Author Topic: SpaceX, Blue Origin, Virigin Galactic and other Private Space Companies Thread  (Read 92781 times)

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Offline Elderberry

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SpaceX proceeding with Starship orbital launch attempt after static fire

Space News by Jeff Foust February 22, 2023

 SpaceX’s static-fire test of nearly all the engines in its Starship booster earlier this month was “the last box to check” before the vehicle’s first orbital launch attempt, likely some time in March, a company official said Feb. 21.

Speaking on a panel at the Space Mobility conference here about “rocket cargo” delivery, Gary Henry, senior advisor for national security space solutions at SpaceX, said both the Super Heavy booster and its launch pad were in good shape after the Feb. 9 test, clearing the way for an orbital launch that is still pending a Federal Aviation Administration launch license.

“We had a successful hot fire, and that was really the last box to check,” he said. “The vehicle is in good shape. The pad is in good shape.”

Only 31 of the 33 Raptor engines in the Super Heavy booster fired. SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk tweeted just after the test that one engine was commanded off just before ignition and a second shut down early. He later said that the engines ran at 50% of their rated thrust.

That led to speculation that SpaceX would need to perform a second static-fire test to get all 33 engines, or to run them at higher thrust levels. Henry, though, suggested that SpaceX was not planning another such test before an orbital launch attempt.

More: https://spacenews.com/spacex-proceeding-with-starship-orbital-launch-attempt-after-static-fire/

Offline Elderberry

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Starship, Henry argued later in the panel, will sharply drive down launch costs. “We are on the cusp of seeing an opportunity of mass to orbit go from $2,000 a kilogram to $200 a kilogram,” he said. In the long term, costs could further decline to the point where the propellant is the largest factor in the per-launch marginal cost.

“If Elon gets his way,” he said, “you’re at $20 per kilogram.”

Offline Elderberry

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SpaceX begins launching second-generation Starlink satellites with four times the network capacity

CNBC by Michael Sheetz 2/28/2023

Key Points

•   Elon Musk’s SpaceX launched the first batch of its next-generation Starlink internet satellites.

•   A Falcon 9 rocket carried 21 of the satellites, known as “V2 Mini” satellites, into orbit.

•   The company said the V2 Mini satellites add about four times as much network capacity per satellite compared with prior iterations.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX has launched the first batch of its next-generation Starlink internet satellites as the company upgrades and further builds out its orbiting network.

A Falcon 9 rocket carried 21 of the satellites, known as “V2 Mini” satellites, into orbit on Monday. The satellites represent the first iteration of Starlink’s “Gen2” plans, which the Federal Communications Commission authorized in December.

Musk shared a video of the V2 Mini satellites releasing from the rocket into orbit. While launches of the company’s first-generation models carried about 50 to 60 satellites at a time, the new spacecraft are larger and heavier than before, meaning each Falcon 9 launch carries fewer satellites. The company plans to eventually use its Starship rocket, which is in development, for future second-generation Starlink missions.

More: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/28/spacex-launches-v2-mini-starlink-satellites.html


Offline Elderberry

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Blue Origin continues investigation into New Shepard anomaly

Space News by Jeff Foust February 28, 2023

Nearly six months after an in-flight anomaly on a New Shepard suborbital mission, Blue Origin says it is still investigating the mishap and has no firm schedule for resuming launches.

Speaking at the Next-Generation Suborbital Researchers Conference here Feb. 28, Gary Lai, chief architect for New Shepard at Blue Origin, said the company was continuing to investigate the Sept. 12 uncrewed mission, designated NS-23. On that flight, the crew capsule, which had experiments but no people on board, fired its launch escape motor about a minute after liftoff from the company’s West Texas test site.

The company has provided few updates about the status of the investigation since the incident and has not estimated either when the investigation would be complete or when New Shepard flights would resume.

“We are investigating that anomaly now, the cause of it,” he said after a talk about New Shepard at the conference. “We will get to the bottom of it. I can’t talk about specific timelines or plans for when we will resolve that situation other than to say that we fully intend to be back in business as soon as we are ready.”

