SpaceX Updates

[Boris_Badenov]

<font size="2"><font size="2">Inside the Dragon Pressure Vessel.</font> </font> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font color="#993300"><span class="body"><font size="2" color="#3366ff"><div align="center">. </div><div align="center">Never roll in the mud with a pig. You'll both get dirty & the pig likes it.</div></font></span></font> </div>

 

[Swampcat]

<p><strong><font color="#990099">SpaceX Falcon 9 full mission duration test firing</font></strong></p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="3" color="#ff9900"><p><font size="1" color="#993300"><strong><em>------------------------------------------------------------------- </em></strong></font></p><p><font size="1" color="#993300"><strong><em>"I hold it that a little rebellion now and then is a good thing, and as necessary in the political world as storms in the physical. Unsuccessful rebellions, indeed, generally establish the encroachments on the rights of the people which have produced them. An observation of this truth should render honest republican governors so mild in their punishment of rebellions as not to discourage them too much. It is a medicine necessary for the sound health of government."</em></strong></font></p><p><font size="1" color="#993300"><strong>Thomas Jefferson</strong></font></p></font> </div>

 

[docm]

<td class="alt2" width="175" style="border-right:1px;border-top:0px;border-left:1px;border-bottom:0px">&nbsp;

 

[MeteorWayne]

<p class="style12"><strong>Significant Milestone Achieved as SpaceX Prepares to Demonstrate U.S. Transport to the International Space Station</strong></p><span class="style18"><span class="style19"><span class="style11"><strong>Hawthorne, CA - November 23, 2008 </strong>&ndash; Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) successfully conducted a full mission-length firing of its Falcon 9 launch vehicle's first stage at its McGregor Test Facility in Texas, on November 22. For the static test firing, the first stage remains firmly secured to the massive vertical test stand, where it fired for 178 seconds or nearly three minutes &ndash; simulating the climb of the giant rocket from the surface of the Earth towards orbit.</span></span></span><span class="style18"> <p class="style3">At full power, the rocket generated 855,000 pounds of force at sea level. In vacuum, the thrust increases to approximately one million pounds or four times the maximum thrust of a 747 aircraft. The test consumed over half a million pounds of propellant. All nine engines fired for 160 seconds, then two engines were shut down to limit the acceleration and the remaining seven engines continued firing for 18 more seconds, as would occur in a typical climb to orbit.</p><p class="style3">The test firing validated the design of SpaceX's use of nine engines on the first stage, as well as the ability to shut down engines without affecting the functioning of the remaining engines. This demonstrates the ability of Falcon 9 to lose engines in flight and still complete its mission successfully, much as a commercial airliner is designed to be safe in the event of an engine loss. Like an airliner, the Falcon 9 engines are enclosed in a protective sheath that ensures a fire or destructive loss of an engine doesn't affect the rest of the vehicle.</p><p class="style3">The Falcon 9 will be the first vehicle since the Saturn V and Saturn 1 to have the ability to lose any engine/motor and still be able to complete its mission without loss of crew or spacecraft. Engine out reliability proved crucial to mission success on two of the Saturn V flights. </p><p class="style3">"In the past month, we performed significant upgrades to the test stand and flame trench in preparation for this test," said Tom Mueller, Vice President of Propulsion for SpaceX. "We added the flight base heat shields around the engines to protect the bottom of the rocket from the prolonged blast of heat and vibration."</p><p class="style3">"The full mission-length test firing clears the highest hurdle for the Falcon 9 first stage before launch," said Elon Musk, CEO and CTO of SpaceX. "In the next few months, we will have the first Falcon 9 flight vehicle on its launch pad at Cape Canaveral, preparing for lift-off in 2009."</p></span> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#000080"><em><font color="#000000">But the Krell forgot one thing John. Monsters. Monsters from the Id.</font></em> </font></p><p><font color="#000080">I really, really, really, really miss the "first unread post" function</font><font color="#000080"> </font></p> </div>

 

[windnwar]

<p>OMG! I'm dying laughing here reading the comments of the surrounding neighborhoods. The sky is falling, we're about to be nuked! hahaha </p><p>Sounds like it was a hell of a light show, I wish I could have seen it. Congrats SpaceX on the successful test firing! </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font size="2" color="#0000ff">""Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former." --Albert Einstein"</font></p> </div>

 

[Swampcat]

