SpaceX, Blue Origin, Virigin Galactic and other Private Space Companies Thread

[Elderberry]

Why Can't we Remake the Rocketdyne F1 Engine?


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[Elderberry]

SpaceX’s Starship Moon lander passes NASA review alongside Blue Origin, Dynetics

TESLARATI By Eric Ralph 9/26/2020

https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-starship-moon-lander-nasa-review-blue-origin/

A variant of SpaceX’s Starship spacecraft optimized to land NASA astronauts on the Moon has passed the space agency’s first review alongside competing teams lead by Blue Origin and Dynetics.

Aside from reiterating the fact that NASA is drawing heavily from its experience with the Commercial Crew Program (CCP), the completion of “certification baseline reviews” for Blue Origin, Dynetics, and SpaceX’s proposed lunar landers is a significant step forward for the Human Landing System (HLS) and Artemis programs. According to NASA’s official HLS “Broad Agency Announcement” or BAA, providers must submit a vast amount of paperwork and data to pass the certification baseline review (CBR).

NASA’s acceptance criteria for CBR documentation is about as general as the space agency gets, requiring providers to demonstrate at least a basic level of maturity and expertise. Like the name suggests, it sets a baseline from which NASA and SpaceX, Dynetics, and Blue Origin’s National Team will hone in on challenges and concerns specific to each system. SpaceX’s proposal is almost certainly unique, however, given that the company is the only one anywhere close to performing actual flight tests of a (relatively) similar system.

    Singer says all three HLS companies have competed certification baseline reviews, working towards confirmation reviews in December. [Blue Origin and Dynetics had disclosed last week completing those certification baseline reviews; SpaceX had not.]

[Elderberry]

Chris B - NSF
@NASASpaceflight
·
Sep 26
Sidenote: Did SN7.1 get to an acceptable bar rating before pop? (per SN8 confidence, given the same alloy).

Elon Musk
@elonmusk
·
Sep 26
8 bar differential in ullage, 9 bar at base due to propellant head. It’s enough. Improvements in work.
Viv
Dragon
@flcnhvy
·
Sep 26
Did you switch to 30X yet? Or is it still 304L?
Elon Musk
@elonmusk
Replying to
@flcnhvy
 
@NASASpaceflight
 and 2 others
Mostly 304L, some 301. Broke at 301 to 304 interface. SN9 will be all 304. Also, we’re making some tweaks to the 304 alloy mixture.

[Elderberry]

SpaceX launches 60 Starlink satellites and lands rocket at sea

Space.com by Amy Thompson 10/6/2020

https://www.space.com/spacex-starlink-12-internet-satellites-launch

It's the third launch and landing for this Falcon 9!

SpaceX delivered its 13th batch of Starlink satellites to orbit Tuesday (Oct.6), following a two-week delay due to bad weather.

The two-stage Falcon 9 rocket blasted off from Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center at 7:29 a.m. EDT (1129 GMT), hauling a full stack of 60 Starlink satellites. Approximately 9 minutes later, the booster's first stage came back to Earth, landing on one of SpaceX's drone ships in the Atlantic Ocean.

The launch marks SpaceX's 17th mission so far in 2020, and its 94th Falcon 9 flight to date. The company's fleet of flight-proven boosters has been busy this year, with the California-based rocket builder reaching a few new milestones, including launching and landing the same first-stage booster six times.

The launch also came amid World Space Week 2020, which is celebrating the impact satellites have on everyday life.

More at link.

[Elderberry]

SpaceX’s Mars-Colonizing Starship Is Ready for Its First Huge Test

Observer By Sissi Cao • 10/05/20

https://observer.com/2020/10/spacex-starship-prototype-sn8-prepares-test-mars-colonizing/

The newest prototype of SpaceX’s moon-landing and Mars-colonizing spaceship, Starship, is expected to undergo its first high-altitude test flight this month. The giant spacecraft’s development site in Boca Chica, Texas has been extremely busy over the past few weeks with preparation for the big test.

