elon Musk confirmed, prepares for test-flying the "orbit-class" Starship. The vehicle will fly much higher than its stubby predecessor, reaching an altitude of 12.5 miles before it comes back to the same landing pad used during earlier tests. It's not a true orbital test, then, but it's clearly much closer to SpaceX's goals.
Click to expand...

www.engadget.com

SpaceX confirms it's almost ready to test its orbital Starship

SpaceX isn't wasting much time now that Starhopper has completed its hover test. The company has filed an FCC communication permissions request that, as Elon Musk confirmed, prepares for test-flying the "orbit-class" Starship. The vehicle will fly much higher than its stubby predecessor...
www.engadget.com www.engadget.com
 

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