<p>Hey, MW and docm, I guess we all got our e-mails from SpaceX at about the same time <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/content/scripts/tinymce/plugins/emotions/images/smiley-laughing.gif" border="0" alt="Laughing" title="Laughing" />&nbsp;.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong><font color="#990099">Here's a link to a NASAWatch.com article</font></strong> with a letter from Mr. Musk in response to the local residents' comments.</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="3" color="#ff9900"><p><font size="1" color="#993300"><strong><em>------------------------------------------------------------------- </em></strong></font></p><p><font size="1" color="#993300"><strong><em>"I hold it that a little rebellion now and then is a good thing, and as necessary in the political world as storms in the physical. Unsuccessful rebellions, indeed, generally establish the encroachments on the rights of the people which have produced them. An observation of this truth should render honest republican governors so mild in their punishment of rebellions as not to discourage them too much. It is a medicine necessary for the sound health of government."</em></strong></font></p><p><font size="1" color="#993300"><strong>Thomas Jefferson</strong></font></p></font> </div>

 

[Boris_Badenov]

<p><font size="2">One of the local comments.<br /><img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/11/12/db2e0096-fb48-4adc-8c31-538af80e65f7.Medium.gif" alt="" /><br /></font></p><p><font size="2" color="#0000ff">"I live in Valley Mills, just taking the last steak off the grill. Space-X shook the T-Bone off the grill hit my dog on the head, he thought I smacked him, he bit my ankle. My wife just getting into our water bed shook up a huge wave, threw her out of bed. She blamed it all on me. Milk in frig.is now butter-milk, the cats,will not leave the kitchen. My son couldn&rsquo;t hear his stereo, cranked it up, blew the windows out of the neighbors house. Guess I&rsquo;ll be replacing them on Sunday. It was a great light show!"</font></p><p><span class="comments-post"><font size="2" color="#0000ff">Posted by: Frapster at November 24, 2008 3:51 AM</font></span> </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font color="#993300"><span class="body"><font size="2" color="#3366ff"><div align="center">. </div><div align="center">Never roll in the mud with a pig. You'll both get dirty & the pig likes it.</div></font></span></font> </div>

 

[docm]

Just got a pic of the business end of the Falcon 9 that also shows the blast blankets.<br /><br />Anyone got some brats? <img class="inlineimg" src="http://forums.murc.ws/images/smilies/wink.gif" border="0" alt="" title="Wink" /><br /><br /><img style="width:1166px;height:852px" src="http://digitalvideo.8m.net/spacex/f9enginesbig.jpg" border="0" alt="" /> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[tampaDreamer]

<p>I am getting so psyched about SpaceX.&nbsp; I just need a million bucks and assurances that Bigelow Orbit Suites has room service.</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[Boris_Badenov]

<p><font size="2">SpaceX has introduced a new opening page on their website.</font></p><font size="2"><p><font size="2">Falcon 9 Countdown to the Cape</font>&nbsp;</p></font> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font color="#993300"><span class="body"><font size="2" color="#3366ff"><div align="center">. </div><div align="center">Never roll in the mud with a pig. You'll both get dirty & the pig likes it.</div></font></span></font> </div>

 

[Boris_Badenov]

<p><font size="2"><font size="2">2008 Von Braun Symposium</font>&nbsp; </font></p><p><font size="2">This is an extremely informative PDF concerning Dragon & it's capabilities. One nugget I dug out of this is, Dragon is only a year from Crew Capability after funding for COTS-D!!! WOO-HOO!!! IIRC, Dragon only needs a Launch Escape System to qualify it for crew. If that is the case, maybe another entity will make the nessesary investment even if NASA doesn't. Cough (Bigelow) cough.</font></p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font color="#993300"><span class="body"><font size="2" color="#3366ff"><div align="center">. </div><div align="center">Never roll in the mud with a pig. You'll both get dirty & the pig likes it.</div></font></span></font> </div>

 

[docm]