Starship is SpaceX’s ultimate rocket designed for future interplanetary trips. Two previous prototypes, Starship SN5 and SN6, successfully performed 500-foot-high (150 meters) hops in a test flight last month. The latest prototype, SN8, aims to fly up to 50,000 feet (9.3 mile) above sea level, paving the way for SpaceX’s next target to reach Earth’s orbit.

On Friday, Elon Musk said on Twitter that an orbit-reaching prototype called “V1.0” would be revealed before the end of October. “Starship update coming in about 3 weeks,” he tweeted. “The design has coalesced. What is presented will actually be what flies to orbit as V1.0 with almost no changes.”

More at link.

[Gefn]

Amazing. Do you think we’ll get to Mars in our lifetime?

[Elderberry]

Amazing. Do you think we’ll get to Mars in our lifetime?

I surely think so, but I've been a Science Fiction and now Space Buff ever since I discovered the science fiction books in my Elementary School library.

[sneakypete]

Amazing. Do you think we’ll get to Mars in our lifetime?

@Gefn


"OUR" time?

Maybe yours,but not mine,or anyone else over 60.

[Gefn]

@Gefn


"OUR" time?

Maybe yours,but not mine,or anyone else over 60.

@sneakypete I’m almost that. 

[sneakypete]

@sneakypete I’m almost that.

@Gefn

I can't even see that in my rear view mirror.

Not even if I am wearing my glasses.

[Elderberry]

Elon Musk says SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket 'could probably do 100+ reflights'

TESMANIAN by Evelyn Arevalo October 06, 2020

https://www.tesmanian.com/blogs/tesmanian-blog/100-flights

SpaceX is a leader in aerospace innovation, rocket reusability is one of its top priorities. The company has designed and manufactured some of the world’s most advanced rockets, capable of launching payload to orbit and returning from space to be reused. Most aerospace companies use a rocket once and discard it; SpaceX engineers developed a rocket recovery system to reuse the first-stage booster of the two-stage Falcon 9. The 229-feet-tall launch vehicle is the most flown operational rocket in the United States, it has flown 94 times.

Falcon 9’s nine Merlin 1D engines are powered by a combination of rocket-grade kerosene, known as RP-1, and liquid oxygen, LOX. It is capable of producing over 1.7 million pounds of thrust as it lifts off through Earth’s atmosphere. In the vacuum of space, it produces over 1.8 million pounds of thrust.  The rocket’s second stage, which is the top section that propels the payload in space, is powered by a single Merlin engine, it can carry 25 tons of payload to low Earth orbit.

A Falcon 9’s first-stage features the capability to conduct vertical landings on autonomous drone ships at sea and on land. Engineers truly introduced a great innovation to the aerospace industry. To date, the company has successfully returned 61 orbital-class rocket boosters from space soon after deploying payload. Overall, SpaceX has reused previously-flown Falcon 9 first-stage boosters 43 times --a first in the history of rocketry.

Falcon 9 is capable of being 85% reusable. Engineers aim to eventually accomplish developing a next-generation rocket that can be as reusable as airplanes. For now, SpaceX’s reusability goal is to refly a booster 10 times, they are halfway towards reaching that milestone. A couple of Falcon 9 first-stage boosters have already re-flown 6 times. Today, SpaceX founder Chief Engineer Elon Musk said the company is "aiming for 10+ flights of booster & fairing by end of next year."

More at link.

[Elderberry]

SpaceX Boca Chica - SN8 Pressure Testing, RCS Thruster Test - Bluezilla Disassembled

NASA Spaceflight 10/6/2020


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-oz1zn7FWpM

SN8 pressure testing continued last night/this morning, including some RCS thruster tests. Bluezilla disassembly begins, Tankzilla is prepped for a move- to where we don't know yet, and an interesting new piece of machinery is delivered. Earth work at the Launch Site continued, and Super Heavy's LOX Stack 1 was moved around the build site.

Video and Pictures from Mary (@BocaChicaGal). Edited by Jack Beyer (@TheJackBeyer)

Click "Join" for access to early fast turnaround clips, exclusive discord access with the NSF team, etc - to support the channel.

Updates: https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/ind...

Articles: https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/?s=St...


