Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Botswana launches first satellite BOTSAT-1 aboard SpaceX Falcon 9

spaceinafrica.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

11–20 of 241 posts

Re: Botswana launches first satellite BOTSAT-1 aboard SpaceX Falcon 9

#11

Post by echoangle »

aaronblohowiak wrote: post #6
mainecoder wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Of course, even Europe cannot launch cheaply anymore. Arianespace is crawling to space; they are left for dead. The only serious players are the US and China. It's reached a point where it has become like trying to manufacture a state-of-the-art 5nm chip in a developing nation: possible, but at an absurd cost. You might achieve an initial parametric yield of only 10%, meaning only a tiny fraction of the chips coming…

What do you think about RFA?

And Isar Aerospace is also European and is set to launch tomorrow (although they seem to think it will explode at some point). But I don’t know if they will be particularly cheap.

Re: Botswana launches first satellite BOTSAT-1 aboard SpaceX Falcon 9

#12

Post by parsimo2010 »

echoangle wrote: post #2

Don’t want to belittle the achievement but they launched it as in „had it launched by the commercial launch provider SpaceX“, not on a self-developed rocket as it sounds like on the first read.

Very few organizations and even countries can develop both a launch vehicle and a satellite. Botswana has done fine to develop a satellite that integrates onto a rideshare launch. They aren't working with anything close to the headcount or budget of NASA or even the ESA.

Edit (rather than reply and make the comment chain long): It's fine that you read it that way. I figure that if the article were about a launch vehicle then it would have been the rocket's name in the title, and if the article were about the satellite then it would have the satellite's name (BOTSAT-1). If Botswana had developed both an orbital launch vehicle and their first satellite then I'd bet the headline would have been sensational.

Re: Botswana launches first satellite BOTSAT-1 aboard SpaceX Falcon 9

#13

Post by nukem222 »

echoangle wrote: post #10
notahacker wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mean basically everyone launches their first satellite using a third party launch provider which is usually SpaceX. If there's someone missing credit here it's Endurosat for providing the satellite bus and doing integration work, but the payload and operation which is the novel bit will be Botswanan. It's like you don't have to credit Linus Torvalds or Brendan Eich for their contributions to your first web service.…

My problem isn’t that they used a provider for the launch. I just wanted to clarify because „X launches satellite“ sounds like X launched a rocket carrying a satellite, not that X made a satellite and had it launched by someone else. Or maybe that’s just me, I’m not a native speaker.

[dead]

Re: Botswana launches first satellite BOTSAT-1 aboard SpaceX Falcon 9

#14

Post by wat10000 »

mainecoder wrote: post #3
echoangle wrote: post #2

Don’t want to belittle the achievement but they launched it as in „had it launched by the commercial launch provider SpaceX“, not on a self-developed rocket as it sounds like on the first read.

Of course, even Europe cannot launch cheaply anymore. Arianespace is crawling to space; they are left for dead. The only serious players are the US and China. It's reached a point where it has become like trying to manufacture a state-of-the-art 5nm chip in a developing nation: possible, but at an absurd cost. You might achieve an initial parametric yield of only 10%, meaning only a tiny fraction of the chips coming…

SpaceX didn't spend an absurd amount of money getting Falcon 9 to where it is. It was a lot, but pretty typical, even somewhat cheap, for developing a brand new rocket. Repeating their feat should be even cheaper, since you won't be taking detours trying out parachutes and such before settling on the final architecture. It's a relatively straightforward application of known technology, not bleeding edge stuff like 5nm chip making.

An organization that can produce Ariane 6 should be able to produce a Falcon 9 clone with similar effort. The real problem is overcoming the of the old, slow, expensive way of doing things.

Re: Botswana launches first satellite BOTSAT-1 aboard SpaceX Falcon 9

#15

Post by echoangle »

parsimo2010 wrote: post #12
echoangle wrote: post #2

Don’t want to belittle the achievement but they launched it as in „had it launched by the commercial launch provider SpaceX“, not on a self-developed rocket as it sounds like on the first read.

Very few organizations and even countries can develop both a launch vehicle and a satellite. Botswana has done fine to develop a satellite that integrates onto a rideshare launch. They aren't working with anything close to the headcount or budget of NASA or even the ESA. Edit (rather than reply and make the comment chain long): It's fine that you read it that way. I figure that if the article were about a launch vehi…

Maybe my comment should have been more clear. I don’t think it’s surprising or bad that they don’t have their own launch vehicle, I just found the headline a bit misleading because it could sound that way. It’s still a great achievement.

