Since a number of cool things are happening in space exploration these days, we'll widen the scope of this thread a smidge. Conversation about all things space exploration are welcome, whether it be from NASA, SpaceX, ULA, Blue Origin, or anyone else. Chances are most of the discussion will still be about SpaceX since they love to make things public and fun, but nothing's off limits. I'll eventually get around to modifying the OP to include resources for other companies too, but in the meantime, feel free to post any cool stuff you run across.
Tim Dodd (Everyday Astronaut) - A "random dude" who got really into space (particularly SpaceX). He's a great resource for simple explanations of this stuff, as well as live hosting launches.
USLaunchReport - Lost of videos of the more mundane stuff (e.g., booster recovery operations). Not a ton of commentary.
NASASpaceFlight - Live hosting of most launches including a ton of video of Starlink operations.
Glossary
Spoiler!
Space discussions tend to get a little bogged down in jargon, so here's a list of terms you might encounter. (Others, please let me know of others that should be added.)
ASDS - Autonomous Spaceport Droneship - The "barges" that they sometimes land rockets on.
Dragon - The cone-shaped capsule that sits at the top of the rocket for ISS-bound launches that holds the cargo (or, in the future, humans).
F9 - Falcon 9, the name of the rocket itself.
FH - Falcon Heavy, the three-booster version.
GTO - Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit, a type of orbit that will eventually result in the satellite orbiting the earth as it turns so that it seems to be in the same spot from the ground (such as DirecTV or Dish satellites). These types of launches are particularly challenging because they require a lot of power to get them into the right orbit, leaving very little fuel left for landing.
HIF - Horizontal Integration Facility - the building near the launch pad where they put all of the pieces of the rocket together before rolling it out to the pad.
ISS - The International Space Station
JRTI - Just Read The Instructions, the name of the "barge" that they land on for west-coast launches.
LEO - Low Earth Orbit, a fairly low orbit shared by many satellites and ISS. These launches usually require less power to achieve the proper orbit, so the first stage can often be landed back on land rather than on a drone ship.
LZ1 - Landing Zone 1, basically a big open slab of concrete at Cape Canaveral where the first stage will attempt to land (for some launches).
NET - No Earlier Than, basically the date they're hoping to launch, but rocket launches have a tendency of getting delayed.
OCISLY - Of Course I Still Love You, the name of the "barge" that they land on for east-coast launches.
RTLS - Return to Landing Site, a mission where the first stage comes back and lands at LZ1.
Starship - SpaceX's next-generation rocket (and spacecraft) that will hopefully one day take us to Mars. Starship is the "second stage" that will carry cargo or people, but also refers to the whole system. (It's confusing, but think of it like the Space Shuttle, which was both the shuttle itself and the entire launch system.)
Super Heavy - The giant booster that will carry Starship to space.
If any of you find yourselves in LA with some time to spare, it's worth it to drop by SpaceX and check out the booster there. Here it is with my wife for scale. [Reply]
Originally Posted by DaFace:
If any of you find yourselves in LA with some time to spare, it's worth it to drop by SpaceX and check out the booster there. Here it is with my wife for scale.
Dude... I like you so I'm not going to... :-) [Reply]
SpaceX has been given NASA approval to fly flight-proven Falcon 9 and Crew Dragon vehicles during Commercial Crew flights starting with Post-Certification Mission 2, per a modification to SpaceX's contract with NASA.https://t.co/BxHlFqt9sKpic.twitter.com/lRsthoBw8T
Kind of crazy when Demo-2 isn't even back yet. Speculation is that Boeing is gonna continue getting delayed, and NASA is wanting SpaceX to fill the void by reusing Dragons (since it's a lot faster to refurbish than it is to build a new one). [Reply]
Falcon 9 flew for the first time ten years ago today. Completing 85 missions to date, Falcon 9 is now the most flown operational rocket in the United States. pic.twitter.com/duuMDuyv7t
Originally Posted by Donger:
Well, I presume he's talking about Starship. And those keep blowing up and hasn't even sniffed space.
Thanks! Hopefully, they'll have the rocket ready by the end of 2022 but it sure seems like it's going to take much longer before they can send humans to Mars.
I should probably do more research but have NASA and Space X figured out how to protect the astronauts from radiation during the 18 month journey to and from Mars? [Reply]
Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud:
Thanks! Hopefully, they'll have the rocket ready by the end of 2022 but it sure seems like it's going to take much longer before they can send humans to Mars.
I should probably do more research but have NASA and Space X figured out how to protect the astronauts from radiation during the 18 month journey to and from Mars?
Musk has a history of being a tad optimistic with timelines.
Last I heard, they are looking at a four month duration to Mars, which will lessen the exposure. And I think I read that they plan to have a shelter for emergencies. [Reply]
Gwynne Shotwell is probably a more reasonable gauge of timelines. Here's what she said recently:
Outlook from @spacex's Gwynne Shotwell: "We've learned so much in the last six years, I'm sure we will have people flying in Starship in less than six years. It would be a major company fail if we're not flying people in like half that amount of time or less." -AvWeek interview
Note that she's just talking about flying (at all). It's hard to imagine Mars being only a couple years away.
But I will say that, once you understand "Elon Time," you get it. He says "we'll do it in 2 years" when everyone else thinks it'll take 10. Then when it's done in 5, it's still a big win. [Reply]
Originally Posted by DaFace:
Gwynne Shotwell is probably a more reasonable gauge of timelines. Here's what she said recently:
Outlook from @spacex's Gwynne Shotwell: "We've learned so much in the last six years, I'm sure we will have people flying in Starship in less than six years. It would be a major company fail if we're not flying people in like half that amount of time or less." -AvWeek interview
Note that she's just talking about flying (at all). It's hard to imagine Mars being only a couple years away.
But I will say that, once you understand "Elon Time," you get it. He says "we'll do it in 2 years" when everyone else thinks it'll take 10. Then when it's done in 5, it's still a big win.
Originally Posted by Donger:
Musk has a history of being a tad optimistic with timelines.
Last I heard, they are looking at a four month duration to Mars, which will lessen the exposure. And I think I read that they plan to have a shelter for emergencies.
4 months? Holy cow! That's nearly 31,000 miles per hour. [Reply]
