Space - The Final Frontier

Bummer they didn't make the landing. It did look "closer to making it" but had the stability issue this time. Perhaps just due to high winds? There's not a lot of wiggle room trying to balance a rocket on a flame.
 
Walt34 said:
Bummer they didn't make the landing. It did look "closer to making it" but had the stability issue this time. Perhaps just due to high winds? There's not a lot of wiggle room trying to balance a rocket on a flame.
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Apparently there was a valve issue that was the main culprit.

Basically, the value took longer to respond ("stiction") than the control software expected leading to what we saw

I expect this problem will be fixed the next time. And we'll see how it goes on the next iteration.

http://aviationweek.com/space/spacex-checks-throttle-valve-after-flawed-falcon-9-recovery-attempt
 
Sooooo close, it really hurts to see it fail. Looks good at first (but fast!), then some tilt, correction, might get it..., then looks like over-correction.

But like some of the comments say, the fact that they came so close to landing on a ship in the middle of the ocean is just incredible. Hopefully, the economics works out that they can try try again until they get it.

-ERD50
 
I mentioned this game earlier, but Kerbel space program after being in public Beta for more than 4 years, finally went to version 1.0 today.

This game is played by Elon Musk, as well lots of folks at Nasa, JPL, and has been endorsed by NASA, and the ESA. Don't be put off by the cartoon graphics this is a serious simulation at the same time a lot of fun to play for anybody with interest in the space program.
 
Oh Oh..

The Russian supply vehicle is spinning out of control after being launched earlier today. This is the second re supply failure in under a year.

http://arstechnica.com/science/2015...pply-ship-malfunctions-tumbles-through-space/

""Right after it separated from the Soyuz booster’s third stage, an unspecified problem prevented Russian flight controllers from determining whether navigational antennas had deployed and whether fuel system manifolds had pressurized as planned,’ NASA wrote. The Russian flight crew extended Progress’ orbit time to try to salvage the mission and get the cargo ship back on track, but when they were unable to receive telemetry signals from parts of the system, they decided to postpone the scheduled docking with ISS indefinitely."

This has been a very reliable vehicle.
 
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Well, there's a device that produces a small force on a torsion gauge while in a vacuum chamber, and produces an interesting change on an interferometer when in a beam path. The effect may or may not be from what one researcher says is the underlying mechanism.

Beyond that, I'm not entirely sure that conservation of momentum is ready to be pitched out the window just yet. A bit more experimental work needs to be done.

neutrinos.png
 
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SpaceX Dragon Abort Test

SpaceX appears to have successfully run its first test of the Dragon 2's abort system. It produced some interesting photos to say the least.


SpaceX tests launch abort system - BBC News

The demonstration simulated what would happen to the crewship in the event of a rocket failure on the launch pad.
Wednesday's test was conducted at Cape Canaveral in Florida, and saw a test vehicle - carrying no humans, only a dummy - hurled skywards by a set of powerful in-built thrusters.
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Wow, that'd be a rockin' 'n rollin' ride for anyone in the capsule!
 
Here's another video of the Dragon 2 escape test. It has less time to wait until the launch and great video of the Dragon 2 maneuvering to get into a safe position.

 
Walt34 said:
Wow, that'd be a rockin' 'n rollin' ride for anyone in the capsule!
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Yes. It went upside down for a second or two. I wonder if that was expected?

Are we seeing a return to 'The Right Stuff' and 'Steely Eyed Missile Men/Women"?
 
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Chuckanut said:
Yes. It went upside down for a second or two. I wonder if that was expected?
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Looking at it from the outside it didn't look that violent but that's way different from being inside. The test dummy was heavily instrumented so they'll know in a while.
 
Walt34 said:
Looking at it from the outside it didn't look that violent but that's way different from being inside. The test dummy was heavily instrumented so they'll know in a while.
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No doubt it beats the heck out of sitting on top of an out of control rocket.
 
Greatest forces are probably riding the rocket motor up prior to separation from the "trunk". Those have to be designed to keep a person safe, but just barely.
 
Here's an article comparing the SpaceX Dragon 2 to NASA's Orion spacecraft. There are differences, but keep in mind that Orion is being developed for deep space missions, while the current Dragon 2 is aimed at near Earth orbit missions.

http://spacedevelopmentsteeringcommittee.org/deep-space-smackdown-dragon-2-vs-orion/

The key difference between the Dragon 2 and the Orion is reusability. Though NASA insists on a new Dragon 2 spacecraft on each NASA-sponsored flight, SpaceX has designed the Dragon 2 so it can be relaunched with little or no refurbishment between flights.1 Thus, SpaceX could use a second-hand Dragon 2 spacecraft for private industry missions to orbit and beyond for a low price since the spacecraft’s development and manufacturing costs will have already been paid. This could cut the cost of future space launches of humans into space by 90%. On the other hand there’s the ultra-expensive alternative, Lockheed Martin’s Orion. All of the Orion is designed to be thrown away after each flight.
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In my new book, the ISS astronauts need rescuing (this is in 2011), so Spacex does a hasty refit of the Dragon with seats and sends it up.

This documentary:


has a good review of the space shuttle program. It talks about the original concept of saving money with a reusable craft, but it turned out it was so expensive to turn the shuttle around, that it wasn't worth. Plus the 1/20 chance of dying.
 
Walt34 said:
Ha, that's what they want you to think. In reality it is the first outpost of the alien invasion that is coming....:D
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Yes, I know. working feverishly on my tin foil helmet as I type this...:D
 
I know I've said this before, but after actually seeing the town of Baikonur in Kazakhstan, it surprises me more that anything gets out of there without crashing!
 
SpaceX has completed another successful resupply mission to the ISS. Their Cargo Dragon both brought supplies to the ISS and returned items to earth. It is the only spacecraft capable of bringing a significant amount of equipment back to Earth.

In the meantime, the Russians appear to be having some problems. I hope they can get back to their traditional reliability.

Excite News - Failed launches cast shadow over Russian space program

[FONT=Verdana,Sans-serif]
Rogozin said that a recent investigation into the activities of the Khrunichev company, the manufacturer of the heavy-lift Proton booster rocket, revealed numerous instances of fraud, abuse of office and falsification of documents, resulting in economic damage of 9 billion rubles (more than $180 million).
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