Re: Botswana launches first satellite BOTSAT-1 aboard SpaceX Falcon 9

#16

Post by closewith »

parsimo2010 wrote: post #12
echoangle wrote: post #2

Don’t want to belittle the achievement but they launched it as in „had it launched by the commercial launch provider SpaceX“, not on a self-developed rocket as it sounds like on the first read.

Very few organizations and even countries can develop both a launch vehicle and a satellite. Botswana has done fine to develop a satellite that integrates onto a rideshare launch. They aren't working with anything close to the headcount or budget of NASA or even the ESA. Edit (rather than reply and make the comment chain long): It's fine that you read it that way. I figure that if the article were about a launch vehi…

That seems an uncharitable read of the GP. I too assumed from the headline that by using the verb launch, it was referring to an indigenous vehicle.

Re: Botswana launches first satellite BOTSAT-1 aboard SpaceX Falcon 9

#17

Post by hnuser123456 »

echoangle wrote: post #15
parsimo2010 wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Very few organizations and even countries can develop both a launch vehicle and a satellite. Botswana has done fine to develop a satellite that integrates onto a rideshare launch. They aren't working with anything close to the headcount or budget of NASA or even the ESA. Edit (rather than reply and make the comment chain long): It's fine that you read it that way. I figure that if the article were about a launch vehi…

Maybe my comment should have been more clear. I don’t think it’s surprising or bad that they don’t have their own launch vehicle, I just found the headline a bit misleading because it could sound that way. It’s still a great achievement.

I get what you're saying, something like "Botswana successfully begins orbital operations of its first satellite" would be more accurate, but simply not clickbaity enough.

Re: Botswana launches first satellite BOTSAT-1 aboard SpaceX Falcon 9

#18

Post by teruakohatu »

parsimo2010 wrote: post #12
echoangle wrote: post #2

Don’t want to belittle the achievement but they launched it as in „had it launched by the commercial launch provider SpaceX“, not on a self-developed rocket as it sounds like on the first read.

Very few organizations and even countries can develop both a launch vehicle and a satellite. Botswana has done fine to develop a satellite that integrates onto a rideshare launch. They aren't working with anything close to the headcount or budget of NASA or even the ESA. Edit (rather than reply and make the comment chain long): It's fine that you read it that way. I figure that if the article were about a launch vehi…

While I agree with the sentiment, my tiny island nation with a population of 5m people was able to develop satellite launch capabilities.

It’s more a case of does it make economic or strategic sense to do so. For most countries it wouldn’t.

Re: Botswana launches first satellite BOTSAT-1 aboard SpaceX Falcon 9

#19

Post by Onavo »

notahacker wrote: post #4
echoangle wrote: post #2

Don’t want to belittle the achievement but they launched it as in „had it launched by the commercial launch provider SpaceX“, not on a self-developed rocket as it sounds like on the first read.

I mean basically everyone launches their first satellite using a third party launch provider which is usually SpaceX. If there's someone missing credit here it's Endurosat for providing the satellite bus and doing integration work, but the payload and operation which is the novel bit will be Botswanan. It's like you don't have to credit Linus Torvalds or Brendan Eich for their contributions to your first web service.…

Why do they ask you not to mention them publicly?

Re: Botswana launches first satellite BOTSAT-1 aboard SpaceX Falcon 9

#20

Post by dmitrygr »

mainecoder wrote: post #3
echoangle wrote: post #2

Don’t want to belittle the achievement but they launched it as in „had it launched by the commercial launch provider SpaceX“, not on a self-developed rocket as it sounds like on the first read.

Of course, even Europe cannot launch cheaply anymore. Arianespace is crawling to space; they are left for dead. The only serious players are the US and China. It's reached a point where it has become like trying to manufacture a state-of-the-art 5nm chip in a developing nation: possible, but at an absurd cost. You might achieve an initial parametric yield of only 10%, meaning only a tiny fraction of the chips coming…

> The only serious players are the US and China

Forgot one

https://www.rocketlaunch.live/?filter=roscosmos

Post reply on HN