More: https://spacenews.com/blue-origin-continues-investigation-into-new-shepard-anomaly/


Offline Elderberry

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What's SpaceX's final decision regarding future Starship launches?

What about it!? Mar 14, 2023  #SpaceX #starship #elonmusk

SpaceX is facing some difficult decisions regarding their newly planned Starship deluge system. Last work is being done on Super Heavy Booster 7, and Ship 24 is ready for the orbital launch. Meanwhile, Relativity is doing baby steps toward Space, figuring out how to operate a Terran 1 rocket! Let's dive right in!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrxZHpblP_s

Offline Elderberry

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Virgin Orbit Pauses Operations, Seeks Funding

Hackaday  by: Tom Nardi 3/17/2023

It looks as though things may have gone from bad to worse at Virgin Orbit, the satellite carrying spin-off of Richard Branson’s space tourism company Virgin Galactic. After a disappointing launch failure earlier in the year, CNBC is now reporting the company will halt operations and furlough most employees for at least a week as it seeks new funding.

It’s no secret that company has struggled to find its footing since it was formed in 2017. On paper, it was an obvious venture — Virgin Galactic already had the White Knight Two carrier aircraft and put plenty of R&D into air-launched rockets, it would simply be a matter of swapping the crewed SpaceShipTwo vehicle for the LauncherOne orbital booster. But upgrades to the rocket eventually made it too large for the existing carrier aircraft, so the company instead purchased a Boeing 747 and modified it to lift their two-stage rocket out of the thick lower atmosphere.

Despite reshuffling plans and other setbacks, Virgin Orbit managed to put four payloads into low-Earth orbit since their first successful launch in 2021. Unfortunately, they’ve been unable to achieve the sort of launch cadence necessary to remain competitive in the market. For comparison Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket, arguably LauncherOne’s closest peer in terms of price and capability, performed 16 successful launches in the same time period.

More: https://hackaday.com/2023/03/17/virgin-orbit-pauses-operations-seeks-funding/

Offline Elderberry

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Doubleheader! Watch SpaceX launch 2 rockets less than 5 hours apart today

Space.com by Mike Wall 3/17/2023

The liftoffs are scheduled for 3:26 p.m. ET and 7:38 p.m. ET.

SpaceX plans to launch two Falcon 9 rockets less than five hours apart on Friday (March 17), and you can watch the back-to-back action live.

The show is scheduled to begin at 3:26 p.m. EDT (1926 GMT), when SpaceX will launch 52 of its Starlink internet satellites to orbit from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

Then, at 7:38 p.m. EDT (2338 GMT), a Falcon 9 carrying the SES-18 and SES-19 telecommunications satellites will lift off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

You can watch both missions here at Space.com, courtesy of SpaceX, or directly via the company (opens in new tab).

More: https://www.space.com/spacex-launch-doubleheader-march-2023


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HT2F37M193Y
« Last Edit: March 17, 2023, 11:48:55 am by Elderberry »

Offline Elderberry

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13 Years of SpaceX Florida Launches in Under 1 Minute

Hazegrayart

SpaceX has launched multiple Falcon 9 rockets from Florida, starting from its primary launch site at Kennedy Space Center and also from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. These launches have been used for a variety of purposes, including sending satellites into orbit, resupplying the International Space Station, and launching crewed missions to the station. The successful reuse of Falcon 9 first stages has been a major milestone for SpaceX and the commercial space industry, and has helped to reduce the cost of launches. These launches are a testament to the incredible technology and engineering that goes into each mission, and they continue to push the boundaries of what is possible in space.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-na5q69zis

Offline Idiot

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13 Years of SpaceX Florida Launches in Under 1 Minute

Hazegrayart

SpaceX has launched multiple Falcon 9 rockets from Florida, starting from its primary launch site at Kennedy Space Center and also from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. These launches have been used for a variety of purposes, including sending satellites into orbit, resupplying the International Space Station, and launching crewed missions to the station. The successful reuse of Falcon 9 first stages has been a major milestone for SpaceX and the commercial space industry, and has helped to reduce the cost of launches. These launches are a testament to the incredible technology and engineering that goes into each mission, and they continue to push the boundaries of what is possible in space.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-na5q69zis
LOLOL....that's pretty cool!

