Science Space Exploration megathread - Page 292

**DaFace** · 07:17 AM

Since a number of cool things are happening in space exploration these days, we'll widen the scope of this thread a smidge. Conversation about all things space exploration are welcome, whether it be from NASA, SpaceX, ULA, Blue Origin, or anyone else. Chances are most of the discussion will still be about SpaceX since they love to make things public and fun, but nothing's off limits. I'll eventually get around to modifying the OP to include resources for other companies too, but in the meantime, feel free to post any cool stuff you run across.

Lists of Upcoming Missions

Spoiler!

How to Watch a Live Launch

Spoiler!

Where to Learn More

Spoiler!

Glossary

Spoiler!

Space discussions tend to get a little bogged down in jargon, so here's a list of terms you might encounter. (Others, please let me know of others that should be added.)

ASDS - Autonomous Spaceport Droneship - The "barges" that they sometimes land rockets on.
Dragon - The cone-shaped capsule that sits at the top of the rocket for ISS-bound launches that holds the cargo (or, in the future, humans).
F9 - Falcon 9, the name of the rocket itself.
FH - Falcon Heavy, the three-booster version.
GTO - Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit, a type of orbit that will eventually result in the satellite orbiting the earth as it turns so that it seems to be in the same spot from the ground (such as DirecTV or Dish satellites). These types of launches are particularly challenging because they require a lot of power to get them into the right orbit, leaving very little fuel left for landing.
HIF - Horizontal Integration Facility - the building near the launch pad where they put all of the pieces of the rocket together before rolling it out to the pad.
ISS - The International Space Station
JRTI - Just Read The Instructions, the name of the "barge" that they land on for west-coast launches.
LEO - Low Earth Orbit, a fairly low orbit shared by many satellites and ISS. These launches usually require less power to achieve the proper orbit, so the first stage can often be landed back on land rather than on a drone ship.
LZ1 - Landing Zone 1, basically a big open slab of concrete at Cape Canaveral where the first stage will attempt to land (for some launches).
NET - No Earlier Than, basically the date they're hoping to launch, but rocket launches have a tendency of getting delayed.
OCISLY - Of Course I Still Love You, the name of the "barge" that they land on for east-coast launches.
RTLS - Return to Landing Site, a mission where the first stage comes back and lands at LZ1.
Starship - SpaceX's next-generation rocket (and spacecraft) that will hopefully one day take us to Mars. Starship is the "second stage" that will carry cargo or people, but also refers to the whole system. (It's confusing, but think of it like the Space Shuttle, which was both the shuttle itself and the entire launch system.)
Super Heavy - The giant booster that will carry Starship to space.

**DaFace** · 06-30-2021, 01:40 PM

It's ridiculous how easy those landings look these days. I've missed having descent video.

**Donger** · 06-30-2021, 01:41 PM

It moved. Not going to lie and no shame.

**DaFace** · 06-30-2021, 09:23 PM

This is one of the coolest shots they've ever gotten. Audio is fantastic as well.

Tracking footage of Falcon 9 landing on LZ-1 pic.twitter.com/uCR2ZuDSG7
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 1, 2021

Hydrae · 07-01-2021, 07:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaFace

This is one of the coolest shots they've ever gotten. Audio is fantastic as well.

Tracking footage of Falcon 9 landing on LZ-1 pic.twitter.com/uCR2ZuDSG7
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 1, 2021

That was freaking awesome! It is amazing that after so many of these they can still impress.

AdolfOliverBush · 07-01-2021, 07:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaFace

This is one of the coolest shots they've ever gotten. Audio is fantastic as well.

Tracking footage of Falcon 9 landing on LZ-1 pic.twitter.com/uCR2ZuDSG7
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 1, 2021

That shit is crazy. I'm surprised there isn't a conspiracy theory claiming this is all CGI.

**Donger** · 07-01-2021, 07:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaFace

This is one of the coolest shots they've ever gotten. Audio is fantastic as well.

Tracking footage of Falcon 9 landing on LZ-1 pic.twitter.com/uCR2ZuDSG7
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 1, 2021

I knew that it comes in at quite an angle, but it looks like damn close to perpendicular to the ground!

**PHOG** · 07-01-2021, 07:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaFace

This is one of the coolest shots they've ever gotten. Audio is fantastic as well.

Tracking footage of Falcon 9 landing on LZ-1 pic.twitter.com/uCR2ZuDSG7
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 1, 2021

Wow! That is so cool. They've got that down pat.

**DaFace** · 07-01-2021, 04:58 PM

There's a big ass booster on a test stand.

Blink and you would have missed it! Very fast lift operations. Booster 3 is nearly on the stand.https://t.co/u2AORfE3BT pic.twitter.com/rxZv4Ln047
— Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) July 1, 2021

Scooter LaCanforno · 07-02-2021, 05:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaFace

This is one of the coolest shots they've ever gotten. Audio is fantastic as well.

