Space and Science BS Thread

https://x.com/erdayastronaut/status/1805270000921444356?s=46

 

https://x.com/astro_cady/status/1805279064262934865?s=46

 

You can build a vessel that works both on land and at sea but it won’t be the best at both and space is far less forgiving. Starships are heavy lift/reentry vehicles and they’re having a hard enough time as it is getting those done. Sure it will be necessary to make them do the transit job for a long time to come but it should become obvious in short order that flaps, raptors, tiles and evaporating propellant could be exchanged for something more useful on the long voyage. Just as we use ships at sea and trucks on land so should our space ships be optimized for their roles.

 

Brand spanking new FH for todays launch:
https://x.com/_rykllan/status/1805565217041969339?s=46
https://x.com/_mgde_/status/1805572079099445402?s=46

 

Am I wrong in guessing the center falcon will be expended on this launch? I don't see any grid fins or landing legs attached to it.

 

Yup, center will be expended, side boosters are returning to landing site, no droneships.

 

I feel this is getting overblown in the news articles. The two astronauts are not "stranded in space" as the news reports are stating. Starliner is certified to bring them home in an emergency. The helium leaks and problematic thrusters are in the service module trunk that they jettison before reentry. So they are delaying reentry because they can (Starliner is happily docked at the ISS with the helium valves closed), and because it gives them more time to test/study/analyze the problem. Once they dump the trunk they can't get any more data or testing on the system to help improve future starliners. I don't think they are concerned too much about Sunni and Butch's safety or that they wouldn't be able to return, more of a concern is to understand the issues as much as they can while they still have the ability to do so, to minimize any further delays in getting this spacecraft certified for crewed missions.

 

https://x.com/sciguyspace/status/1805683293997736385?s=46
https://x.com/sciguyspace/status/1805684926978605276?s=46

 

Such a cool photo…
https://x.com/jennyhphoto/status/1805625431145550107?s=46

 

They jettison it AFTER it does it's reentry burn. The problem is there are currently 5 leaks, and 7 malfunctioning thrusters and a cooling system problem.

The 5 current leaks are said to be small and expected not to cause an issue. It is however a repeat problem.

Losing 25% of their thrusters we are told is a software issue. This software issue is in addition to the 47 software issues found last year, or one the ones found 2 years before that which could have lead to catastrophic loss of the capsule.

The cooling system issue was solved by stealing some water from the ISS. In future launches they plan larger tanks.

Besides being years behind, Boeing has never demonstrated Starliner without numerous issues each time. And don't even get me started on their recent problems with planes and what a rough time it is to be a whistleblower...

Can they fix it in space? Probably. But should they trust those field tests with 2 astronaut's lives? Given Boeing's track record on Starliner alone, NASA will put serious consideration on that decision. Losing astronauts is not the attention they want. Besides the loss of lives, that would also result is global negative PR, governmental inquiries, and likely loss of funding. So it's not absurd to think that they may strand the astronauts on the ISS and perform an un-crewed demo landing given all the factors.

 

I think they’re getting the hang of this
https://x.com/starfleettours/status/1805741349653848284?s=46
https://x.com/johnkrausphotos/status/1805756807106760893?s=46

 

some great views on part 2!! I love how Elon puts more thought into his answers as he recognizes the interviewer is an actual fan.

https://youtu.be/InJOlT6WdHc

 

Something to look forward to. In addition to all that’s behind being an astronaut for so long, Don’s a wizard behind the camera..
https://x.com/spacedotcom/status/1805934363399311582?s=46

 

I agree with all your points. My point was that some of the reporting makes it seem like they are stranded and NASA is unsure if Starliner will be safe to return - that is not really the case. All the issues (I didn't know about the cooling problem) are very concerning however, given how far behind the program is already. So I think the reason for the delays are more about wringing as much data out of the hardware as they can before it burns up on reentry, and an indication of how they don't fully understand what the causes of the problems are. I could be wrong, but the the thruster issues are not a direct threat to performing the rentry burn safely as I understand. The software took them offline because parameters were not as expected during the actual flight. After manually hotfire testing them they cleared it for docking which it performed successfully. And they are not in danger of running out of helium pressure. So I think every expectation is that undocking, reentry burn, and reentry /landing can be performed safely, but they need to learn as much as they can about why these frustrating issues keep plaguing this program!

 

So in the near term the issues are real but do not threaten completing the mission but their persistence could threaten the Starliner program if they can’t fully understand them and figure out the solutions. Since the service module won’t be available for examination after the mission everything they can study or test with this one needs to be done prior to reentry. Still, it seems to me that even if they do return safely on this ship I don’t see how Starliner can be crew certified without yet another test flight only without all the drama.

 

'Stuff built/assembled in space' would eventually take over for portions of the journey to, say, Mars, assuming enough traffic. Ship (v whatever) going to to dock with cycler that provides more hab space and stays in space otherwise, then going back to the ship for Mars EDL. That way you're not limited to just the space onboard for the transit. Ditto moon. Ship to LEO, then HLS (v whatever) from LEO to the moon.

 

Bypassing Gateway altogether? Shock and horror ensues

 

Must’ve had that new Shuttle smell:
https://x.com/nasahistory/status/1805979339189522879?s=46

 

They should bottle that smell and sell it in a shuttle shaped spritzer bottle

 

What a waste. WTF going on with Dreamchaser? Perpetually chasing dreams
https://x.com/thesheetztweetz/status/1805996328738009527?s=46
https://x.com/thesheetztweetz/status/1806006692737585364?s=46