NoXion
Craicy the Squirrel
It's a test flight of a heavier rocket design. They just made the dummy payload a bit more interesting than a plain old lump of metal used as a weight.
Live! Falcon Heavy, world's most powerful rocket, maiden flight
- Thread starter Crispy
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It's a test flight of a heavier rocket design. They just made the dummy payload a bit more interesting than a plain old lump of metal used as a weight.
SpookyFrank
A cheap source of teeth for aquarium gravel
Better than using the finest minds in engineering to make supercars of which three dozen will ever be built, and all of them sold to oligarchs and kleptocrats.
ska invita
back on the other side
What for?
nuffsaid
But this goes up to 11
But surely NASA has all the experience and expertise. Then some guy with a load of money just puts his car in orbit and lands the rockets that did it.... bzare! World gone crazy...
Spymaster
Plastic Paddy
I didn't realise they'd come down together like that.
I watched that with my mouth wide open according to Mrs S.
mauvais
on reddit or something
NASA's heavy lift rocket (not sure how comparable) supposedly costs $1bn per flight. These supposedly cost $90m, I guess if they get everything back.
SpookyFrank
A cheap source of teeth for aquarium gravel
I guess NASA ran out of nazis.
nuffsaid
But this goes up to 11
But putting a car in orbit does seem to go against the prevailing mindset of looking after the environment. It's now an eternal piece of junk. Seems a bit too close to 'Idiocracy in Space' to me. Thankfully the booster rockets are a big step forward.
NoXion
Craicy the Squirrel
Launching stuff into orbit has been a business for a while. Nowadays the general advancement of technology has meant that smaller companies like SpaceX can not only build the kind of rockets that used to only be built by the like of United Launch Alliance, but come with recoverable booster sections which land themselves at specific locations.
SpookyFrank
A cheap source of teeth for aquarium gravel
Lost? As in they don't know where it is or it blew up?
DotCommunist
So many particulars. So many questions.
I'd assumed they were due to fall to the sea or something but no, perfect back to the platforms. I've seen loads of rocket launches on the screen but I've never seen that.
T & P
|-o-| (-o-) |-o-|
Yeah, me neither. To have them land within a stone’s throw of each other simultaneously was both completely unexpected and an astonishing sight. I’m still beaming about it.
nuffsaid
But this goes up to 11
Well I reckon they don't care, they've got their anti-gravity vehicles, so who needs rockets anymore, they're probably laughing their heads off on that moon base.
2hats
Dust.
Much larger payloads (or multiple payloads) to GTO (bigger comsats and military no doubt), larger science payloads to the Lagrange points, payloads to the Moon and on to Mars, interplanetary missions.
cybershot
Well-Known Member
NoXion
Craicy the Squirrel
There's no biosphere up there to damage. What is the concern? You can't see it from Earth, and it's trajectory is known so it's not a navigation hazard for future missions.
Spymaster
Plastic Paddy
They haven't just done it. They've been doing stuff like this for 16 years. This is just the biggest and best so far.
nuffsaid
But this goes up to 11
So will have to be factored in for every mission to Mars now...
TheHoodedClaw
acknowledging ur soup leg
The point of the reusabilty stuff is to hopefully drastically lower cost to orbit and beyond. That then opens up all sorts of interesting possibilities.
NoXion
Craicy the Squirrel
Space is huge, even just within the Solar system. Don't forget there are thousands of known asteroids with more yet to be discovered, which are much bigger and already out there.
nuffsaid
But this goes up to 11
So why didn't NASA get there years ago after all the experience of....landing men on the Moon!.? They fucking landed men on the Moon over 50 years ago and are just sending droids up thanks to Russian boosters!
cybershot
Well-Known Member
It had an American flag on it.
nuffsaid
But this goes up to 11
Irresponsible humans..... littering everywhere they go!
TheHoodedClaw
acknowledging ur soup leg
They would need something as a payload for a test flight - a lump of concrete or whatever. Might as well be a used car *shrug* And space is big so it's not exactly a hazard.
2hats
Dust.
It’s not actually being sent to Mars or going to be co-orbited with Mars or orbiting Mars. It will be in an inclined heliocentric orbit, precessing between (but above/below) the orbits of Earth and Mars, not quite reaching either.
