SpaceX Tuesday...

[Beati Dogu]

They land Falcon 9 boosters on a completely clear pad or ship though. There's no tower or transporter erector in the way for that.

[loudlashadjuster]

Yeah, and one duff landing doesn't just wreck your expensive rocket, but your very expensive tower and supporting infrastructure too.

[Beati Dogu]

It's all very Thunderbird 3:

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

[MartG]

Beati Dogu said:

It's all very Thunderbird 3:

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

As an SF author once pointed out*, it's very difficult to land a spacecraft in a silo you are busy filling with exhaust gases

• William F Temple in Martin Magnus on Venus

[Brother D]

loudlashadjuster said:

Yeah, and one duff landing doesn't just wreck your expensive rocket, but your very expensive tower and supporting infrastructure too.

Why would you land back at the tower vs a pad with the moving capture device a few 100 meters away?

[annodomini2]

Brother D said:

loudlashadjuster said:

Yeah, and one duff landing doesn't just wreck your expensive rocket, but your very expensive tower and supporting infrastructure too.

Why would you land back at the tower vs a pad with the moving capture device a few 100 meters away?

Rapid turnaround basically

Pad would probably have to be specially designed to support of course.

Maybe have the tower on rails to move it away from the landing rocket.

[eharding]

annodomini2 said:

Brother D said:

loudlashadjuster said:

Yeah, and one duff landing doesn't just wreck your expensive rocket, but your very expensive tower and supporting infrastructure too.

Why would you land back at the tower vs a pad with the moving capture device a few 100 meters away?

Rapid turnaround basically

Pad would probably have to be specially designed to support of course.

Maybe have the tower on rails to move it away from the landing rocket.

To be fully Gerry Anderson compliant, the launch tower would need to descend into a 150m deep silo next to the launch / landing pad to protect it from rocket blast or RUD chunks as the superheavy booster returns. Extra Anderson points would be awarded for a subterranean hanger for Starship vehicles next to the launch tower silo, so that the tower could pick one up whilst being raised, pivot and replace it on top of the booster.
.

[Beati Dogu]

The Crew-1 Dragon capsule has been mated up to the reset of the stack now.

The NASA worm logo is on the upper stage this time:



The B1061 booster and completed stack:



Used boosters alongside. Seems to be (from left to right):

B1051 (6 flights - Including the unmanned Crew Dragon Demo-1),
B1049 (6 flights),
B1061 with Dragon (new) on the transporter erector.
B1058 (3 flights - including the manned Crew Dragon Demo-2)

[craig_m67]

Perhaps he no longer needs the launch tower?
Just land it on a flat surface (moon), refuel if needed and take off again

What’s the launchpad/mount/tower do anyway?

Does starship use locking clamps for launch, or is that just falcon?
(or am I completely wrong/off base)

Edited by craig_m67 on Tuesday 10th November 06:09

[Eric Mc]

Launch towers provide a number of functions such as -

allowing propellant hoses and electrical umbilicals to be attached properly to the correct part of the rocket

allow the withdrawal of these hoses and umbilicals to be disconnected and retracted at precisely the right moment

support the rocket when it is sitting on the pad. A tall vertical rocket is quite vulnerable once it is erected on the pad where it can be positioned for over a month on occasions

the tower allows technicians access to different levels of the rocket

for a manned rocket, the tower provides ingress and egress capability for the crew

[Beati Dogu]

The launch pad is going to need hold down clamps as well. It ensures the engines are up to speed and working normally before the computer releases it.

Same reason aircraft spool up their engines at the end of the runway and only release the brakes once they are happy everything is OK.

[GTO-3R]

To make landing the booster back on the launch mount even trickier, it's going to be done at sea isn't it when it's all up and running due to noise?

[annodomini2]

Eric Mc said:

Launch towers provide a number of functions such as -

allowing propellant hoses and electrical umbilicals to be attached properly to the correct part of the rocket

allow the withdrawal of these hoses and umbilicals to be disconnected and retracted at precisely the right moment

support the rocket when it is sitting on the pad. A tall vertical rocket is quite vulnerable once it is erected on the pad where it can be positioned for over a month on occasions

the tower allows technicians access to different levels of the rocket

for a manned rocket, the tower provides ingress and egress capability for the crew

Starship fuelling will be from underneath, the fueling hoses are attached to the stand.

Theoretically there should be no umbilical.

Still need the capability for people to access the rocket.

[CraigyMc]

Brother D said:

loudlashadjuster said:

Yeah, and one duff landing doesn't just wreck your expensive rocket, but your very expensive tower and supporting infrastructure too.

Why would you land back at the tower vs a pad with the moving capture device a few 100 meters away?

Performance.
If you can land on a plinth you can dispense with the weight of the landing legs and the mechanisms that move them - all that stuff can be on the ground.

[Beati Dogu]

It's going to need some sort of shock absorption / dampening system when it lands.

The landing pad could have arms that swing up and stabilise the booster as soon as it touches down. Much like the little stabilisation arms Soyuz uses, as shown below - Just in reverse.





Here's the Soyuz's folding access tower in action as well:



One of them has a lift to take crew and personnel up to the top.

Edited by Beati Dogu on Tuesday 10th November 15:16

[MartG]

[julian64]

FurtiveFreddy said:

Beati Dogu said:

Here's a nice animation of Starship, complete with gimbaling sea-level Raptor engines.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1mAWWBMMNA&fe...

That's beautiful!

somewhat improbable to call it the heart of gold though.

[98elise]

julian64 said:

FurtiveFreddy said:

Beati Dogu said:

Here's a nice animation of Starship, complete with gimbaling sea-level Raptor engines.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1mAWWBMMNA&fe...

That's beautiful!

somewhat improbable to call it the heart of gold though.

Infinitely

[JeremyH5]

98elise said:

julian64 said:

FurtiveFreddy said:

Beati Dogu said:

Here's a nice animation of Starship, complete with gimbaling sea-level Raptor engines.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1mAWWBMMNA&fe...

That's beautiful!

somewhat improbable to call it the heart of gold though.

Infinitely

Does this suggest that maybe a sun dive with loud rock music is planned?

[Beati Dogu]

They damn well better do !