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Old 01-20-2015, 12:24 PM
 
46,840 posts, read 25,791,373 times
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I knew they had big plans, but - 17 launches, one of them the virgin flight of a Falcon Heavy? That's a full plate in anyone's book.

Their recent attempt at booster recovery failed, but it was damn close - as in, hitting the barge at low speed, but at the wrong angle, leading to what Musk called a "RUD" - Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly event.

Ran out of hydraulic fluid. No other operator is trying that. (Ultimately, they want to recover boosters by touching down on dry land. The testing case is harder.) Of course, the actual mission - resupplying the ISS - went like clockwork, because SpaceX.

Incidentally, Falcon Heavy is the heaviest US rocket since Saturn V. 53 metric tons to LEO. (The Shuttle did a paltry 24.4 metric tons.) On the other hand, it is a complex beast - 27 engines in the first stage, although of course we've seen Falcon 9s lose an engine and still go on their merry way.

So - if Congress can keep focus and not fall into their porkbarrel ways (as they're doing with the SLS), the US is looking at some serious improvements in space access over the next few years.

http://www.universetoday.com/118246/...ince-saturn-v/

Last edited by Dane_in_LA; 01-20-2015 at 01:00 PM.. Reason: Forgot the link
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