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SpaceX launch webcast: Orbcomm-2 Mission [video]

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Re: SpaceX launch webcast: Orbcomm-2 Mission [video]

#291

Post by lsseckman »

hackuser wrote: post #211
dbh937 wrote: post #209

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"New-space" aerospace companies are operating on a different funding framework from the old aerospace juggernauts. Instead of cost-plus funding that came almost solely from the government and which allowed rockets like ULA's Delta IV and Atlas V to stay competitive in the $300-400 million range without having to find ways to cut costs. SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Orbital Sciences, as well as other new companies, have to…

Thanks. I've heard the story but I haven't seen evidence of it, it smells too much like a marketing story (we're young and exciting, those old people are boring and stuck in the past), and it seems very unlikely: I don't buy that the 'old' companies wouldn't want to reduce their costs by 75%, greatly increasing demand for their very expensive service, greatly increasing their bottom line - even in a cost-plus arrange…

That's true, even with less pressure it would have been in their reach to work on those projects. Seems strange to be just happening now.

Re: SpaceX launch webcast: Orbcomm-2 Mission [video]

#292

Post by imdsm »

codeonfire wrote: post #288
rebootthesystem wrote: post #265

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The whole Bezos/BlueOrigin thing is kind of sad. They are nowhere near a "club" with SpaceX. One of the huge differences (and there are many) is that Falcon 9 was doing 6,000 Km/hr (~4,000 mi/hr) when the first stage separated and turned around to come back. The path was not straight up, but rather one to launch the second stage into orbital flight (which reached 26,000 Km/hr and 600 miles of altitude). Then Falcon9'…

Bezos and Musk should NOT be on twitter for their sake. Imagine for a few decades no one tells you "no" or "you're wrong" and you have thousands of peons to kick around. Megalomania is 100% going to happen. Best just contain that behind closed doors.

I think it's great how Elon uses Twitter. It's better than him being a shadowy figure shrouded in mystery. Remember, he's doing this primarily for the passion, not money, and he wants to inspire others to join him. You don't do that by being a Mr ??? sat in the background.

Re: SpaceX launch webcast: Orbcomm-2 Mission [video]

#293

Post by ChuckMcM »

vpribish wrote: post #284
quentusrex wrote: post #282

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not only this, but the spacex grasshopper test was the first that I saw that had the rocket do a vertical takeoff, and then land. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZDkItO-0a4

get a load of this: https://youtu.be/wv9n9Casp1o?t=2m11s 1995, DC-X, and it's pyramidal

Yeah, I still have a newspaper clipping on my wall from Aug 21st, 1993 (San Jose Mercury News) showing it in the take off, hover, and landing stages. I really wanted to work on it then too!

Re: SpaceX launch webcast: Orbcomm-2 Mission [video]

#294

Post by [deleted] »

JshWright wrote: post #177
grkvlt wrote: post #132

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's pretty much it. As I understand it, the difficult bit was landing your rocket safely after launching it 100km up.

Not really... terminal velocity is terminal velocity. There is a limit to how fast you can fall through the atmosphere, regardless of how far up you start falling from.

[deleted]

Re: SpaceX launch webcast: Orbcomm-2 Mission [video]

#295

Post by simonh »

bryanh wrote: post #100
jacquesm wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

http://www.space.com/21386-spacex-reusable-rockets-cost.html ~75%.

The money quote: > Musk said that a rocket's first stage accounts for three-quarters of its total price tag, so a vehicle with a reusable first stage can be produced at far less cost — assuming the hardware is fully and rapidly reusable. ~75% savings seems like a "best case scenario" number.

The other important factor is how many times you get to re-use the stage, because that tells you the saving per launch. If you get to re-use it once, then on each flight you save 37.5% of the launch cost. If you re-use it again twice (3 launches of the first stage) you save 50% of the launch cost per flight (each flight costs you 1/3 of the first stage cost). And so on. That's not factoring in refurb and re-fueling costs, of course.

Re: SpaceX launch webcast: Orbcomm-2 Mission [video]

#298

Post by lutorm »

zaroth wrote: post #248

In a single moment, SpaceX earns itself more than $50 million dollars, right? That's a big bonus for everyone who made this possible and some well earned time off, and then back to work changing the world! So from what I've read, the returns are immense; the amount of learning they can do from examining their own rocket is the real initial treasure. Their rocket design should advance considerably based on this trove,…

I guess this would be a good place to point out that we are hiring! :-)

http://www.spacex.com/careers

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