<p><br /><img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/3/10/73ad0146-8c6c-40e0-8a82-a58e97de0985.Medium.jpg" alt="" /><br />DragonLab qualification unit</p><p>Link....</p><h1 class="sIFR-replaced"><span class="sIFR-alternate">SpaceX Adds Two DragonLab&trade; Missions to Manifest</span></h1><div class="hr1"><hr /><br /><strong>Demand from DragonLab Workshop Leads to New Business for Private Spaceflight Company</strong> </div><p>HAWTHORNE, CA &ndash; December 1, 2008 &ndash; Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) announces the addition of two DragonLab missions to its manifest as a result of demand from a successful workshop held at SpaceX headquarters on November 6 to introduce the new DragonLab product. The first two flights are scheduled for 2010 and 2011 respectively from the SpaceX Falcon 9 launch site at Complex 40, Cape Canaveral, Florida. SpaceX is currently working contractual arrangements with multiple prospective customers. </p><p align="justify">DragonLab is a free-flying, reusable spacecraft capable of hosting pressurized and unpressurized payloads to and from space. It is the newest commercial offering from SpaceX. DragonLab launches to orbit aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle. </p><p align="justify">DragonLab provides a platform for in-space experimentation, including recovery of pressurized and some unpressurized payloads, as well as deployment of small spacecraft. As a complete system, DragonLab provides for all aspects of operation: propulsion, power, thermal control, environmental control, avionics, communications, thermal protection, flight software, guidance, navigation and control, entry, descent and landing and recovery. </p><p align="justify">&ldquo;The response to our DragonLab rollout has been absolutely astounding,&rdquo; said Max Vozoff, Product Manager for Dragon and DragonLab. &ldquo;Our workshop was at full capacity and we even had to turn away qualified people. With the U.S. Space Shuttle retiring in two years, clearly there is great demand from principal investigators, companies and institutions looking for ways to fly payloads in space and return them to Earth,&rdquo; said Vozoff. &ldquo;We are adding these missions to our SpaceX manifest to provide firm launch dates for users to work toward. Definitely one mission won't be enough to meet the large demand.&rdquo; </p><p align="justify">Attending the November 6 SpaceX DragonLab workshop were representatives from six NASA centers, NASA headquarters, the Department of Defense, university research departments and commercial aerospace companies. Attendees discussed their needs for using DragonLab for materials research, life sciences, biotech, radiation effects, thermal protection system validation, and robotic spacecraft servicing applications. In addition, attendees toured the 550,000 square-foot SpaceX headquarters and manufacturing facility, viewing the Dragon spacecraft Qualification structure (just prior to its shipment to Texas for structural testing); heat shield material production and samples; the qualification and first flight Falcon 9 first stages; Merlin engines and other propulsion components; the transporter-erector and other launch pad systems being prepared for shipment to Cape Canaveral for the Falcon 9's arrival at its launch site by year end. </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[Boris_Badenov]

<font size="2"><font size="2">FALCON 9 PROGRESS UPDATE</font></font> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font color="#993300"><span class="body"><font size="2" color="#3366ff"><div align="center">. </div><div align="center">Never roll in the mud with a pig. You'll both get dirty & the pig likes it.</div></font></span></font> </div>

 

[dragon04]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>FALCON 9 PROGRESS UPDATE <br /> Posted by boris1961</DIV></p><p>In the past, I've been HIGHLY skeptical and critical of SpaceX. Maybe in the not too distant future, it'll be hard not to put on a skirt and grab my pom poms.&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Not that you cared to know any of that. </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <em>"2012.. Year of the Dragon!! Get on the Dragon Wagon!".</em> </div>

 

[docm]

<p><em><strong>That</strong></em> is&nbsp;a sight&nbsp;I'd drag the studio view camera wherever to shoot <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/content/scripts/tinymce/plugins/emotions/images/smiley-wink.gif" border="0" alt="Wink" title="Wink" /></p><p>Welcome back Dragon....missed 'ya <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/13/10/5d516319-a25e-42a7-8a36-bb018e36a895.Medium.gif" alt="" /></p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[vulture4]

Most of these payloads are directly or indirectly US government funded. However it certainly suggests that not everyone is bored with LEO.

 

[Boris_Badenov]

<font size="2"><font size="2">Kwajalein Atoll</font></font> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font color="#993300"><span class="body"><font size="2" color="#3366ff"><div align="center">. </div><div align="center">Never roll in the mud with a pig. You'll both get dirty & the pig likes it.</div></font></span></font> </div>

 

[mr_mark]

Boris, thanks for the updates. Love to see the new pics on the Spacex site of Falcon 9 coming together. Hope they show a pic&nbsp;of the finished 2nd stage with shell casing. Spacex is the future of US space. At&nbsp;a recent forum, they talked of some&nbsp;sort of lunar landing by 2015. With Falcon 9 ready to go, there will be nothing to stop them.