Online catfish1957

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Can you imagine what Musk's net worth would be if he ever took Space X public.

I'll throw out a WAG, and say the IPO would land somewhere in the neighbor of $10T Market Cap.
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Offline Elderberry

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Blue Origin’s report of NS-23 mishap

satnews 3/27/2023

The following is a summation presented by Blue Origin regarding the New Shepard (NS) Mishap Investigation:

•   The direct cause of the NS-23 mishap was a thermo-structural failure of the engine nozzle. The resulting thrust misalignment properly triggered the Crew Capsule escape system, which functioned as designed throughout the flight.

•   The Crew Capsule and all payloads onboard landed safely and will be flown again.

•   All systems designed to protect public safety functioned as planned. There were no injuries. There was no damage to ground-based systems, and all debris was recovered in the designated hazard area. 
 
•   Blue Origin expects to return to flight soon, with a re-flight of the NS-23 payloads.

The NS-23 mishap resulted in the loss of NS Propulsion Module Tail 3. The Crew Capsule escape system worked as designed, bringing the capsule and its payloads to a safe landing at Launch Site One with no damage. As part of the response to the Crew Capsule escape, the Propulsion Module commanded shutdown of the BE-3PM engine and followed an unpowered trajectory to impact within the defined flight safety analysis prediction, resulting in no danger to human life or property. Public safety was unaffected by the mishap, and no changes to crew safety system designs were recommended as a result of the investigation. 

In accordance with the New Shepard Mishap Investigation Plan, Blue Origin formed a Mishap Investigation Team (MIT), led by members of Blue Origin’s Safety & Mission Assurance organization. The investigation was conducted with FAA oversight and included representatives of the National Transportation Safety Board and NASA’s Flight Opportunities Program and Commercial Crew Office. The MIT stood up debris search and recovery efforts at Launch Site One immediately following the mishap and recovered all critical flight hardware within days. 

Blue Origin also convened a Mishap Review Board (MRB), which included external non-advocate advisors. The MRB reviewed causal determinations made by the MIT and will continue to exercise oversight of the corrective action implementation. 

More: https://news.satnews.com/2023/03/27/blue-origins-report-of-ns-23-mishap/


Offline Elderberry

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Final Lift of Booster 7? Live Orbital Launch Preps at SpaceX Starbase.

NASASpaceflight 3/29/2023

It's Happening! SpaceX is lifting Super Heavy Booster 7 onto the orbital launch mount at Starbase in Texas. A road closure is scheduled from 8am CST to 8pm CST.

This may be the final time B7 is lifted by the chopsticks before the Starship Orbital Test...


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zt7pQSEfwgg

Offline Elderberry

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Elon Musk
@elonmusk
Starship is ready for launch 🚀

Awaiting regulatory approval
1:07 AM · Apr 9, 2023

Tesla Owners Silicon Valley
@teslaownersSV
·
16h
Replying to
@austinbarnard45
 and
@elonmusk


https://twitter.com/teslaownersSV/status/1644948038081994752

Offline Idiot

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Elon Musk
@elonmusk
Starship is ready for launch 🚀

Awaiting regulatory approval
1:07 AM · Apr 9, 2023

Tesla Owners Silicon Valley
@teslaownersSV
·
16h
Replying to
@austinbarnard45
 and
@elonmusk


https://twitter.com/teslaownersSV/status/1644948038081994752
:beer:

Offline Elderberry

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Ship 25 confirmed as push for Summer replay of Starship test flight

NSF  by Chris Bergin May 29, 2023

With the maiden launch of Starship still fresh in the mind, the follow-up flight is set to be just a few months away — this time with the upgraded Booster 9, and the surprising partnership with Ship 25. While the latter doesn’t sport upgrades already employed on sister ships at the production site, the next test will be focused mostly on first stage flight with the booster.