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[Idiot]

SpaceX Boca Chica - SN8 Pressure Testing, RCS Thruster Test - Bluezilla Disassembled

NASA Spaceflight 10/6/2020


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-oz1zn7FWpM

SN8 pressure testing continued last night/this morning, including some RCS thruster tests. Bluezilla disassembly begins, Tankzilla is prepped for a move- to where we don't know yet, and an interesting new piece of machinery is delivered. Earth work at the Launch Site continued, and Super Heavy's LOX Stack 1 was moved around the build site.

Video and Pictures from Mary (@BocaChicaGal). Edited by Jack Beyer (@TheJackBeyer)

Click "Join" for access to early fast turnaround clips, exclusive discord access with the NSF team, etc - to support the channel.

Updates: https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/ind...

Articles: https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/?s=St...


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Thanks for posting these updates @Elderberry .

You got me hooked....dang you! 

[Elderberry]

Inside Relativity Space’s 3D-printing rocket ‘factory of the future’

CNBC by Michael Sheetz 10/8/2020

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/10/07/inside-relativity-space-hq-3d-printer-rocket-factory-of-the-future.html?mc_cid=7fab2c7bb5&mc_eid=ccdc8e505f

Key Points

•   Rocket builder Relativity Space this summer moved into its new headquarters in Long Beach, California.

•   â€œThe new printers are operational and actually printing our first flight parts right now, so we have several printers building the first rocket we’re actually going to fly to orbit,” Relativity CEO Tim Ellis told CNBC.

•   The company is building the first iteration of its Terran 1 rocket, with about 95% of the parts being 3D-printed.

Rocket builder Relativity Space this summer moved into its new headquarters in Long Beach, California – and already the company is manufacturing the parts it needs for its first launch late next year.

Relativity is currently building the first iteration of its Terran 1 rocket. But unlike other rockets, Relativity is using multiple 3D-printers, all developed in-house, to build Terran 1. The rocket is designed to have about 95% of its parts be 3D-printed, which allows Relativity’s rocket to be less complex, and faster to build or modify, than traditional rockets. Additionally, Relativity says its simpler process will eventually be capable of turning raw material into a rocket on the launchpad in under 60 days.

While Relativity had made progress testing its 3D-printing technology, the company’s 120,000 square foot headquarters will serve as the foundation for its manufacturing and launch business. Relativity is now on its third generation of 3D-printers, capable of manufacturing a single piece of metal up to 32 feet tall – as high as the new ceiling allows.

More at link.

[Elderberry]

Starship SN8 Passes Cryogenic Proof Test

42,226 views
•Streamed live 6 hours ago
NASASpaceflight
145K subscribers

SpaceX is set to perform a cryogenic proof test with Starship SN8. The proof test is when the vehicle is pressurized with cryogenic liquid nitrogen and pressed against with a thrust simulator to minmic the flight environment. The test will verify that the Starship is ready for static fire testing later this month.


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[Elderberry]

SN8 receiving Raptors as prelude to advanced Starship testing

Spaceflight.com by Chris Bergin October 11, 2020

https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2020/10/sn8-raptors-prelude-advanced-starship-testing/

Installation of the three Raptors that will power Starship SN8’s unique test flight began on Sunday at SpaceX Boca Chica. The brand new engines will be the focal point of a test program that will involve at least two Static Fire tests ahead of a test flight to 50,000 feet.

Starship SN8:

SN8 underwent a total of three cryo proofing tests during the week. The first was deemed acceptable per the test parameters, but a small leak “opened up near the engine mounts, possibly due to differential shrinking,” according to SpaceX Chief Designer and CEO Elon Musk.

The repair was completed in time for a second test the following night, which appeared to show SN8 fully loaded with LN2 (Liquid Nitrogen), but without any reference as to how it went from Elon. Roadblocks were then called for the third time, pointing to another test 24 hours later.

This time the test concluded with Elon noting cryo proofing was a success.

    Passed cryo proof

    — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 9, 2020

With this milestone complete, the Thrust Rams were removed from underneath SN8 to make room for installing the three Raptor engines.

More at link.

