Posted on 12/09/2020 3:16:07 PM PST by Enlightened1
Low head pressure. Determined and fixable.
Must has to be very pleased with this test.
Amazing take off, powered to vertical for free fall to Earth.
Engine firing and gimbal back to vertical for landing.
Landing pad target was perfect.
Not enough thrust for soft landing.
Musk is happy. Bezos is not.
Is Kamala even going to allow these testosterone tests anymore?
I gotta buy stock in a body bag company.
Elon’s future “successes” are gonna have a high casualty rate.
Interesting take Elon has on developing space travel.
NASA’s approach was to front load all engineering. Failures were very costly and set programs back immensely.
Elon has a learn as you go philosophy. Everything is being worked in a massively parallel way. If you look at development of the Starship, it’s strewn with wreckage of test attempts. He even switched material for the rocket from composite plastic to stainless steel mid way through.
The important thing is that it works when it needs to. Time will tell.
He has gotten to this point using a lot less money than the traditional method. And he has the advantage of developed computer technology to work all the systems, and record in detail all the failures, for instant learning.
It was a success. They expected to lose it. the SN 9 is complete and ready for the next launch. Amazing footage. Watch the whole flight
That did do pretty well. But you can see at altitude around T +01.40 where the one engine flamed out, and apparently the unlit gas filled the lower chamber enough to catch things on fire when gas buildup reached the lit remaining two engines several seconds later. They were kind of lucky if there wasn’t any control wiring for the engine directional actuators that didn’t burn through that high up, otherwise that could have landed nearly anywhere if the engines locked in hard turn position.
It was heading to landing pad too fast. Looked like the braking rocket didn’t fire soon enough.
But amazing technology, they will get it fixed
Musk has the advantage of 60 years of test data to know what NOT to do.
That they got the spacecraft positioned for a vertical landing was a incredible achievement. A fix of the fuel pressure problem will give us a flawless landing in later tests. Later models will have more robust engines with more than enough power for a soft landing.
Just like auto racing:
Speed does NOT kill
It is the sudden stop that gets you.
Just like auto racing:
Speed does NOT kill
It is the sudden stop that gets you.
As my law school prof said, “You learn more from your mistakes than your successes.”
On the Richter scale? :)
Sure looked late to me. I imagined a longer burn for the descent
It’ll buff right out.
Many Governments have blown up
They made the announcement before hand that this launch for for learning.
Expensive lesson but that’s the way it goes.
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