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SpaceX on track to double their 2017 launch rate. Source
Arguably version 6 of Falcon 9. There will be minor changes here and there but no major block changes going forward. Source 1 | Source 2
Falcon 9 Block V will be the mainstay of SpaceX's business and is expected to fly 300 or more times total. Source
Block V designed to fly 10 or more times with no refurbishment at all between flights. Scheduled maintenance after the 10th flight. Source
SpaceX intends to demonstrate flying the same booster twice within 24 hours as soon as next year. Recover booster -> retract legs -> go to hangar -> attach second stage -> attach payload -> go to pad -> fuel -> launch. Source
Hardest part of making Block V was human-rating it. Literally thousands of requirements to do so. Met or exceeded all requirements. Designed to be the most reliable rocket ever built. Source 1 | Source 2 | Source 3
Block V Merlin engines see an 8% thrust increase over Block IV. Thrust is now 190,000 lbf. SpaceX believes there is still more room to improve the Merlin engines - perhaps up to 10% more thrust and an improvement in ISP. Source 1 | Source 2
Block V has a lot of new added thermal protection. Black interstage, raceways, and landing legs don't need paint. Thermal protection composed of a material that is hydrophobic and therefore doesn't attract water. Source
Octaweb for Block V is much stronger. Better thermal protection on the inside. Each engine contained within a bay which should allow for an engine to have a "bad day" and not affect the other 8 engines. Thermal protection on the inside is to protect against an engine fire. Source 1 | Source 2 | Source 3
Landing legs are much easier to stow. Internal latch mechanism can be closed and opened with ease. New landing gear can be retracted via an actuator. Old landing gear took hours to retract. Source 1 | Source 2
Titanium grid fins are now standard on Block V and will be used going forward. Can withstand temperatures of 2000 degrees F. Source
There is active cooling on the titanium heat-shields at the base of the Block V. Source
Confidence in fairing recovery in future flights. Source
SpaceX will be gathering data about the re-entry experience of the second stage. They will try to transmit data to the Iridium constellation during re-entry. Source
SpaceX will be adding heat shields to the second stage until they can recover it. Question is payload penalty. Elon is confident that full reusability of the second stage is achievable. Source 1 | Source 2
Falcon 9 cost breakdown is roughly 60% booster, 20% second stage, 10% fairing, 10% for launch. Propellant is only $300,000 to $400,000. Source
Re-use of the entire vehicle could bring down launch cost by an order of magnitude. Source
Ironically B1046, this first Block V, needs to be taken apart after its first launch to confirm that Block V doesn't need to be taken apart after a launch. Won't fly again for a couple of months. Source
3rd and 4th flights of a given Block V booster should occur in late 2018. By late 2019 they should have cores reaching their 10th flight. Source
Elon is stressed about the first Block V launch. Getting a rocket that can re-fly 100 times is "crazy hard". Source
Boca Chica, Texas launch site will be dedicated to BFR launches. Source
SpaceX's inventory of Block V boosters expected to eventually reach 30 to 50 boosters, depending on the demand for brand new cores. Source
SpaceX has acted as a "forcing function" to drive down launch costs - China looking at reusable rockets. Source
Block IV flights probably could have been pushed to a 10 day increment but with Block V coming it was unnecessary. Source
Gigantic amount of research and testing went into creating the new COPVs for Block V. Most advanced pressure vessel ever developed by humanity. Source
Falcon 9 pricing is now $50 million for a flight-proven booster. $60 million for a brand new booster. Source 1 | Source 2
Elon loves NASA. Source
I know there are a bunch of cool SpaceX fans making apps to track launches. This app or feature of a current app could be like the app "Sleep Cycle" that tries to wake you up at the optimum time over a 1/2 hour period rather than a set time. The push notifications on current apps are cool but this would be taking it to the next level. Maybe it could be an ad-hoc in-app purchase to help fund it. I wouldn't mind chucking in a buck or two per launch that's at an awkward time for my timezone.
(I set my alarm an extra hour early this morning to witness the first Block V launch only to find out that the launch had been delayed around an hour to what would normally be the time I woke up. It was obviously eventually scrubbed and now I'm super tired haha).
Looking for some published statements by reputable space scientists, engineers, etc. from the early days of SpaceX saying that reusing launch vehicles would be impossible. Seem to recall an article where Elon tried to get a veteran rocket scientist to come on board but the guy told him it would never work.