[Elderberry]

SpaceX schedules Starship’s first triple-Raptor static fire test

TESLARATI by Eric Ralph 10/14/2020

https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-starship-first-triple-raptor-static-fire-schedule/

Curiously, SpaceX remained quiet for several days after Starship SN8 passed its first big test. Whereas with past Starship prototypes SpaceX has often filed test plans (appearing in the form of road closures) even before the current phase of testing is complete, the company waited until Tuesday, October 14th to file closure notices for “SN8 static fire” testing.

Cryo proof complete, SpaceX installed Starship SN8’s engines – the first time multiple Raptors have been fully integrated with a rocket or test stand – in preparation for another Raptor first: multi-engine static fires. While modern computation fluid dynamics (CFD) and modeling mean that the great unknowns of rocket propulsion are rarely as opaque as they used to be, the first test of multiple powerful engines in close proximity is still a guaranteed recipe for surprises.

Thanks to expertise hard-won from nearly 100 Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launches, SpaceX is likely the world’s foremost expert in the challenges and dynamics of the proximity operation of more than two rocket engines. At the same time, though, Raptor is a dramatically different engine than Merlin 1D and while Starship will only have six engines at most, those six engines will produce thrust equivalent to almost two entire Falcon 9 boosters.

In other words, even with a (relatively) simple three-Raptor static fire, SpaceX will be treading new ground and will almost certainly end up learning one or several things about Raptor’s design and operation. More likely than not, SpaceX will begin Starship SN8’s static fire test campaign with a wet dress rehearsal (like a cryo proof but with real liquid methane and oxygen propellant) and transition into a Raptor spin prime (turbopump spin-up) or preburner test (a turbopump spin-up but with partial combustion) if the WDR goes smoothly. If all three Raptor engines appear healthy, SpaceX may recycle and attempt the first static fire just an hour or two later.

Starship SN8’s triple-Raptor static fire test window opened at 9pm CDT on October 14th and closes at 6am on the 15th, with an identical 9pm-6am backup on the 15th and another window from 8am to 4:30pm on the 16th. LabPadre (below) will continue to offer 24/7 views of Starship, including any static fire testing, while NASASpaceflight.com will likely provide live coverage once testing begins in earnest.

More at link.

[Elderberry]

SpaceX Status Report – October 16, 2020

https://spacexstatusreport.com/

Boca Chica, Texas

Starship SN8 Testing Schedule

•   10/15/2020 – 9:00 pm – 6:00 am – ABORT: Starship SN8 Preburner & Static Fire Testing
•   10/16/2020 – 8:00 am – 4:30 pm – Canceled
•   10/18/2020 – 9:00 pm – 6:00 am
•   10/19/2020 – 9:00 pm – 6:00 am
•   10/20/2020 – 9:00 pm – 6:00 am

Starship Construction Status

---(SN5,6,8,9)---

•  SN10 – Under construction

•   10/16/2020 – Common dome section has now been stacked in the Mid-Bay.
•   10/14/2020 – Stacking began in the Mid-Bay.
•   10/03/2020 – Trust section mated to leg skirt in the shipyard.
•   10/03/2020 – Thrust section spotted in the shipyard.
•   10/03/2020 – Leg skirt spotted in the shipyard. WO: 133 7367
•   09/09/2020 – The forward dome was sleaved with a four-ring stack. All of the previous upper bulkheads have been sleeved with a three-ring stack.
•   09/04/2020 – Thrust puck and fuel downcomer delivered.

•  SN11 – Under construction

•   10/07/2020 – Thrust dome flipped
•   10/05/2020 – Trust dome has been sleeved.
•   10/03/2020 – Methane Header tank spotted
•   09/20/2020 – Common Bulkhead spotted
•   09/14/2020 – Thrust puck and fuel downcomer delivered.
•   09/09/2020 – Aft dome section spotted in the shipyard.

•  SN12 – Under construction

•   09/20/2020 – Leg Skirt spotted in the shipyard.

•  SN13 – Under construction

•  SN14 – Under construction

•   10/10/2020 – Methane downcomer spotted.

