Author Topic: Astra Space  (Read 405685 times)

Offline Davidthefat

  • Full Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 464
  • Rockets are life.
  • Greater Los Angeles Area, California
  • Liked: 288
  • Likes Given: 71
Re: Astra Space
« Reply #540 on: 09/03/2021 06:18 pm »
I'm not sure if this is just some noise, but "Pomerantz Law Firm Investigates Claims On Behalf of Investors of Astra Space, Inc."

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/shareholder-alert-pomerantz-law-firm-investigates-claims-on-behalf-of-investors-of-astra-space-inc---astr-301365630.html

Offline Scintillant

  • Full Member
  • **
  • Posts: 242
  • Liked: 630
  • Likes Given: 197
Re: Astra Space
« Reply #541 on: 09/03/2021 06:27 pm »
I'm not sure if this is just some noise, but "Pomerantz Law Firm Investigates Claims On Behalf of Investors of Astra Space, Inc."

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/shareholder-alert-pomerantz-law-firm-investigates-claims-on-behalf-of-investors-of-astra-space-inc---astr-301365630.html

Classic public company noise. As Matt Levine over at Bloomberg Opinion likes to say, Everything Is Securities Fraud. The process is as follows: something bad happens, the stock price goes down, someone sues for securities fraud because they lost money, claiming that the company didn't adequately disclose some risk. Annoying but mostly harmless, just part of being a public company.

Offline TrevorMonty

Re: Astra Space
« Reply #542 on: 09/04/2021 10:41 am »
In mean time share price seems to have recovered some what back to $10.27.


Sent from my SM-G570Y using Tapatalk


Offline FlatFootShift

  • Member
  • Posts: 5
  • Canada, the frozen north
  • Liked: 1
  • Likes Given: 0
Re: Astra Space
« Reply #543 on: 09/20/2021 02:39 pm »
Is this company finished? All communication seems non-existent since the August launch.

Offline Davidthefat

  • Full Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 464
  • Rockets are life.
  • Greater Los Angeles Area, California
  • Liked: 288
  • Likes Given: 71
Re: Astra Space
« Reply #544 on: 09/20/2021 03:20 pm »
Is this company finished? All communication seems non-existent since the August launch.

$ASTR is still trading on the stock market.

Offline tleski

  • Full Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 477
  • Washington, DC
  • Liked: 367
  • Likes Given: 758
Re: Astra Space
« Reply #545 on: 09/20/2021 03:51 pm »
Astra posted seven times on their twitter account since the failed launch, last time four days ago. So they definitely exist. Unfortunately all of the posted messages are PR pieces. No updates on any future plans or anomaly investigation since August 28th.

Online gongora

  • Global Moderator
  • Senior Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 10205
  • US
  • Liked: 13885
  • Likes Given: 5933
Re: Astra Space
« Reply #546 on: 09/20/2021 11:45 pm »
Interesting string of tweets from a few weeks ago:
https://twitter.com/ashleevance/status/1432075051503808512

Quote
Been hearing rumors that @Firefly_Space is sellling engines to @Astra. Firefly CEO has said it has a deal to sell 50 engines to some rocket maker. Astra CEO Chris Kemp, however, denied this is an interview with me. “We are not buying engines from Firefly,” Kemp said. He added

That Astra will buy IP as needed. "There could be a relationship with Firefly, right?," he said. "But we are not having them make engines for us."

Don't totally know what all this means. . . .

Offline Navier–Stokes

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 367
  • Liked: 720
  • Likes Given: 6766
« Last Edit: 09/21/2021 01:02 pm by Navier–Stokes »

Offline Davidthefat

  • Full Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 464
  • Rockets are life.
  • Greater Los Angeles Area, California
  • Liked: 288
  • Likes Given: 71
Re: Astra Space
« Reply #548 on: 09/21/2021 03:27 pm »
They'll need a lot of infrastructure to be built up to produce the Reaver engines, even if they have all the IP like engineering drawings, etc. The TCA specifically is made completely different processes from the Astra's engines (details on that are discussed in prior conversations). How reliant Astra will be on outside suppliers for each step of the TCA fabrication process is important to see as investors. May be they'll just develop their own TCA and just take the power pack from Reaver.

Offline M.E.T.

  • Senior Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 2313
  • Liked: 2912
  • Likes Given: 508
Re: Astra Space
« Reply #549 on: 09/21/2021 03:39 pm »
Interesting.

Offline Davidthefat

  • Full Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 464
  • Rockets are life.
  • Greater Los Angeles Area, California
  • Liked: 288
  • Likes Given: 71
Re: Astra Space
« Reply #550 on: 09/21/2021 03:53 pm »
They'll need a lot of infrastructure to be built up to produce the Reaver engines, even if they have all the IP like engineering drawings, etc. The TCA specifically is made completely different processes from the Astra's engines (details on that are discussed in prior conversations). How reliant Astra will be on outside suppliers for each step of the TCA fabrication process is important to see as investors. May be they'll just develop their own TCA and just take the power pack from Reaver.

One point to consider: The TCA in the Reaver engine is "integral" to the engine itself thanks to the nature of the tap-off cycle. I suspect it would be very difficult substitute Firefly's TCA with a different, considering the exact method the combustion gas is extracted in the TCA probably has very much to do with the performance and reliability of the engine. Plus, I'm sure the extraction method is the secret sauce that's hard to nail down.

