SpaceChampion Posted December 20, 2017 Share Posted December 20, 2017 Old thread is locked, this is a new thread; a faster, better, cheaper thread: Falcon Heavy is at the Cape assembled like an Avenger: Launching soon in January. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Scot A Ellison Posted December 20, 2017 Share Posted December 20, 2017 12 minutes ago, SpaceChampion said: Old thread is locked, this is a new thread; a faster, better, cheaper thread: Falcon Heavy is at the Cape assembled like an Avenger: Launching soon in January. I wish I were in Beaufort for that launch. I could probably see it there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceChampion Posted December 20, 2017 Author Share Posted December 20, 2017 Full res and non-cropped: Image 1, image 2, image 3 For people wondering about the cores: Center Core: B1033.1 (New core built for the FH) Left Booster: B1025.2 (refurbished, previously flown the CRS-9 mission) Right Booster: B1023.2 (refurbished, previously flown the Thaicom 8 mission) Payload is Elon Musk's Tesla Roadster, aiming for a heliocentric Mars transfer orbit while blasting David Bowie’s 'Space Oddity' from its speakers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Scot A Ellison Posted December 20, 2017 Share Posted December 20, 2017 37 minutes ago, SpaceChampion said: Full res and non-cropped: Image 1, image 2, image 3 For people wondering about the cores: Center Core: B1033.1 (New core built for the FH) Left Booster: B1025.2 (refurbished, previously flown the CRS-9 mission) Right Booster: B1023.2 (refurbished, previously flown the Thaicom 8 mission) Payload is Elon Musk's Tesla Roadster, aiming for a heliocentric Mars transfer orbit while blasting David Bowie’s 'Space Oddity' from its speakers. So, are all three first stage boosters on the Falcon Heavy designed to land and be reused? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceChampion Posted December 20, 2017 Author Share Posted December 20, 2017 7 minutes ago, Ser Scot A Ellison said: So, are all three first stage boosters on the Falcon Heavy designed to land and be reused? Yep. If you look at the photo you can see the landing legs folded up. When it launches, the side boosters will land at LZ-1 and LZ-2, and the centre booster will land on the drone ship. Blue Origin had some success recently with their suborbital New Shepard rocket. They named the crash test dummy Mannequin Skywalker. They have a robot for landing pad too: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Scot A Ellison Posted December 20, 2017 Share Posted December 20, 2017 1 hour ago, SpaceChampion said: Yep. If you look at the photo you can see the landing legs folded up. When it launches, the side boosters will land at LZ-1 and LZ-2, and the centre booster will land on the drone ship. Blue Origin had some success recently with their suborbital New Shepard rocket. They named the crash test dummy Mannequin Skywalker. They have a robot for landing pad too: I was looking at your photos of the Falcon Heavy again. There are huge ice crystals in the engine bells. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceChampion Posted December 20, 2017 Author Share Posted December 20, 2017 1 hour ago, Ser Scot A Ellison said: I was looking at your photos of the Falcon Heavy again. There are huge ice crystals in the engine bells. It's actually a residue, probably aluminum oxide, from burning an igniter to start the engines. It has a higher melting point than the kerolox combustion burns at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceChampion Posted December 22, 2017 Author Share Posted December 22, 2017 And here is a photo of Elon Musk's cherry red Tesla Roaster mounted on a carbon fibre payload adapter to be launched on the Falcon Heavy next month towards Mars. Here's a mockup of what that looks like on top of the FH. Lots of empty space in the fairing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceChampion Posted December 23, 2017 Author Share Posted December 23, 2017 Iridium 4 mission for 10 more comsats just launched: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghjhero Posted December 23, 2017 Share Posted December 23, 2017 First time I’ve watched one of their launches and wow have I been missing out! Simply looks beautiful. I saw a lot of videos on twitter of people freaking out when they saw it blasting through the sky and I don’t blame them. I didn’t realize how extraordinary a sight it made. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceChampion Posted December 28, 2017 Author Share Posted December 28, 2017 Falcon Heavy going vertical today on the launch pad for a fit check. (static fire test yet to come in about a week, followed by launch a few weeks later). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceChampion Posted January 2, 2018 Author Share Posted January 2, 2018 SpaceX targetting Friday for launch of the mysterious "Zuma" mission for the US government. After that, they'll be focusing on launching Falcon Heavy. Did anyone guess 18 launches for SpaceX in 2017? I know there were a couple people in that range. For 2018, SpaceX has 30 launches on the manifest, but the last dozen or so of those don't have specific dates attached, and many could slip depending on each's situation. The first launch of crew about Dragon 2 could slip into next year for instance. I'll place my bet on 27 launches, with 3 slipping into 2019. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Scot A Ellison Posted January 2, 2018 Share Posted January 2, 2018 1 hour ago, SpaceChampion said: SpaceX targetting Friday for launch of the mysterious "Zuma" mission for the US government. After that, they'll be focusing on launching Falcon Heavy. Did anyone guess 18 launches for SpaceX in 2017? I know there were a couple people in that range. For 2018, SpaceX has 30 launches on the manifest, but the last dozen or so of those don't have specific dates attached, and many could slip depending on each's situation. The first launch of crew about Dragon 2 could slip into next year for instance. I'll place my bet on 27 launches, with 3 slipping into 2019. I want to see the Crewed Dragon Capsule orbit the Moon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceChampion Posted January 3, 2018 Author Share Posted January 3, 2018 7 hours ago, Ser Scot A Ellison said: I want to see the Crewed Dragon Capsule orbit the Moon. That probably is pushed to 2019, from late 2018. I recall SpaceX has to actually launch a specific number of times before they'd be allowed to launch NASA astronauts to ISS, but I can't find the reference. It's possible one of those early flights could be the moon swing-by. First demo flight was scheduled for August, and SpaceX's president Gwynne Shotwell says to those who doubt they'll make it by the end of the year "the hell we won't!" Sweet drone video of Falcon Heavy: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceChampion Posted January 5, 2018 Author Share Posted January 5, 2018 The Zuma flight delayed, TBD, due to harsh winter winds. Update: Falcon Heavy rising again on the launch pad in prep for a static fire test next week. Apparently launch will be end of the month. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik of Hazelfield Posted January 6, 2018 Share Posted January 6, 2018 In case anyone missed it, I’d just like to point out the awesomeness of the fact that a private company is launching a rocket to Mars this month. That’s what I love about SpaceX - they’re advancing the timeline of space travel so much. We can go to Mars in 10 years, not in 50. Who cares that the Falcon Heavy was pushed from 2013 to 2018, that’s still way faster than we’re used to in the space industry. Progress is now happening on the scale of years and months rather than decades, and that’s what excites me the most. The future is finally happening. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghjhero Posted January 6, 2018 Share Posted January 6, 2018 3 hours ago, Erik of Hazelfield said: In case anyone missed it, I’d just like to point out the awesomeness of the fact that a private company is launching a rocket to Mars this month. That’s what I love about SpaceX - they’re advancing the timeline of space travel so much. We can go to Mars in 10 years, not in 50. Who cares that the Falcon Heavy was pushed from 2013 to 2018, that’s still way faster than we’re used to in the space industry. Progress is now happening on the scale of years and months rather than decades, and that’s what excites me the most. The future is finally happening. What are they sending in the rocket to Mars? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Scot A Ellison Posted January 6, 2018 Share Posted January 6, 2018 6 minutes ago, Ghjhero said: What are they sending in the rocket to Mars? Musk’s Tesla Roadster will be placed in a transfer orbit to Mars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghjhero Posted January 6, 2018 Share Posted January 6, 2018 1 hour ago, Ser Scot A Ellison said: Musk’s Tesla Roadster will be placed in a transfer orbit to Mars. Oh yes that’s right! I was hoping they’d be sending some kind of rover, but that’s pretty neat too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceChampion Posted January 6, 2018 Author Share Posted January 6, 2018 4 minutes ago, Ghjhero said: Oh yes that’s right! I was hoping they’d be sending some kind of rover, but that’s pretty neat too. It's not landing on Mars. It's not even flying by Mars just yet. It's just a test flight, so whatever they send would not really be useful for much in a sun-orbit that occasionally encounters Earth and Mars, so they might as well send something fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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