 

[docm]

<p>Draco - Dragon's thrusters - tested (with video)</p><p>Link....</p><p><a href="http://spacex.com/multimedia/videos.php?id=33">Video....</p></a><h1 class="sIFR-replaced"><span class="sIFR-alternate">SpaceX Draco Thruster Performs Long-Duration Firing and Restart</span></h1><div class="hr1"><hr /><br /><strong>Small rocket engines to provide precise control of Dragon spacecraft as it approaches the International Space Station</strong> </div><p>HAWTHORNE, CA &ndash; December 9, 2008 &ndash; Just days after the successful full mission-length test firing of the nine-engine first stage of <br />Falcon 9, Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) marked another significant advance with the performance of its smallest rocket engine, Draco. Known as a &ldquo;thruster,&rdquo; the new engine fired continuously for ten minutes in a specially constructed vacuum test chamber that simulates the space environment. After a ten-minute thermal soak period, Draco was restarted for an additional minute, simulating its typical use in space. </p><p align="left">Performed at the SpaceX Texas Test Facility outside McGregor, this marks the longest firing of the Draco thruster, as well as the longest test on the new vacuum test stand, built by SpaceX and first put into operation in March 2008. </p><p align="left">&ldquo;Draco performed perfectly during the entire test, with expected temperatures and excellent performance,&rdquo; said David Giger, Propulsion Manager, SpaceX. &ldquo;We also broke the SpaceX record for longest continuous burn previously held by Kestrel, the Falcon 1 second stage engine.&rdquo; </p><p align="left">SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft uses a total of 18 Draco thrusters for maneuvering, attitude control, and to initiate the capsule's return to Earth. </p><p align="left">&ldquo;The Draco engines are as important to Dragon as the large Merlin engines are to Falcon 9,&rdquo; said Tom Mueller, VP Propulsion, SpaceX. &ldquo;They will perform essential maneuvers as the SpaceX Dragon approaches and berths with the International Space Station (ISS) to provide delivery of cargo, and eventually crew transport to and from Station.&rdquo; </p><p align="left">The SpaceX-developed Draco thruster generates up to 90 pounds (400 Newtons) of force using monomethyl hydrazine as a fuel and nitrogen tetroxide as an oxidizer &ndash; the same orbital maneuvering propellants used by the Space Shuttle. These storable propellants have very long on-orbit lifetimes, providing the option for the Dragon spacecraft to remain berthed at the ISS for a year or more, ready to serve as an emergency &ldquo;lifeboat&rdquo; if necessary. </p><p align="left">The first Dragon spacecraft is scheduled for flight in 2009 aboard a Falcon 9 rocket from the SpaceX launch site at Complex 40, Cape Canaveral, Florida. </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[Boris_Badenov]

<font size="2"><font size="2">New updates, new pix.</font></font> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font color="#993300"><span class="body"><font size="2" color="#3366ff"><div align="center">. </div><div align="center">Never roll in the mud with a pig. You'll both get dirty & the pig likes it.</div></font></span></font> </div>

 

[nimbus]

<p>Pardon the stupid question but.. Is that electricity, or fire, after shutdown?</p><p>http://spacex.com/multimedia/videos.php?id=11</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[Boris_Badenov]

Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Pardon the stupid question but.. Is that electricity, or fire, after shutdown?http://spacex.com/multimedia/videos.php?id=11 <br />Posted by nimbus</DIV><br /><br /><font size="2">If you're talking about inside & around the edge of the engine bell it's definitely flame.</font> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font color="#993300"><span class="body"><font size="2" color="#3366ff"><div align="center">. </div><div align="center">Never roll in the mud with a pig. You'll both get dirty & the pig likes it.</div></font></span></font> </div>

 

[nimbus]

<p>I mean the flickering bolts, only around the bell's rim, not inside it (as far as I can see).. It ends up slowing down into flames, but I dont know enough physics to even guess if it's electric discharges and/or fire. &nbsp;- &nbsp;Watched it again and it does crawl inside a bit. &nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;Thanks.&nbsp;</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[Boris_Badenov]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>I mean the flickering bolts, only around the bell's rim, not inside it (as far as I can see).. It ends up slowing down into flames, but I dont know enough physics to even guess if it's electric discharges and/or fire. &nbsp;- &nbsp;Watched it again and it does crawl inside a bit. &nbsp;&nbsp;Thanks.&nbsp; <br />Posted by nimbus</DIV></p><p><font size="2">I've got a pretty big monitor & when I put it on full screen the engine bell is about the size of my fist. It's jumping around & spinning in the edge of the bell, but it's definitely flame.<br /></font></p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font color="#993300"><span class="body"><font size="2" color="#3366ff"><div align="center">. </div><div align="center">Never roll in the mud with a pig. You'll both get dirty & the pig likes it.</div></font></span></font> </div>

 

[mr_mark]

I found this to be&nbsp;very interesting. Maybe plans for the moon are not so far off. http://www.spacex.com/FalconLunarCapabilityGuide.pd