Total Members Voted: 65
Quote from: Zed_Noir on 09/03/2022 06:04 amQuote from: DanClemmensen on 09/03/2022 03:54 am<snip>It appears that the economics are driving the small payloads to use ride-share, which allows them to take advantage of the improved economics of the medium launch market. The only remaining small payloads are those that need either a unique orbit or a unique launch time. That market is probably tiny or is not cost-sensitive.Reminder that SpaceX change orbital inclination with brute force to a low equatorial orbit for the IXPE spacecraft launching from Florida while under bidding the Pegasus XL. Therefore the market is cost sensitive.For that matter, NASA chose to launch TROPICS with Astra instead of Rocket Lab also for cost reasons.
Quote from: DanClemmensen on 09/03/2022 03:54 am<snip>It appears that the economics are driving the small payloads to use ride-share, which allows them to take advantage of the improved economics of the medium launch market. The only remaining small payloads are those that need either a unique orbit or a unique launch time. That market is probably tiny or is not cost-sensitive.Reminder that SpaceX change orbital inclination with brute force to a low equatorial orbit for the IXPE spacecraft launching from Florida while under bidding the Pegasus XL. Therefore the market is cost sensitive.
<snip>It appears that the economics are driving the small payloads to use ride-share, which allows them to take advantage of the improved economics of the medium launch market. The only remaining small payloads are those that need either a unique orbit or a unique launch time. That market is probably tiny or is not cost-sensitive.
Quote from: trimeta on 09/03/2022 05:19 pmQuote from: Zed_Noir on 09/03/2022 06:04 amQuote from: DanClemmensen on 09/03/2022 03:54 am<snip>It appears that the economics are driving the small payloads to use ride-share, which allows them to take advantage of the improved economics of the medium launch market. The only remaining small payloads are those that need either a unique orbit or a unique launch time. That market is probably tiny or is not cost-sensitive.Reminder that SpaceX change orbital inclination with brute force to a low equatorial orbit for the IXPE spacecraft launching from Florida while under bidding the Pegasus XL. Therefore the market is cost sensitive.For that matter, NASA chose to launch TROPICS with Astra instead of Rocket Lab also for cost reasons.I'm not sure why this is relevant to the medium-lift launch market. TROPICS is a set of six 5.5 Kilogram 3U Cubesats (total mass 33 kg). Medium-lift is defined (by NASA, at least) as 2000 kg to 20,000 kg. The only way TROPICS will fly in a medium-lift launch is either by rideshare or because some medium-lift launcher is ridiculously cheap.compared to the smallsat launchers.
Quote from: DanClemmensen on 09/03/2022 05:48 pmQuote from: trimeta on 09/03/2022 05:19 pmQuote from: Zed_Noir on 09/03/2022 06:04 amQuote from: DanClemmensen on 09/03/2022 03:54 am<snip>It appears that the economics are driving the small payloads to use ride-share, which allows them to take advantage of the improved economics of the medium launch market. The only remaining small payloads are those that need either a unique orbit or a unique launch time. That market is probably tiny or is not cost-sensitive.Reminder that SpaceX change orbital inclination with brute force to a low equatorial orbit for the IXPE spacecraft launching from Florida while under bidding the Pegasus XL. Therefore the market is cost sensitive.For that matter, NASA chose to launch TROPICS with Astra instead of Rocket Lab also for cost reasons.I'm not sure why this is relevant to the medium-lift launch market. TROPICS is a set of six 5.5 Kilogram 3U Cubesats (total mass 33 kg). Medium-lift is defined (by NASA, at least) as 2000 kg to 20,000 kg. The only way TROPICS will fly in a medium-lift launch is either by rideshare or because some medium-lift launcher is ridiculously cheap.compared to the smallsat launchers.You're the one who brought up "small payloads," and the corresponding small-lift launch market for "those that need either a unique orbit or a unique launch time."