SpaceX Tuesday...
Discussion
RobDickinson said:
"An Airbus A380 carries up to 271 tons of fuel. BFR's takeoff weight is quoted as 4400 tons - 2nd stage dry mass is 85 tons, payload 150 tons, propellant 1100 tons; this leaves 3065 tons for the fully-fueled first stage - assuming an optimistic propellant fraction of 95%, this gives another 2900 tons of propellant, for a total of 4000 tons. At the ratio listed in the propellant numbers for second stage, this comes out to 900 tons of methane and 3100 tons of oxygen. Jet-A costs a dollar per kg. Google says natural gas cost for electricity producers is $2.99 per thousand cubic feet - there's about 19.45kg of methane in there unless my math is off, so the lower bound cost for methane is about 15 cents a kilogram, or 150 dollars a ton; let's say purifying and liquefying it will double the cost. Top Google search result for liquid oxygen cost gives an old (2001) NASA figure of 16 cents a kilogram, but whatever, let's go with that. $464k for oxygen and $270k for methane to fuel a BFR compared to $270k to fuel an A380."
BFR and A380 have about the same volume/capacity.
And personally i dont think you would mistake a spacex BFR stage 2 for a small icbm nuke.. Especially with published schedules etc
RobBFR and A380 have about the same volume/capacity.
And personally i dont think you would mistake a spacex BFR stage 2 for a small icbm nuke.. Especially with published schedules etc
When you say BFR and A380 have the same capacity, is this just fuel you are talking about or also payload?
It depends. Rain can damage rockets as they accelerate through the droplets. Rain always stopped Shuttle launches because the tiles were very sensitive to water droplet damage.
There is also the issue of a rocket generating its own lightning discharge as it flies through cloud. That's what happened with Apollo 12.
There is also the issue of a rocket generating its own lightning discharge as it flies through cloud. That's what happened with Apollo 12.
RobDickinson said:
This won't be flying through contested air space..
It'll only be in air space of the launching and landing countries, the rest of the time it'll be in orbit.
Shooting down something in orbit is pretty f
kin hard only the USA and probably Russia could at the moment and it wouldn't happen by accident
Didn't China knock down one of their own satellites too?It'll only be in air space of the launching and landing countries, the rest of the time it'll be in orbit.
Shooting down something in orbit is pretty f
kin hard only the USA and probably Russia could at the moment and it wouldn't happen by accident Flooble said:
RobDickinson said:
This won't be flying through contested air space..
It'll only be in air space of the launching and landing countries, the rest of the time it'll be in orbit.
Shooting down something in orbit is pretty fkin hard only the USA and probably Russia could at the moment and it wouldn't happen by accident
Didn't China knock down one of their own satellites too?It'll only be in air space of the launching and landing countries, the rest of the time it'll be in orbit.
Shooting down something in orbit is pretty f
kin hard only the USA and probably Russia could at the moment and it wouldn't happen by accident RobDickinson said:
Efbe said:
Rob
When you say BFR and A380 have the same capacity, is this just fuel you are talking about or also payload?
Musk said it had the same internal volume. When you say BFR and A380 have the same capacity, is this just fuel you are talking about or also payload?
Also said 150 tons to Leo. Not sure how that compares to an A380 Leo capacity..
If so, I think that's pretty good really.
Efbe said:
ok, so by your calcs, about 4x more expensive for rocket over plane?
If so, I think that's pretty good really.
On fuel..If so, I think that's pretty good really.
SpaceX would need to build its own launch/landing fuel/terminal infrastructure - not shared with others
I'm pretty sure such a large orbital rocket would cost more to build and certify than an A380 ($400 million)?
Then you have to deal with 3g launches and weightlessness..
Wonder what the turnaround time is? I guess typical A380 would do at most 2 flights a day?
