NASA selects SpaceX as its sole provider for a lunar lander

[dwarven]

Well in that case maybe Martians should have nukes because Earth is still overly aggressive in that scenario. Martian culture in The Expanse is superior to Earth culture so I'd side with Mars in that case.

The thing I've always wondered about that is how they could be so productive in such a harsh environment like Mars.

[Edge-]

Humanity can incrementally de-militarize before that point though. Eventually China, Russia, and the West wont want to hurt each other so we can downsize the military and nuclear arsenals.

We can't predict this future, especially given the current trajectories of all these countries. That's not even looking back at history, it's literally just current events.

It's weird how sometime we can predict the future, and sometimes we can't, but there never seem to be any rules around why that is.

[PC2]

We can't predict this future, especially given the current trajectories of all these countries. That's not even looking back at history, it's literally just current events.

It's weird how sometime we can predict the future, and sometimes we can't, but there never seem to be any rules around why that is.

Yeah so the future of humanity is always speculation. Humanity could become more militaristic and aggressive towards each other, or less, or we could stay the same. For me I'm optimistic though and my speculation is that places like China, Russia, and Iran will become more democratic and that the citizens will see that militaries are largely wasteful. All citizens of the world can then vote to incrementally downsize militaries in parallel as we resolve more conflicts between nations.

[cubby]

I honestly don't know why NASA would take either company seriously though. The list of problems with each submitted proposal (including Bezos asking for payment up-front and wanting to keep patents) was pretty lengthy (especially compared to SpaceX) and none of them are like, actually even launching rockets delivering anything into space. Like it or not, SpaceX appears to remain the most practical choice if NASA wants to actually get something done without it getting delayed a decade and doubling the budget.

At this point SpaceX is the clear front-runner, with no one else even in a figurative second place. SpaceX is launching rockets on a monthly basis, and the next-closest competitor hasn't put anything into LEO. I'm sure both Blue Origin and Virgin will achieve some kind of LEO capability, but so far they haven't. Moreover, as has been pointed out in this thread, the other applications either required a rocket to get there (lol) or asked for upfront requirements that weren't part of the RFP.

It will be exciting to see where we are in regards to the moon by 2030. I hope we have a base with permanent rotating occupancy and perhaps a Mars landing as well.

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Expanse, basically.

It was my understanding that even with several hundred nuclear munition detonations on Mars, there wouldn't be enough CO2 to "humanize" the atmosphere.

[PC2]

It was my understanding that even with several hundred nuclear munition detonations on Mars, there wouldn't be enough CO2 to "humanize" the atmosphere.

I think that's only from vaporizing the Martian ice caps. There's probably plenty of Oxygen and Carbon in the crust of the planet that could be released with future tech. For a safe Martian atmosphere I think Nitrogen is the hardest thing to find enough of.

[Nerraw]

and perhaps a Mars landing as well.

Barring some kind of catastrohpe, there will at the very least be an uncrewed Starship sitting on Mars by the end of this decade.

[Beazy]

It was my understanding that even with several hundred nuclear munition detonations on Mars, there wouldn't be enough CO2 to "humanize" the atmosphere.

Unless America finds out there is freedom juice below the surface. Then we can bring democracy to Mars and release all the CO2 we want, like we do now on earth.

[Nerraw]

Is there a place to see if a launch is scrubbed or not? I cant find it for the life of me. I have to watch a live stream video and wait for people to say "launch scrubbed".

I just follow a bunch of space people on twitter. Word spreads fast in that grouping. For the actual sources it's a mix of people on location getting updates about road closures and people following the FAA notifications.

Like this: https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/...25179770343438

[Beazy]

Like this: https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/...25179770343438

TY. I was watching to SpaceX and Elon twitter and they always wait for hours to post "scrubbed".

I hope it launches today and I hope they land it without blowing it up this time. *fingers crossed* !

[Nerraw]

TY. I was watching to SpaceX and Elon twitter and they always wait for hours to post "scrubbed".

I hope it launches today and I hope they land it without blowing it up this time. *fingers crossed* !

Technically, SN10 already landed without blowing up. It was the second time it lifted off that things went wrong.

[Beazy]

Technically, SN10 already landed without blowing up. It was the second time it lifted off that things went wrong.

Not going to lie, that was epic. Stuck the landing, and then we had a victory fireworks show!

Someday Ill work at SpaceX, It might be with a broom and a mop, but I'm going to freakin` work there.

[cubby]

Not going to lie, that was epic. Stuck the landing, and then we had a victory fireworks show!

Someday Ill work at SpaceX, It might be with a broom and a mop, but I'm going to freakin` work there.

I actually started looking at their postings as well. So many openings - but you have to live in Southern Cal or Texas.

