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NASA and SpaceX have set a specific date and time target for their historic first astronaut launch aboard a private spacecraft from U.S. soil, with a planned date of May 27 and a target liftoff time of 4:32 PM EDT (1:32 PM PDT) from Kennedy Space Center, at SpaceX's Launch Complex 39A (LC-39). The mission had been previously announced to be tracking toward a mid to late-May launch time frame, but now we know exactly when the agency and SpaceX hope to launch astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley for this inaugural trip to the International Space Station.
It'll be a cold day in hell before I work for Elon Musk, but there's no denying that he has gotten stuff done.
True. But yeah, he definitely gets stuff done and am glad!
It's sad to see Boeing completely mess up the Starliner and that's right after the Boeing 737 Max issues. It should be confident to say they will be extremely slow to get into Space currently, right?
Perhaps SpaceX should start helping with the SLS, since that is a slow slug also.
Perhaps SpaceX should start helping with the SLS, since that is a slow slug also.
Getting a bit off topic, but the thing is, they couldn't.
The SLS woes come not from technology or engineering shortcomings, but from (mis)management. Boeing built the X-37B - a robotic spaceplane that can stay in orbit for months on end and land autonomously on a runway. They're not dummies.
SpaceX's secret ingredient is vertical integration - they own good chunks of their supply chain and make a lot of their stuff in-house. NASA's traditional model is the exact opposite - contracts are broken up by subsystems, awarded by bid, and generally fudged to allocate work to companies in the right congressional districts.
If SpaceX wants to try something new, they can design, build, test and - importantly - scrap with a minimum of fuss. The SLS can't. Some vendor will be filing suit for breach of contract.
Space-X loaded chilled nitrogen into the pressure tanks of a Starship prototype and... this time it didn't explode! Fourth time is the charm. SN4 will perform a 150-foot hop test in a few weeks, once regulatory approval is received.
Space-X loaded chilled nitrogen into the pressure tanks of a Starship prototype and... this time it didn't explode! Fourth time is the charm. SN4 will perform a 150-foot hop test in a few weeks, once regulatory approval is received.
It's going to be a 150 meter hop test, which is 492 feet!
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