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.
Launch time: 0414 GMT (12:14 a.m. EDT)
Launch site: SLC-37B, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida
A United Launch Alliance Delta 4-Heavy rocket will launch a classified spy satellite cargo for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office. The largest of the Delta 4 family, the Heavy version features three Common Booster Cores mounted together to form a triple-body rocket. Delayed from June and Aug. 26. Scrubbed on Aug. 27 by pneumatics issue. Aborted at T-minus 3 seconds on Aug. 29. [Sept. 22]
Sept. 27 Falcon 9 • Starlink 12
Launch time: 1443 GMT (10:43 a.m. EDT)
Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the 13th batch of approximately 60 satellites for SpaceX’s Starlink broadband network, a mission designated Starlink 12. Scrubbed on Sept. 17 due to recovery weather. [Sept. 22] [Reply]
Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the 13th batch of approximately 60 satellites for SpaceX’s Starlink broadband network, a mission designated Starlink 12. Scrubbed on Sept. 17 due to recovery weather. Delayed from Sept. 27. [Sept. 25] [Reply]
Launch time: 0155-0210 GMT on 30th (9:55-10:10 p.m. EDT on 29th)
Launch site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the U.S. Air Force’s fourth third-generation navigation satellite for the Global Positioning System. The satellite is built by Lockheed Martin. Delayed from October, December, May, July and August. Moved forward from Sept. 30. [Sept. 22] [Reply]
Originally Posted by allen_kcCard:
You are doing just fine, thanks Donger. We do need DaFace back for this thread, but that isn't an indictment on how you have been doing.
But seriously, I don't really think you guys have been missing anything. "DaFace" might have added some color commentary, but otherwise it looks like Donger's been keeping up on the major news. [Reply]
I wonder if they scheduled the DEMO-1 launch around viewing times to get the publicity. Makes sense that the next one would just go when they need to go, but kind of sucks that it'll be in the middle of the night for most people. [Reply]
BTW, I'm finding the "Next Spaceflight" app to be very solid to help keep track of launches. They're aiming to launch the Delta IV Heavy again tonight, though it's been scrub after scrub after scrub for them lately. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Daffy:
Apparently n00bs can't use thumbs...
I wonder if they scheduled the DEMO-1 launch around viewing times to get the publicity. Makes sense that the next one would just go when they need to go, but kind of sucks that it'll be in the middle of the night for most people.
Originally Posted by Hydrae:
You banned your own mult? That's harsh!
j/k Welcome back!
Thanks. I'm probably still going to be relatively scarce compared to before, but this thread is kind of my baby, so I'll try and pop in often enough to at least post the stuff I think is interesting.
So on that note, the Delta IV Heavy launch keeps getting scrubbed, which keeps forcing SpaceX to bump their launches back. But here's a super cool shot of both F9's patiently waiting for their turns to fly.
Targeting Thursday, October 1 at 9:17 a.m. EDT for launch of Starlink. Due to a conflict on the Range, now targeting launch of GPS III-4 on Friday, October 2; 15-min window opens at 9:43 p.m. EDT pic.twitter.com/VVhhatjBbh
