NASA's 1st SLS Megarocket Core Loaded Onto Barge Ahead of Key Engine Test

[Admin]

The 212-foot-long (65 meters) SLS core stage rolled out of NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans Wednesday (Jan. 8) and was loaded onto a barge, agency officials announced.

NASA's 1st SLS Megarocket Core Loaded Onto Barge Ahead of Key Engine Test : Read more

 

[k-ho]

The fact that SLS is assembled in one state, travels to another state for testing and neither of those states is Florida shows why the old-school funding model is so expensive -- and so intractable. Michoud, Stennis, Huntsville, Houston, Kennedy. Congress spreads the pork everywhere.

 

[kwyzc]

It's great!

 

[lrobertsonbooks]

Unless the 1st stage is reusable, Boeing is 10 years behind SpaceX and can't hope to compete in the long run.

 

[Bruzote]

The fact that SLS is assembled in one state, travels to another state for testing and neither of those states is Florida shows why the old-school funding model is so expensive -- and so intractable. Michoud, Stennis, Huntsville, Houston, Kennedy. Congress spreads the pork everywhere.

Unless the 1st stage is reusable, Boeing is 10 years behind SpaceX and can't hope to compete in the long run.

That just means they can ask for additional funding or tax breaks funded by you and I! Corporate and upper middle class welfare is always OK, don't you know?

 

[TEAMSWITCHER]

Unless the 1st stage is reusable, Boeing is 10 years behind SpaceX and can't hope to compete in the long run.

I agree that reusability is a good thing, but... I don't think that Starship and BFR are the right direction. It's just too damn big. Every major accomplishment in Space Exploration has been achieved by limiting weight. The Lunar Module is a prime example, it got us to the surface of the Moon, because it wasn't a huge second stage of a rocket - it was a small excursion vehicle. Elon Musk is pursuing a dead end.. Like Howard Hughes, Starship/BFR will be a Stainless Steel Goose.

 

[East Memphis]

The Senate Launch System (SLS) is so over budget and behind the times that this monster should have been cancelled the moment a Falcon 9 was reused. I remember reading about the launch tower that costs $1B to rebuild, a money savings effort. Then, they need a SECOND launch tower because the one they just spent a billion on won't be usable except for ONE FLIGHT. Unbelievable. Now, they're going to throw away a full booster in this test. Don't forget the elaborate test stand that probably cost $500 million for a one off test. For just this money, the Falcon Heavy was developed, tested and flown throwing Elon't groovy car into Mars orbit. That's the way to test things.

The problem with NASA is it has become a jobs agency for fat cat in Washington and not an exploration program. NASA should stick to unmanned satellites and leave launchers to those who can actually do it.

 

[GeoXXX]

Unless the 1st stage is reusable, Boeing is 10 years behind SpaceX and can't hope to compete in the long run.

Reusability is quite an accomplishment but it has yet to be shown that it is actually more cost efficient.

 

[newtons_laws]

Reusability is quite an accomplishment but it has yet to be shown that it is actually more cost efficient.

Well if it is more cost efficient then that will start to be reflected in the launch costs charged by SpaceX to their customers becoming lower than that of their (non reusable) competitors - and I believe things are already starting to move in that direction, e.g https://fortune.com/2017/06/17/spacex-launch-cost-competition/