Space Travel & Exploration

[PACOX]

Ground based ascribing is going to die unless a worldwide agreement is made about the current small sat LEO ISP space race. Ground based astronomers are already complaining about SpaceX's Starlink constellations, and SpaceX is neither done launching constellations nor is it the only one. SpaceX currently has the largest amount of sats in orbit attributed to Starlink and its not even gone putting more sats up in orbit. There are several competitors following suit and little regulation to stop any of them. Ground based astronomers have to work around the constellations of satellites entering their POV, mind you ground based astronomy depends on long exposure times which LEO sat constellations ruin.

[Afrospinach]

https://www.spinlaunch.com/

Ok, I have never heard of this one before.

Launching satellites from a spinning arm directly into orbit at 5000mph lol. It is an obvious idea but I had no clue someone was actually doing it.

Either I suck at math or do not understand something but a 100m radius @ 5000mph is over 5000g.

Just reading that centrifuges can spin at half a million g so maybe that is not a mistake. Obviously people are not riding this thing.

[Forogil]

https://www.spinlaunch.com/

Ok, I have never heard of this one before.

Launching satellites from a spinning arm directly into orbit at 5000mph lol. It is an obvious idea but I had no clue someone was actually doing it.

Either I suck at math or do not understand something but a 100m radius @ 5000mph is over 5000g.

There seems to be serious issues with it:

[plz delete account]

https://www.spinlaunch.com/

Ok, I have never heard of this one before.

Launching satellites from a spinning arm directly into orbit at 5000mph lol. It is an obvious idea but I had no clue someone was actually doing it.

Either I suck at math or do not understand something but a 100m radius @ 5000mph is over 5000g.

Just reading that centrifuges can spin at half a million g so maybe that is not a mistake. Obviously people are not riding this thing.

Yes, not designed for human launches. Also slowly spins up over an hour.

- - - Updated - - -

Ground based ascribing is going to die unless a worldwide agreement is made about the current small sat LEO ISP space race. Ground based astronomers are already complaining about SpaceX's Starlink constellations, and SpaceX is neither done launching constellations nor is it the only one. SpaceX currently has the largest amount of sats in orbit attributed to Starlink and its not even gone putting more sats up in orbit. There are several competitors following suit and little regulation to stop any of them. Ground based astronomers have to work around the constellations of satellites entering their POV, mind you ground based astronomy depends on long exposure times which LEO sat constellations ruin.

Modern SpaceX satellite trains have less effect on astronomy. Less than a day per launch now.

[s_bushido]

https://www.spinlaunch.com/

Ok, I have never heard of this one before.

Launching satellites from a spinning arm directly into orbit at 5000mph lol. It is an obvious idea but I had no clue someone was actually doing it.

Either I suck at math or do not understand something but a 100m radius @ 5000mph is over 5000g.

Just reading that centrifuges can spin at half a million g so maybe that is not a mistake. Obviously people are not riding this thing.

That website says 10,000g... I'm having a hard time seeing the benefit in something like this, assuming it isn't laughably implausible in the first place.

[Forogil]

Ground based ascribing is going to die unless a worldwide agreement is made about the current small sat LEO ISP space race. Ground based astronomers are already complaining about SpaceX's Starlink constellations, and SpaceX is neither done launching constellations nor is it the only one. SpaceX currently has the largest amount of sats in orbit attributed to Starlink and its not even gone putting more sats up in orbit. There are several competitors following suit and little regulation to stop any of them. Ground based astronomers have to work around the constellations of satellites entering their POV, mind you ground based astronomy depends on long exposure times which LEO sat constellations ruin.

Yeah, that's a bit of a problem - and to me both launching space-telescopes and Starlink gives the vibe of a bottled water factory polluting the water supply; but hey you can get fresh bottled water.

Obviously not all of ground based astronomy depends on long exposure time - but it is common as the things that don't need long exposure have mostly been analyzed already. Since most use CCDs they might be able to filter it out, but it will add to the cost and complexity. It will also be a real pain for amateurs.

[Easo]

Using a giant cannon but this time actually finishing such a project seems more practical and workable than this, imho.

[PACOX]

Modern SpaceX satellite trains have less effect on astronomy. Less than a day per launch now.

I don't know what you mean by this. SpaceX is being careful about where they parking their satellites or that they can launch satellites faster? The rate of which SpaceX launch satellites is impressive.

Haven't heard anything about their satellites being less visible to ground astronomers but cool if true.

Edit: nevermind I looked it up. Yeah apparently the satellites aren't as bright anymore, which is cool.

[Nerraw]

[Osmeric]

What's cool in that video is you can see the exhaust gas from the two stages' engines slamming together, right after separation when stage 1 is doing the boost back burn.

[Cosmic Janitor]

How many people does it take to change a light bulb? SpaceX just gets someone to run down to the storage closet to replace it, NASA has to send it through committee assuming they don't have to go through committee to draft the exact process before hand.

Not quite. SpaceX would first make a tweet about sending a guy to the storage cloest while in reality they would send a lawyer out to find them the next gov. grant which they use to hire some underpaid rando from the streets, who then runs to the storage closet while on the way back the layer is already drafting rando's termination notice and then use the rest of the grant for a completely unrelated project at another company altogether.