Tracking footage of Falcon 9 landing on LZ-1 pic.twitter.com/uCR2ZuDSG7
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 1, 2021

The people in Optics are getting good at this.

**Donger** · 07-06-2021, 12:13 PM

Wow...

Super Heavy on road & 7th Tower segment added pic.twitter.com/SJIHA3BLhL
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 1, 2021

**Donger** · 07-07-2021, 02:15 PM

#MarsHelicopter pushes its Red Planet limits. ��
The rotorcraft completed its 9th and most challenging flight yet, flying for 166.4 seconds at a speed of 5 m/s. Take a look at this shot of Ingenuity’s shadow captured with its navigation camera. https://t.co/TNCdXWcKWE pic.twitter.com/zUIbrr7Qw9
— NASA JPL (@NASAJPL) July 5, 2021

**DaFace** · 07-08-2021, 01:20 AM

Good article on the ULA/BO marriage. Just in general, I'm a big fan of Eric Berger. Give him a follow for good space content.

Blue Origin and ULA have been partners for nearly seven years now, but the marriage is showing signs of fraying. Here's how:https://t.co/wLlCm6JoKv
— Eric Berger (@SciGuySpace) July 7, 2021

**DaFace** · 07-09-2021, 06:17 PM

ASDS #3 is out and looking like a beast. From what I understand, this one can drive itself - no tug required.

Autonomous SpaceX droneship,
A Shortfall of Gravitas pic.twitter.com/hNZ5U7nxUg
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 9, 2021

Hog's Gone Fishin · 07-09-2021, 06:29 PM

We need a livestream here of Virgin Galactic taking off Sunday

**Donger** · 07-09-2021, 06:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaFace

ASDS #3 is out and looking like a beast. From what I understand, this one can drive itself - no tug required.

Autonomous SpaceX droneship,
A Shortfall of Gravitas pic.twitter.com/hNZ5U7nxUg
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 9, 2021

WTF is that thing at 0:15?

06-01-2014, 09:40 AM
DaFace Kind of a mod Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Donkey Land Casino cash: $146899	Space Exploration megathread Since a number of cool things are happening in space exploration these days, we'll widen the scope of this thread a smidge. Conversation about all things space exploration are welcome, whether it be from NASA, SpaceX, ULA, Blue Origin, or anyone else. Chances are most of the discussion will still be about SpaceX since they love to make things public and fun, but nothing's off limits. I'll eventually get around to modifying the OP to include resources for other companies too, but in the meantime, feel free to post any cool stuff you run across. Lists of Upcoming Missions Spoiler! General lists: https://nextspaceflight.com/ http://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/ SpaceX specific list: https://spacexnow.com/upcoming.php How to Watch a Live Launch Spoiler! SpaceX: https://www.spacex.com/launches/ ULA: https://www.youtube.com/user/UnitedLaunchAlliance RocketLab: https://www.youtube.com/user/RocketLabNZ NASATV will also cover some launches (primarily ISS resupply missions): https://www.youtube.com/user/NASAtelevision Where to Learn More Spoiler! Some cool pics... https://www.flickr.com/photos/spacex/ https://www.instagram.com/spacex/?hl=en Twitter feed is usually interesing... https://twitter.com/SpaceX https://twitter.com/elonmusk The SpaceX sub is a great source of info... https://www.reddit.com/r/spacex https://www.reddit.com/r/spacex/wiki/index And for a more forum-style discussion board... http://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php#c17 And there are plenty of YouTube channels with great content... Joe Scott - Lost of "future" discussion. Some about rockets and space. Much that goes beyond. Scott Manley - Super smart dude (engineer) who reviews a lot of major events in space exploration. Frazer Cain (Universe Today) - Podcast-style videos that go in-depth into space topics. Tim Dodd (Everyday Astronaut) - A "random dude" who got really into space (particularly SpaceX). He's a great resource for simple explanations of this stuff, as well as live hosting launches. USLaunchReport - Lost of videos of the more mundane stuff (e.g., booster recovery operations). Not a ton of commentary. NASASpaceFlight - Live hosting of most launches including a ton of video of Starlink operations. Glossary Spoiler! Space discussions tend to get a little bogged down in jargon, so here's a list of terms you might encounter. (Others, please let me know of others that should be added.) ASDS - Autonomous Spaceport Droneship - The "barges" that they sometimes land rockets on. Dragon - The cone-shaped capsule that sits at the top of the rocket for ISS-bound launches that holds the cargo (or, in the future, humans). F9 - Falcon 9, the name of the rocket itself. FH - Falcon Heavy, the three-booster version. GTO - Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit, a type of orbit that will eventually result in the satellite orbiting the earth as it turns so that it seems to be in the same spot from the ground (such as DirecTV or Dish satellites). These types of launches are particularly challenging because they require a lot of power to get them into the right orbit, leaving very little fuel left for landing. HIF - Horizontal Integration Facility - the building near the launch pad where they put all of the pieces of the rocket together before rolling it out to the pad. ISS - The International Space Station JRTI - Just Read The Instructions, the name of the "barge" that they land on for west-coast launches. LEO - Low Earth Orbit, a fairly low orbit shared by many satellites and ISS. These launches usually require less power to achieve the proper orbit, so the first stage can often be landed back on land rather than on a drone ship. LZ1 - Landing Zone 1, basically a big open slab of concrete at Cape Canaveral where the first stage will attempt to land (for some launches). NET - No Earlier Than, basically the date they're hoping to launch, but rocket launches have a tendency of getting delayed. OCISLY - Of Course I Still Love You, the name of the "barge" that they land on for east-coast launches. RTLS - Return to Landing Site, a mission where the first stage comes back and lands at LZ1. Starship - SpaceX's next-generation rocket (and spacecraft) that will hopefully one day take us to Mars. Starship is the "second stage" that will carry cargo or people, but also refers to the whole system. (It's confusing, but think of it like the Space Shuttle, which was both the shuttle itself and the entire launch system.) Super Heavy - The giant booster that will carry Starship to space. Last edited by DaFace; 10-13-2024 at 07:17 AM..
Posts: 52,522	1 0