•  SH1 – Super Heavy Booster – Under construction

•   10/07/2020 – Lox Stack 2 spotted in the shipyard.
•   10/01/2020 – Fuel Stack spotted in the shipyard.
•   10/01/2020 – Forward dome was sleeved with a four ring stack labeled “FWD BARREL ASSY BOOSTER”.
•   10/02/2020 – Lox Stack 1 spotted in the shipyard.
•   09/28/2020 – Lox Stack 4 spotted in the shipyard.
•   09/22/2020 – Milestone – First Super Heavy booster Common Dome Assembly spotted in the shipyard.
•   09/02/2020 – The first Super-Heavy booster (Per Elon Musk).

[Elderberry]

Starship SN8 conducts preburner test ahead of Static Fire and nosecone firsts

NASA Spaceflight by Chris Bergin October 18, 2020

https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2020/10/starship-sn8-static-fire-nosecone-firsts/

The stage is set for a milestone Static Fire test for Starship SN8. The latest attempt – during a lengthy window that extended into Monday morning – saw an aborted preburner test, followed by a preburner test – laying the foundations for a potential repeat preburner and an actual Static Fire test on Tuesday.

Pending a successfully Static Fire, SN8 will be able to look forward to nosecone’s installation – with a header tank – for a repeat test in around a week.

SN8 Static Fire:

Sunday night’s test follows an aborted attempt earlier in the week.

Although SpaceX has conducted numerous Static Fire tests with its Starship prototypes, this is the first time three Raptors will have been fired together. This includes at SpaceX’s test center in McGregor, Texas – where Raptors are test fired individually.

The test path has been refined over the evolution of Starship, with two objectives within a few hours of each other set to take place.

Once the vehicle has been prop-loaded, controllers can conduct a preburner test – as was the case during the Sunday/Monday overnight window.

A preburner is essentially a small engine that powers a turbopump. Each Raptor engine has two, one for the liquid oxygen oxidizer and one for the methane fuel.

Providing the data from this objective is deemed acceptable; recycling of the vehicle will prepare for the Static Fire test that will utilize Raptors SN30, 32, and 39.

More at link.

[Elderberry]

SpaceX Starship go for nosecone installation forward after historic static fire

TESLARATI By Eric Ralph 10/21/2020

https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-starship-nosecone-installation-static-fire-success/

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has confirmed that Starship and Raptor’s first triple-engine static fire was a success, opening the door for nosecone installation.

Around 3:13 am CDT, October 20th, Starship serial number 8 (SN8) successfully fired up three Raptor engines less than two hours after completing the first successful three-engine preburner test. With zero direct human intervention, SpaceX remotely detanked the rocket’s cryogenic liquid methane and oxygen propellant – the remnants now too warm to be used again in a controlled manner. In an hour or less, SpaceX engineers combed through the data produced and concluded that all three Raptor engines were healthy after their partial ignition test.

Effectively reset to a stable state, SpaceX once again proceeded to load Starship SN8’s propellant tanks with a small amount of supercooled LOx and LCH4, almost exactly mirroring the preburner test. Around 50 minutes after the recycle commenced and 25 minutes after propellant loading kicked off, Starship SN8 ignited three Raptors simultaneously – a major milestone for any rocket engine. Static fire now completed, Starship SN8 has been cleared to become the first operational prototype to reach its full 50m (~165 ft) height.

    Data from 3 engine Starship static fire this morning looks good. Proceeding with nosecone mate.

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[Idiot]

SpaceX Starship go for nosecone installation forward after historic static fire

TESLARATI By Eric Ralph 10/21/2020

https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-starship-nosecone-installation-static-fire-success/


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I've been watching them move the mother of all cranes to the launch site.  This live stuff is addictive.

[Idiot]

I've been watching them move the mother of all cranes to the launch site.  This live stuff is addictive.