Also that spinlaunch thing should rebrand to A.C.M.E

- - - Updated - - -

I don't know what you mean by this. SpaceX is being careful about where they parking their satellites or that they can launch satellites faster? The rate of which SpaceX launch satellites is impressive.

Haven't heard anything about their satellites being less visible to ground astronomers but cool if true.

Edit: nevermind I looked it up. Yeah apparently the satellites aren't as bright anymore, which is cool.

They painted them diffrently (not the most reflective white they could find), but they still very much interfere with telescopes.

[Nerraw]

What's cool in that video is you can see the exhaust gas from the two stages' engines slamming together, right after separation when stage 1 is doing the boost back burn.

Looks even better at night.

[cubby]

Honestly the entire project has been such a mess that I'd have to go back and look through all the bottlenecks and who was actually responsible. There's huge periods of time where the rocket just wasn't being worked on, actually fabrication over the span of its lifetime did not take that long. It was weighed down in a lot of bureaucracy, the way that NASA has to do it while administrationa and budgets change doesn't help. There's inefficient processes that NASA has to follow through on that independent companies like SpaceX don't have to.

How many people does it take to change a light bulb? SpaceX just gets someone to run down to the storage closet to replace it, NASA has to send it through committee assuming they don't have to go through committee to draft the exact process before hand.

Some say NASA's real plan to put on display how inefficient the process to make SLS has been so they can bring some reform to the table. At least funnel more funds through the private companies so they won't be so beholden to Congress to get anything done.

It was my understanding from the past 10-20 years that NASA was moving from primary space missions to really being an Administrator of the space industry, regulating and herding the various private and hybrid players.

[PACOX]

It was my understanding from the past 10-20 years that NASA was moving from primary space missions to really being an Administrator of the space industry, regulating and herding the various private and hybrid players.

NASA doesn't want to stuff they've already accomplished. Launches to LEO launches. They still want to take the lead role in exploration. Everything beyond low Earth orbit will be done by NASA first then they'll hand it off to the private companies. Example, SLS will return us to the Moon first, there's already plans to handover Moon missions to private companies. The next US LEO station(s) to replace the ISS will be from the private companies, the first deep space station will be headed by NASA. NASA will take the lead to figure out how to get to Mars, then pass it to private companies. So on and so forth.

[cubby]

NASA doesn't want to stuff they've already accomplished. Launches to LEO launches. They still want to take the lead role in exploration. Everything beyond low Earth orbit will be done by NASA first then they'll hand it off to the private companies. Example, SLS will return us to the Moon first, there's already plans to handover Moon missions to private companies. The next US LEO station(s) to replace the ISS will be from the private companies, the first deep space station will be headed by NASA. NASA will take the lead to figure out how to get to Mars, then pass it to private companies. So on and so forth.

That makes a lot of sense. NASA figures it out and then hands it off - I like the sound of that.

Will SLS make the Moon first? Does SpaceX have a chance at getting their first? I understand SpaceX's difficulty is getting enough fuel saved up in orbit to make the trip there and back.

[PACOX]

That makes a lot of sense. NASA figures it out and then hands it off - I like the sound of that.

Will SLS make the Moon first? Does SpaceX have a chance at getting their first? I understand SpaceX's difficulty is getting enough fuel saved up in orbit to make the trip there and back.

SLS/Artemis 1is supposed launch next month. Assuming that it goes as planned, Artemis 2, the crewed flyby to the Moon, will take place in 2024. After that SpaceX should be good and ready with Starship for a Moon landing (SLS flying the astronauts to the Moon, Starship lands them) but everyone is really waiting for the spacesuits...which got pushed back to 2025 last I checked.

SpaceX generally goes through testing faster than NASA but SLS is closer to its maidan flight than SpaceX is doing its first orbital test of Starship.

[cubby]

SLS/Artemis 1is supposed launch next month. Assuming that it goes as planned, Artemis 2, the crewed flyby to the Moon, will take place in 2024. After that SpaceX should be good and ready with Starship for a Moon landing (SLS flying the astronauts to the Moon, Starship lands them) but everyone is really waiting for the spacesuits...which got pushed back to 2025 last I checked.

SpaceX generally goes through testing faster than NASA but SLS is closer to its maidan flight than SpaceX is doing its first orbital test of Starship.

Shit - I forgot about the spacesuits. And that delay is whatever the normal ones are associated with government testing/funding along with the fact that they are trying to build/design ones that are "next gen" - to work on both Moon and Mars, and EVA's, and be better across the board than what we have now, iirc?

[PACOX]

Shit - I forgot about the spacesuits. And that delay is whatever the normal ones are associated with government testing/funding along with the fact that they are trying to build/design ones that are "next gen" - to work on both Moon and Mars, and EVA's, and be better across the board than what we have now, iirc?

Yeah they want some kind of suit that can fill multiple roles instead of one that would be good enough for just landing on the Moon and coming back.

[Osmeric]

Will SLS make the Moon first?

SLS has no lunar lander.

[PACOX]

SLS has no lunar lander.

I assumed he meant will SpaceX be able to independent trips before SLS can do crewed missions. As of now SLS and Starship need each other to get their with the plan for Starship being able to do it on its own. NASA also plans to incorporate landers from other agencies, just not initially. There will a commercial program for the Moon.