Sooooo... with all the info out on the B5, do we know any more details on the dragon demo and crewed demo missions? Will they be launched in 2018, or is the date pushed back?
once the BFR starts to fly, there will be no need for the droneships anymore, and even if there was, they would be too small. so what's going to happen to them?
maybe somebody will buy them and turn them into his own boat for fishing? who knows!
Hey everyone. Together with WhatsUpToday (designer of the recent Saturn V set) we have created the ultimate SpaceX rocket collection, and it is up for support on LEGO ideas. It features both the Falcon heavy, the TEL (launch strongback) and the upcoming falcon 9 block V. Payloads are interchangeable and include the dragon 2 capsule, an ESA satellite and Elon Musk’s Cherry Red Tesla Roadster (star man included).
It is 1:110 scale, so it will fit with existing designs such as the Saturn V
[Vote now and help make this a real product!](ideas.lego.com/projects/7457e3ff-0397-42e1-b37d-fc54c3c651ad)
Inspired by the upcoming launch Block 5, I decided to make a SpaceX watch face for Android Wear (or Wear OS, as it's now called). There were already some SpaceX-themed faces available, but I didn't want a SpaceX theme: I wanted actual information about upcoming launches.
Here's what I came up with. The first two views are in "active" mode, when you recently tapped the screen. You alternate between these views by tapping the lower content (either the text or the logo). The third view is in "ambient" mode, when the watch is asleep.
If you want to install this yourself, fair warning: I didn't really make things user-friendly, and some design decisions were personal (in particular, the weather actually uses data from an external complication, so you'd need to configure that too). Also, if you want to add additional fields or change the formatting, you may need to learn a bit of Javascript and Lua.
To pull the data, I use a Tasker function which queries the fan-run SpaceX Data REST API. I then use WatchMaker to actually pull in that data and display it. To get this watch face, you'll need both those apps and then pull in my configuration stuff.
Links:
Tasker task: https://pastebin.com/BaB5iXi7
WatchMaker face: http://www.getwatchmaker.com/watch/sByIXuxGAM
Credits: I didn't originally design this watch face, I just adapted Circular by hardypart. And as mentioned, I use an API from Jack Meyer for the actual data.
Edit: Made some revisions to the scripts to improve handling of different blocks, Falcon 9 and Heavy, reused cores, and what to do when the "upcoming" launch is actually in the past. Although regarding that last part, automatic updates are a little slow, but I did verify that a manual refresh of the Tasker task and WatchMaker watch face works.
3 Launches this May, I am so hyped about the first Block 5 today, then we have on the 19th of May a Vandy launch with the prospect of using the new net to snag the fairing, Awesome. Yet for the first time I may miss the May 24th launch being 4.30am for me, this is a historic moment SpaceX cadence and such an early time to be awake may have finally pushed me to just wait to see the recorded launch instead of live!!! Go SpaceX.
https://www.inc.com/kevin-j-ryan/kimbal-musk-code-smart-ovens-affordable-sustainable-food.html
According to this article, Kimbal Musk's automatic ovens cook food as good as a Michelin chef, and it only requires an 18 year old to operate.
After reading this, I immediately realised its huge opportunities on Mars. BFR isn't going to have chefs (at least in the early days). Chances are that people on board will eat normal space food. With Kimbal's ovens, BFR just needs it own freezers. Once the ship lands on Mars, people can get easy access to decent food. (Well, they can also make a zero-g version but I doubt they will make it before lots of people fly.) The only problem is the amount of time food can be stored in the freezer, but this problem can probably be solved by cooling food to extremely low temperatures.
At this point, you might ask, "Why bother with high tech ovens when you have space food?" Yes, in theory they can use space food and never switch to cooked food. However, high quality cooked food has some advantages:
Conclution: I think they will expiriment with this on the 1st/2nd manned Mars trip. I can bet money on this.
Sidenote: Kimbal's shipping-container-grown fresh vegetables tech can also be used on Mars.
Simply put got into a discussion about the possibility and capability and can't find anything about if the Falcon 9 would have worked. Given when the book was written it makes sense why SpaceX wasn't in it, this is also ignoring the BFR.
I'm just curious as to if the Falcon 9 could have done it. Any idea if they could have fitted their capsule to it? Could the Dragon 1 or 2 fit the amount of supplies they were spending? Could it have made the rendezvous with the Hermes cycler with that payload?
Sadly I also haven't been able to find the payload weight of the capsule listed or other specific details. I guess it's possible that they weren't given in the movie or the book but it seems unlikely given how much research Andy put into it.
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