Author Topic: Antares launch capabilities compared to other vehicles in its class?  (Read 17668 times)

Offline sdsds

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both in the domestic and international market there's a trend that points to "oversupply"

I respect your economics view, and as you go on to mention: lower prices are the "solution" to an oversupply problem. But space launch is not a commodity service. SpaceX will likely be the cost leader, and Orbital will try to differentiate its offering to justify their slightly higher prices. They can do that by pointing to their track record.

Has SpaceX ever launched two vehicles in the same configuration and gotten the same result? Orbital has done that dozens of times!

Also, although the SpaceX corporate culture is attractive to many, it might not be a good fit for some customers. For example, have they sold anything to a Japanese customer yet? Orbital has sold satellites to customers in Japan multiple times.

So I think Orbital can compete successfully using Antares, even if not on price.
« Last Edit: 10/10/2012 07:33 am by sdsds »
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Offline Robotbeat

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both in the domestic and international market there's a trend that points to "oversupply"

I respect your economics view, and as you go on to mention: lower prices are the "solution" to an oversupply problem. But space launch is not a commodity service. SpaceX will likely be the cost leader, and Orbital will try to differentiate its offering to justify their slightly higher prices. They can do that by pointing to their track record.

Has SpaceX ever launched two vehicles in the same configuration and gotten the same result? Orbital has done that dozens of times!

Also, although the SpaceX corporate culture is attractive to many, it might not be a good fit for some customers. For example, have they sold anything to a Japanese customer yet? Orbital has sold satellites to customers in Japan multiple times.

So I think Orbital can compete successfully using Antares, even if not on price.
I'm not sure I buy the reliability argument working in Orbital's favor at the moment.
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Offline simonbp

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Launching rockets is hard, and OSC has had their share of sorrows.

CRS ensures that a lot of Antarii (?) will be flown over the next few years, and unlike SpaceX they are not changing their rocket halfway through. By the end of that, they should have a pretty well-established rocket. It could continue afterwards as just a NASA science mission rocket, like Pegasus.

Indeed, the relatively small upper stage could be an advantage if combined with one or two more smaller solids for a NASA-specific escape-optimized rocket.

Offline Jim

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Launching rockets is hard, and OSC has had their share of sorrows.

CRS ensures that a lot of Antarii (?) will be flown over the next few years, and unlike SpaceX they are not changing their rocket halfway through.

The second stage motor is being changed after a few flights.

Offline Lurker Steve

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Launching rockets is hard, and OSC has had their share of sorrows.

CRS ensures that a lot of Antarii (?) will be flown over the next few years, and unlike SpaceX they are not changing their rocket halfway through.

The second stage motor is being changed after a few flights.

But the change from the Castor 30 to the Castor 30XL isn't as dramatic as a new engine design and stretched tanks, right ?

Offline baldusi

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Launching rockets is hard, and OSC has had their share of sorrows.

CRS ensures that a lot of Antarii (?) will be flown over the next few years, and unlike SpaceX they are not changing their rocket halfway through.

The second stage motor is being changed after a few flights.

But the change from the Castor 30 to the Castor 30XL isn't as dramatic as a new engine design and stretched tanks, right ?
The move from 30A to 30B is a change in the grain. Castor 30XL is longer. Which in a solid means a new tank/chamber.

Offline strangequark

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The move from 30A to 30B is a change in the grain. Castor 30XL is longer. Which in a solid means a new tank/chamber.

Yes, but stretching a monolithic grain, filament-wound solid is relatively simple.
« Last Edit: 10/11/2012 07:52 pm by strangequark »

Offline baldusi

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Quote
But the change from the Castor 30 to the Castor 30XL isn't as dramatic as a new engine design and stretched tanks, right ?
The move from 30A to 30B is a change in the grain. Castor 30XL is longer. Which in a solid means a new tank/chamber.
Yes, but stretching a monolithic grain, filament-wound solid is relatively simple.
But that's a different question ;)

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