NASA & World Space Exploration...News, Views, Photos & videos

S

SlothmanAllen

Junior Member
Registered Member
anzha said:
Two out of three might be a better way of putting it. They aborted one when it was coming in.

The upper stage was lost this mission though. Engines started shutting down far too early:

Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!
Click to expand...

Damn, the debris clouds I am seeing on Twitter are massive. I think this will slow the program down quite a bit as I imagine a review will be necessary to see what went wrong.
 
A

antwerpery

New Member
Registered Member
bebops said:
Developing a super heavy lift is not easy. If you look at all the countries in the world, no countries really have a robust space program except for the US. ESA or Russia is far behind. China is second. The rest of the world have none to a very minimal space program.

China is #1 in many areas but it cannot be #1 in ALL areas.
Click to expand...
America and the soviet union could both do it in the 1960s/1970s. China just didn't consider it a priority until SpaceX really started to take off. Same with all their rocket programs. China may not need to be #1 in everything, but still having 30 year hyperbolic rockets be the workhorse of the fleet while the more modern cryogenic long march family still struggles for launches is not a good situation to be in. It's clear that the higher ups didn't see orbital rockets as a crucial area of development, hence why they are lagging behind so badly as compared to everything else.
bebops said:
How China can compensate for the lack of super heavy lift is to launch 2-3 medium sized lift. It achieves the same objective is all it matters.
Click to expand...
Space isn't that simple. Fairing size means that having a single large rocket launch a mega-payload is much easier than trying to split said payload into two parts and dock in orbit. And it's not just heavy lift, it's reusability of course. Good luck launching a medium lift rocket 3 times a week if you don't have at least a reusable first stage. China doesn't even have a F9 clone yet, or a FH clone, they are more than decade away from a Starship clone.
 
vincent

vincent

Grumpy Old Man
Staff member
Moderator - World Affairs
antwerpery said:
America and the soviet union could both do it in the 1960s/1970s. China just didn't consider it a priority until SpaceX really started to take off. Same with all their rocket programs. China may not need to be #1 in everything, but still having 30 year hyperbolic rockets be the workhorse of the fleet while the more modern cryogenic long march family still struggles for launches is not a good situation to be in. It's clear that the higher ups didn't see orbital rockets as a crucial area of development, hence why they are lagging behind so badly as compared to everything else.

Space isn't that simple. Fairing size means that having a single large rocket launch a mega-payload is much easier than trying to split said payload into two parts and dock in orbit. And it's not just heavy lift, it's reusability of course. Good luck launching a medium lift rocket 3 times a week if you don't have at least a reusable first stage. China doesn't even have a F9 clone yet, or a FH clone, they are more than decade away from a Starship clone.
Click to expand...
Do you really really want to be banned again?
 
I

iewgnem

Junior Member
Registered Member
antwerpery said:
Meanwhile 70% of China's launches are still made by 30 year old hypergolic rockets, and they still don't have a single super heavy lift rocket yet. China really dropped the ball hard when it came to rockets.
Click to expand...
Are you sure US actually have super heavy lift rocket? Because rocket lift is measured by weight of payload, not weight of rocket itself.
New Glen is actually a heavier lift rocket than Starship, and New Glen numbers are not exactly super heavy lift.
Just remember that Elon is the same person when it comes to POE as when he's in a SpaceX design meeting...
 
M

Michael90

Junior Member
Registered Member
SlothmanAllen said:
So the US now has Falcon 9 Full Thrust Block 5, Falcon Heavy, New Glenn and Vulcan Centaur. Quite the line-up of launch vehicles. I wonder if they will be able to generate enough contracts to support New Glenn and Vulcan Centaur. Shame that Vulcan doesn't have a reusable first stage. So I guess it seems like the rocket that is least likely to survive without significant government support.

I wonder if/how Starship will impact any of the US or global launch market going forward?
Click to expand...
Its good new Glenm has joined the competition instead of SpaceX being so dominant. US space industry will only get better with healthy competition. Hopefully New Glenn will start getting more contracts from NASA.
 
T

taxiya

Brigadier
Registered Member
This is bad, very bad. SpaceX' behaviour is not acceptable, endangerring human lives, raining down debris of hundred-tonnes on earth. Where are the concerns from NASA, the US military and the Space industry "experts" (aka US military front-end)?

Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!

Dozens of commercial flights diverted to other airports or altered course to avoid potential debris, according to flight tracking website FlightRadar24. Departures from airports in Miami and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, were also delayed by about 45 minutes, it added.

1737134903153.png

The feeling of bad-mouthing is good.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top