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Live link to the SN15 launch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htnG_mABtSQ

[Nerraw]

Live link to the SN15 launch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htnG_mABtSQ

My hangout space of choice: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPNvB5ComFw

I love how many options there are, and how okay SpaceX are with all of this.

[cubby]

My hangout space of choice: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPNvB5ComFw

I love how many options there are, and how okay SpaceX are with all of this.

Same here - it's great.

Do we have a possible launch time today? I'm only seeing updates but nothing concrete.

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Bah - nvm. Listed on NASA site 12p-8p CDT.

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Barring some kind of catastrohpe, there will at the very least be an uncrewed Starship sitting on Mars by the end of this decade.

I think you're right - that will be so amazing.

[Nerraw]

Do we have a possible launch time today? I'm only seeing updates but nothing concrete.

Pad has just been cleared. Historically that means we could have a launch in the next hour or two.

[Ihavewaffles]

easy to be so dismissive, what if it falls over a city?...that could totally ruin a bunch of peoples afternoon...and just how DARE the world let ISS go to waste!


Pentagon says it’s tracking Chinese rocket debris making ‘uncontrolled reentry’ from orbit after space station launch.

https://www.rt.com/news/522920-penta...ocket-reentry/
5 May, 2021 03:19

The US military is tracking the remnants of a Chinese rocket as large pieces of the craft race back to Earth at thousands of miles per hour, making an uncontrolled reentry after the first launch for Beijing’s new space station.

The 18th Space Control Squadron of the US Space Force will plot the Long March 5B rocket’s trajectory as it reenters the atmosphere, Pentagon spokesman Mike Howard said in a statement on Tuesday, noting that its exact path won’t be known for several days.

“US Space Command is aware of and tracking the location of the Chinese Long March 5B in space, but its exact entry point into the Earth’s atmosphere cannot be pinpointed until within hours of its reentry,” he said, suggesting that could come by May 8.

In the meantime, the spokesman said the squadron would provide daily updates on the rocket and its location through a special website.

The craft was sent into orbit late last month, embarking on an 18-month project to construct China’s first-ever space station. The successful April 30 launch put the station’s first module – dubbed Tianhe, or “Harmony of the Heavens” – into low Earth orbit, set to be joined by two smaller modules, Wentian (“Quest for the Heavens”) and Mengtian (“Dreaming of the Heavens”). While the 22-ton rocket stage detached from the Tianhe module as intended, it was unable to maneuver into a safe deorbiting path for a controlled reentry.

The uncertain trajectory of the rocket was reported within hours of the launch, though the Pentagon only acknowledged the matter on Tuesday, as did Russia’s space agency Roscosmos, which said it is tracking the rocket and expects the craft to return to Earth sometime around May 8. The EU’s Space Surveillance and Tracking network also said it is monitoring the situation.

While a number of corporate media outlets in the US reported the story in dire tones, with both Forbes and CNN warning of an “out-of-control Chinese rocket,” Harvard University astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell insists the craft is no cause for alarm, telling CNN it does not spell “the end of days.”

“I don’t think people should take precautions. The risk that there will be some damage or that it would hit someone is pretty small – not negligible, it could happen – but the risk that it will hit you is incredibly tiny. And so I would not lose one second of sleep over this on a personal threat basis,” he said.

“There are much bigger things to worry about.”

Elsewhere, McDowell compared the Chinese rocket to NASA’s first attempt at a space station, the Skylab, which entered a decaying orbit and fell apart in the atmosphere in 1979 after the agency was unable to correct its flight path, spreading debris across the Indian Ocean and parts of Australia.

Uncontrolled reentries aren’t entirely uncommon in space aviation, including for Beijing. Almost exactly one year ago to the day, another Long March 5B entered Earth’s atmosphere unguided, ultimately falling into the Atlantic Ocean. The large size of the Chinese rockets, however, does set them apart from other reentries.

Once completed, the new Chinese space station will become only the second currently in operation, alongside the International Space Station (ISS), a collaborative effort of the American, Russian, Japanese, European and Canadian space agencies. In April, Russia said it would withdraw from the ISS in 2025, and will instead focus on its own new space station project, ROSS. Before the ISS, Russia operated the first-ever modular space station, Mir, which was launched in 1986 and was decommissioned in 2001, breaking up above the South Pacific.


FILE PHOTO: The Long March-5B Y2 rocket, carrying the core module of China's space station Tianhe, sits at the launch pad of Wenchang Space Launch

[Beazy]

Oh shit! Its chargin` its lazers!!!!!!

[Nerraw]

20 minutes until launch.




Official stream exists but is not live yet:

[PACOX]

They did it but it's on fire!!!

[Nerraw]

Fire appears to now have gone out. So far it has survived the longest!