06-30-2021, 01:40 PM	#4366
DaFace Kind of a mod Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Donkey Land Casino cash: $146899	It's ridiculous how easy those landings look these days. I've missed having descent video.
Posts: 52,522

06-30-2021, 01:41 PM	#4367
Donger "Think BOOM!" Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: 33.675° N 106.475° W Casino cash: $8589900 VARSITY	It moved. Not going to lie and no shame. __________________ I think the young people enjoy it when I "get down," verbally, don't you?
Posts: 187,037

06-30-2021, 09:23 PM	#4368
DaFace Kind of a mod Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Donkey Land Casino cash: $146899	This is one of the coolest shots they've ever gotten. Audio is fantastic as well. Tracking footage of Falcon 9 landing on LZ-1 pic.twitter.com/uCR2ZuDSG7 — SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 1, 2021
Posts: 52,522	5 0

07-01-2021, 04:58 PM	#4373
DaFace Kind of a mod Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Donkey Land Casino cash: $146899	There's a big ass booster on a test stand. Blink and you would have missed it! Very fast lift operations. Booster 3 is nearly on the stand.https://t.co/u2AORfE3BT pic.twitter.com/rxZv4Ln047 — Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) July 1, 2021
Posts: 52,522

07-06-2021, 12:13 PM	#4375
Donger "Think BOOM!" Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: 33.675° N 106.475° W Casino cash: $8589900 VARSITY	Wow... Super Heavy on road & 7th Tower segment added pic.twitter.com/SJIHA3BLhL — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 1, 2021 __________________ I think the young people enjoy it when I "get down," verbally, don't you?
Posts: 187,037

07-07-2021, 02:15 PM	#4376
Donger "Think BOOM!" Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: 33.675° N 106.475° W Casino cash: $8589900 VARSITY	#MarsHelicopter pushes its Red Planet limits. �� The rotorcraft completed its 9th and most challenging flight yet, flying for 166.4 seconds at a speed of 5 m/s. Take a look at this shot of Ingenuity’s shadow captured with its navigation camera. https://t.co/TNCdXWcKWE pic.twitter.com/zUIbrr7Qw9 — NASA JPL (@NASAJPL) July 5, 2021 __________________ I think the young people enjoy it when I "get down," verbally, don't you?
Posts: 187,037

07-08-2021, 01:20 AM	#4377
DaFace Kind of a mod Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Donkey Land Casino cash: $146899	Good article on the ULA/BO marriage. Just in general, I'm a big fan of Eric Berger. Give him a follow for good space content. Blue Origin and ULA have been partners for nearly seven years now, but the marriage is showing signs of fraying. Here's how:https://t.co/wLlCm6JoKv — Eric Berger (@SciGuySpace) July 7, 2021
Posts: 52,522	1 0

07-09-2021, 06:17 PM	#4378
DaFace Kind of a mod Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Donkey Land Casino cash: $146899	ASDS #3 is out and looking like a beast. From what I understand, this one can drive itself - no tug required. Autonomous SpaceX droneship, A Shortfall of Gravitas pic.twitter.com/hNZ5U7nxUg — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 9, 2021
Posts: 52,522

07-09-2021, 06:29 PM	#4379
Hog's Gone Fishin Fish are scared of me Join Date: Nov 2001 Casino cash: $-49523	We need a livestream here of Virgin Galactic taking off Sunday
Posts: 40,648