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.
Just a reminder that Inspiration 4 launch is tomorrow. Two more episodes of Countdown are up on Netflix for pregame.
Static fire test of Falcon 9 complete – targeting Wednesday, September 15 for launch of Dragon’s first all-civilian human spaceflight. The 5-hour launch window opens at 8:02 p.m. EDT
All systems and weather are looking good for today’s Falcon 9 launch of Dragon’s first all-civilian spaceflight. Webcast will go live ~4 hours before liftoff https://t.co/bJFjLCzWdKpic.twitter.com/kkSiWcv6qc
Originally Posted by Deberg_1990:
This is so cool. How much training did these People have to go thru?
Watch the documentary on Netflix. They did quite a bit, but obviously not anywhere near the level that a NASA astronaut would get.
Originally Posted by :
He a much did they each pay to get on board?
It's all being paid for by Jared Issacman. They picked the other three to represent other "pillars," including Hope (cancer survivor), Generosity (donor to St. Jude who was randomly selected from all donors), and Prosperity (small business owner who also happens to be a space geek). Jared himself is "Leadership".
Originally Posted by :
No pilots? Did these modern space craft fly themselves?
Pretty much. They do need to be able to take over in an emergency, but Dragon is designed to be autonomous. [Reply]
Originally Posted by DaFace:
Watch the documentary on Netflix. They did quite a bit, but obviously not anywhere near the level that a NASA astronaut would get.
Thanks (think it was you) who mentioned the Netflix series. I watched them all last night. My logic tells me that I shouldn't be more anxious with a civilian crew than professionals, but I am. And that series made it worse.
Originally Posted by Donger:
Thanks (think it was you) who mentioned the Netflix series. I watched them all last night. My logic tells me that I shouldn't be more anxious with a civilian crew than professionals, but I am. And that series made it worse.
Thanks!!!
There's no question that the stakes are high on this one. With astronauts, you know they at least signed up for it as a career. It's Jared's idea. Sian has dreamed of it her whole life. I feel like they know what they are in for.
But Haley and Christopher both basically got pulled out of a pile of names. Haleys' mom recently lost her husband. Christopher has a family and kids. Suffice it to say, that would be really tough for them.
I'm confident that SpaceX is as safe as anyone, but as Elon would say, the "pucker factor" is high. [Reply]
Probably worth noting that they have a 5-hour launch window today. Super weird for a manned launch, but when you're just aiming for a general orbit, I guess time isn't particularly critical. [Reply]