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.
lol
Sooner or later, you gotta think NASA is going to start publicly responding. I have to imagine some of their engineers are cringing at the thought of having to work with BO. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Boeing:
Nine of the previously affected 13 valves are now open and functioning normally after the application of electrical and thermal techniques to prompt and command them open. Similar techniques are now being applied to the four valves that remain closed.
I'm more interested to see this converted to space based manufacturing. Lot of 3D printing already in "new space". SpaceX has been 3D printing parts for Falcon and Rocket Lab 3D prints its Rutherford engines on Electron. 3D printing the rocket body is new (and still seems a bit insane but cool), but with what SpaceX has done with Starship and sheet metal construction in the last year I'm not sure if 3D printing provides much in the way of cheaper/faster anymore.
I'm still rooting for Relativity though. They and Rocket Lab are my two favorites for surviving the swell of small launch startups. I just think they need to diversify a bit like SpaceX and RocketLab have done. With all these launch service startups beginning to finally come on line, it will be a race to the bottom profit wise. I'd like to see Relativity take their 3D printing expertise and use it in space for building infrastructure. A small POC to build a sealed container with ports to alllow sensors and pressurize would be cool. Or even cooler, do it on the moon using regolith! :-) [Reply]
We've determined #Starliner will return to our factory for deeper-level troubleshooting of four propulsion system valves. With @NASA, we've decided to stand down for this launch window to make way for other national priority missions.
I'll be really curious what level of detail comes out of the press conference. I really want to know how a majority of the valves suddenly get stuck on the pad right before launch... [Reply]
Originally Posted by Donger:
Let's not forget though...
Sure, there's no question that shit happens. You would just expect that they would have worked out when issues with valves were part of the problem last time. [Reply]