Ship 25 is now at the launch site and awaiting a six-engine static fire test, with Elon Musk noting the pad modifications should be complete in a month, ahead of another month of testing before the next test flight.

The flight of Booster 7 and Ship 24 came after over a month of pad flow, albeit including numerous rollbacks for additional modifications. The next campaign will be completed in relatively short order — even with a few months of pad modifications required after Booster 7 dug a crater and fired up a “rock tornado” during its launch.

The reduction of the pad flow will be a theme for Starship, with the “rapidly” and fully reusable tag holding the ambition of launching on a daily basis from the same pad in future years.

In the interim, SpaceX is aiming to avoid the flying concrete of the maiden launch by installing a water-cooled steel plate and deluge system under the orbital launch mount (OLM). Preparation for its installation has been ongoing over recent weeks at the launch site, ahead of the steel plates being transported in a timeframe of around a month, per Musk.


https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1662263704262680577?s=20

That timeline was provided in a Twitter update that amplified SpaceX’s highlights video of the test flight, with Musk adding that once the modifications to the pad are complete, a month of pad testing would follow.

That testing would include tests with the modifications at the pad, Booster 9‘s integration on the OLM, potentially several cryo proofing and static fire tests, and the full-stack integration of the Ship 25.

More: https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2023/05/ship-25-confirmed-replay-starship-flight/


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TWY0e4Rjc4
« Last Edit: May 29, 2023, 06:55:59 pm by Elderberry »

Offline bigheadfred

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In the interim, SpaceX is aiming to avoid the flying concrete of the maiden launch by installing a water-cooled steel plate and deluge system under the orbital launch mount (OLM). Preparation for its installation has been ongoing over recent weeks at the launch site, ahead of the steel plates being transported in a timeframe of around a month, per Musk

I wondered how they were going by to get around the destruction of the first pad.
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Offline Idiot

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I wondered how they were going by to get around the destruction of the first pad.
Instead of having flying concrete, now they'll have flying steel.

Offline DB

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I wondered how they were going by to get around the destruction of the first pad.

Did they ever confirm that flying debris was the cause of the previous launch?

Offline bigheadfred

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Did they ever confirm that flying debris was the cause of the previous launch?

I never saw anything. @Elderberry would be the best one to ask.
She asked me name my foe then. I said the need within some men to fight and kill their brothers without thought of Love or God. Ken Hensley

Offline Elderberry

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A number of things caused the launch. Planning and fueling and a computer countdown to T-0 and the raptor engines were ignited and the launch took place.

Offline DB

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A number of things caused the launch. Planning and fueling and a computer countdown to T-0 and the raptor engines were ignited and the launch took place.

Yah, but you know what I meant. Just add failure to the end...

Offline sneakypete

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I wondered how they were going by to get around the destruction of the first pad.

@bigheadfred

I'm wondering how they are going to manage delivering THAT much water in such a short time period. Those huge boosters put OUT some serious BTU's.
Anyone who isn't paranoid in 2021 just isn't thinking clearly!

Offline bigheadfred

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@bigheadfred

I'm wondering how they are going to manage delivering THAT much water in such a short time period. Those huge boosters put OUT some serious BTU's.

One really big water balloon.  :shrug:
She asked me name my foe then. I said the need within some men to fight and kill their brothers without thought of Love or God. Ken Hensley

Offline Elderberry

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Yah, but you know what I meant. Just add failure to the end...

I could see that the debris caused the several raptors to fail at launch. And possibly the raptors that failed later on in the flight. I don't see how the debris caused the second stage to fail to separate from the booster and cause the range safety explosives from taking such a long time to destroy the rocket.

Offline Elderberry

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Ep273 How will SpaceX fight Physics for the next Starship flight!

What about it!?  Jun 8, 2023

The Starship production line is coming together FAST while SpaceX is fighting Physics on the launch pad. More intriguing-looking parts spotted at Starbase. Psyche launch is back on track!

A lot more to uncover! Stay tuned, and let’s dive right in!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JW6svmP9Kks