It appears that nosecone stacking is going on NOW. @Elderberry

[Elderberry]

SpaceX launches second Starlink mission of the week

NASA Spaceflight.com by Danny Lentz October 24, 2020

https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2020/10/spacex-second-starlink-mission-in-week

Two days after scrubbing a previous attempt shortly before launch, and still less than a week after the previous Starlink flight, SpaceX launched its third batch of Starlink satellites this month into orbit at 11:31 EDT (15:31 UTC) on Saturday, 24 October.  The v1.0 L14 mission — the 14th launch of operational satellites and 15th Starlink flight overall — was launched from pad SLC-40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

The payload for this flight was a batch of 60 satellites for SpaceX’s Starlink satellite constellation that will provide high speed internet service.  With each satellite having a mass of about 260 kg, the full payload stack massed nearly 16 metric tons.  According to pre-launch data released on Celestrak, the targeted deployment orbit was approximately 260 x 270 km.

The Falcon 9 launch vehicle for this mission was booster 1060.3, which launched the GPS III SV03 and the Starlink 11 operational flight earlier this year.  The vehicle performed a successful static fire test Wednesday, 21 October to verify that it was ready for flight.  This was the 19th Falcon 9 launch this year (including the suborbital In-Flight Abort Test), and the 13th Starlink mission of the year.

Starlink beta testing begins:

As SpaceX nears the beginning of wider beta testing and the subsequent start of service in the northern U.S. and southern Canada, SpaceX recently qualified to participate in the first round of Federal Communication Commission’s (FCC’s) Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) Auction, which will disburse $16 billion to internet providers over the next decade for connecting locations that do not currently have access to speedy internet connections at reasonable prices.

[Elderberry]

NASA Inspects Starship Moon Lander & Fully Stacked SN8 Ready For Flight (Video)
October 24th, 2020

0:00 Intro: NASA is inspecting SpaceX Starship moon lander for the 2024 Artemis moon mission. Meanwhile, Starship SN8 is fully stacked at SpaceX Boca Chica facility and ready for the 15km SpaceX Starship test flight.

1:23 As for Starship SpaceX news, Starship SN8 is fully stacked at Boca Chica after the latest successful Starship raptor engine static fire test. According to Elon Musk, the first 15km Starship SpaceX test flight can take place anytime soon.

A white painted lunar Starship mockup is spotted at Boca Chica, which shows that NASA seriously considers using Starship as their Artemis moon lander for NASA's 2024 crewed moon mission. The Starship moon lander offers far greater payload capacity and interior volume than the Blue Origin led National Team moon lander and the Dynetics Alpaca moon lander.

The number of working SpaceX Starlink satellites keeps increasing with SpaceX Falcon 9 launch. As the first Starlink beta tests showed positive results, the US military is also considering using SpaceX Starlink Internet.

ULA's DELTA IV HEAVY NROL-44 mission still doesn't have a scheduled launch date.

Blue Origin is trying to convince the US Air Force to continue investing in the Blue Origin New Glenn rocket for future satellite launch missions.

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft successfully collected a significant amount of asteroid from Bennu.

NASA collaborates with the Department of Energy to develop a space-grade radio-isotope thermo-electric generator for the NASA Artemis moon program.

https://odysee.com/@2TheFuture:1/nasa-inspects-starship-moon-lander-fully:e

[Elderberry]

SpaceX will livestream Starship’s harrowing launch debut, says Elon Musk

TESLARATI  By Eric Ralph 11/2/2020

https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-starship-high-altitude-launch-debut-webcast/

CEO Elon Musk says that SpaceX will livestream Starship’s harrowing high-altitude launch and landing debut “warts and all,” offering a rare glimpse behind the scenes of a high-risk aerospace endeavor.

As of November 1st, Starship prototype serial number 8 (SN8) has just kicked off what will likely be the rocket’s last round of ground tests. If it passes those tests, including cryogenic proofing and at least one more triple-Raptor static fire, the path will be clear for SN8’s first high-altitude launch attempt. Slightly downgraded from an apogee of 20 km to 15 km, the massive steel rocket will attempt to fly more than 30% higher than modern passenger jets before quite literally free-falling almost all the way back to earth.

The test flight will be about as bizarre – if not weirder – than it already sounds and, as Musk has lately been working overtime to convey, such uncharted terrain that almost anything could happen.

                Sure, although it might be quite a short livestream! Lot can go wrong, but we’ll provide video, warts & all. You will see every frame that we do.