Beati Dogu said:
LivingTheDream said:
Attempting 2 launches and landings in 48 hrs this weekend
Should be fun. They did the same thing successfully in June.Oct. 7 Falcon 9 • SES 11/EchoStar 105
Launch window: 2253-0053 GMT (6:53-8:53 p.m. EDT)
Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the SES-11/EchoStar 105 hybrid communications satellite to replace the AMC-15 and AMC-18 satellites. As SES-11, the spacecraft’s C-band capacity will provide replacement capacity for SES of Luxembourg for AMC-18. EchoStar Corp. of Englewood, Colorado, will market the Ku-Band transponder capacity, with coverage of the 50 U.S. states, the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean, as EchoStar 105, replacing AMC-15. The Falcon 9 rocket will launch with a previously-flown first stage. Delayed from October, November, July and Sept. 27. [Sept. 22]
Oct. 9 Falcon 9 • Iridium Next 21-30
Launch time: 1237 GMT (8:37 a.m. EDT; 5:37 a.m. PDT)
Launch site: SLC-4E, Vandenberg Air Force Base, California
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch 10 satellites for the Iridium next mobile communications fleet. Delayed from October, December, April, August, Sept. 30 and Oct. 4. [Sept. 26]
Eric Mc said:
RobDickinson said:
As Arthur C Clarke once said of such forms of transport, half the time the toilets will be out of order and the other half the toilets will be inaccessible.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4KR4-TN-Yo
LivingTheDream said:
Beati Dogu said:
LivingTheDream said:
Attempting 2 launches and landings in 48 hrs this weekend
Should be fun. They did the same thing successfully in June.Oct. 7 Falcon 9 • SES 11/EchoStar 105
Launch window: 2253-0053 GMT (6:53-8:53 p.m. EDT)
Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the SES-11/EchoStar 105 hybrid communications satellite to replace the AMC-15 and AMC-18 satellites. As SES-11, the spacecraft’s C-band capacity will provide replacement capacity for SES of Luxembourg for AMC-18. EchoStar Corp. of Englewood, Colorado, will market the Ku-Band transponder capacity, with coverage of the 50 U.S. states, the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean, as EchoStar 105, replacing AMC-15. The Falcon 9 rocket will launch with a previously-flown first stage. Delayed from October, November, July and Sept. 27. [Sept. 22]
Oct. 9 Falcon 9 • Iridium Next 21-30
Launch time: 1237 GMT (8:37 a.m. EDT; 5:37 a.m. PDT)
Launch site: SLC-4E, Vandenberg Air Force Base, California
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch 10 satellites for the Iridium next mobile communications fleet. Delayed from October, December, April, August, Sept. 30 and Oct. 4. [Sept. 26]
The Falcon 9 at Vandenberg is vertical on the launchpad now. The weather is looking good for Monday's launch from 1.37 pm UK time.
Meanwhile they're still tinkering around with the Atlas V at Cape Canaveral, but hopefully they'll get that away on Monday too. It's a classified payload, so they're always cagey about launch times.
Meanwhile, on the pad next door on Wednesday, the Falcon 9 is likely to launch (probably from 10.53 pm UK time).
They've had the bonnet up on this rocket recently. It needed to some “minor engine rework” on this pre-flown rocket.
If SpaceX are successful, these will be launches number 14 and 15 so far this year, with the target of 20 in sight. Last year they managed 8 before the pad explosion in September screwed the pooch somewhat.
Meanwhile they're still tinkering around with the Atlas V at Cape Canaveral, but hopefully they'll get that away on Monday too. It's a classified payload, so they're always cagey about launch times.
Meanwhile, on the pad next door on Wednesday, the Falcon 9 is likely to launch (probably from 10.53 pm UK time).
They've had the bonnet up on this rocket recently. It needed to some “minor engine rework” on this pre-flown rocket.
If SpaceX are successful, these will be launches number 14 and 15 so far this year, with the target of 20 in sight. Last year they managed 8 before the pad explosion in September screwed the pooch somewhat.
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