Right and the fabrication process is integral to the design as well. Not many vendors can do electrodeposited jackets. Makes me wonder why they didn't try reaching a deal with Ursa Major where most of the engine is AM'd. May be they might pivot to a gas generator engine and not deal with tap off. Honestly, that's probably the best bet for Astra IMHO if they are all in on this Reaver engine IP. Leverage the turbomachinery tech and use a production technique they have experience with.

Offline TrevorMonty

Re: Astra Space
« Reply #551 on: 09/21/2021 05:20 pm »
Firefly intent to move onto 8t Beta RLV so supporting 500kg competing LV isn't  whiling making money from it isn't bad deal. Astra 500kg LV will still be competing against Firefly 1000kg Alpha, time will tell which is more competitive LV.

Sent from my SM-G570Y using Tapatalk


Re: Astra Space
« Reply #552 on: 09/21/2021 06:09 pm »
How close does one Reaver come to replacing the 5 Delphins on Rocket 3?
Wait, ∆V? This site will accept the ∆ symbol? How many times have I written out the word "delta" for no reason?

Offline Davidthefat

  • Full Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 464
  • Rockets are life.
  • Greater Los Angeles Area, California
  • Liked: 288
  • Likes Given: 71
Re: Astra Space
« Reply #553 on: 09/21/2021 06:23 pm »
How close does one Reaver come to replacing the 5 Delphins on Rocket 3?

Question would be roll control of the vehicle (if that means they'll use gas thrusters or what) and retrofitting the vehicle with a new thrust structure and an additional TVC axis on the engine + engine controller, etc...

Offline ncb1397

  • Senior Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 3497
  • Liked: 2310
  • Likes Given: 29
Re: Astra Space
« Reply #554 on: 09/21/2021 06:26 pm »
How close does one Reaver come to replacing the 5 Delphins on Rocket 3?

740 kN reaver engine versus 5 28 kN Delphin engines.

Offline AllenB

  • Member
  • Posts: 78
  • Evanston, IL, USA
  • Liked: 125
  • Likes Given: 346
Re: Astra Space
« Reply #555 on: 09/21/2021 06:29 pm »
How close does one Reaver come to replacing the 5 Delphins on Rocket 3?

740 kN reaver engine versus 5 28 kN Delphin engines.

I think that 740 kN number is for the Firefly first stage, with four Reavers. So about 185 kN per engine, versus 140 kN for a set of five Delphins.

Could this be a reaction to the recent Astra failure? Seems like something that would have already been in planning stages for some time.

Online trimeta

  • Full Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 1685
  • Kansas City, MO
  • Liked: 2147
  • Likes Given: 57
Re: Astra Space
« Reply #556 on: 09/21/2021 06:40 pm »
I kind of assume this won't be replacing the five Delphins on Rocket 3, but rather is part of their plan to build a bigger (post-Rocket 3) vehicle. So maybe a dual-Reaver setup, with the intent of building their 500kg-to-500km-SSO rocket.

Re: Astra Space
« Reply #557 on: 09/21/2021 07:09 pm »
Could this be a reaction to the recent Astra failure? Seems like something that would have already been in planning stages for some time.

The first time I saw a tweet suggesting the Astra was buying Reavers was in August, before the Rocket 3 failure. So I don't think so.

How close does one Reaver come to replacing the 5 Delphins on Rocket 3?
740 kN reaver engine versus 5 28 kN Delphin engines.
I think that 740 kN number is for the Firefly first stage, with four Reavers. So about 185 kN per engine, versus 140 kN for a set of five Delphins.

I spent an hour or so several weeks ago on this; 740 is definitely the entire Alpha first stage.

185kN vs 140kN? Reasonably close. Still far enough apart that it probably will not be used on Rocket 3, but perhaps Rocket 4 will be powered by a single Reaver?

Question would be roll control of the vehicle (if that means they'll use gas thrusters or what) and retrofitting the vehicle with a new thrust structure and an additional TVC axis on the engine + engine controller, etc...

I figure it wouldn't be too hard to stick a little vectoring nozzle on the end of the Reaver's turbine exhaust pipe. I can't say how much of a challenge the rest of those problems would be, but I'm pretty confident that that at least is easily doable for a professional rocket company.
Wait, ∆V? This site will accept the ∆ symbol? How many times have I written out the word "delta" for no reason?

Online ringsider

  • Full Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 714
  • Liked: 506
  • Likes Given: 97
Re: Astra Space
« Reply #558 on: 09/22/2021 09:19 am »
Max Haot, CEO at Launcher (who also imported Ukrainian tech/IP to have an off-the-shelf turbopump) thinks the deal is "insane":-

https://twitter.com/maxhaot/status/1440327473044983815

https://twitter.com/maxhaot/status/1440327475091832845

The comment about 5 years and going too fast is interesting though.

If true that would not bode well for the younger startups, but might be a good thing for those further along the development roadmap.
« Last Edit: 09/22/2021 09:25 am by ringsider »

Offline RoadWithoutEnd

  • Full Member
  • **
  • Posts: 283
  • Liked: 340
  • Likes Given: 442
Re: Astra Space
« Reply #559 on: 09/22/2021 09:26 am »
Max Haot, CEO at Launcher (who also imported Ukraininan tech/IP to have an off-the-shelf turbopump) thinks the deal is "insane"

Come again?  That post is a lot of external linking without much information content. 

Please state directly what you mean without linking to Twitter or anything else.
Walk the road without end, and all tomorrows unfold like music.

Tags:
 

Advertisement NovaTech
Advertisement Northrop Grumman
Advertisement
Advertisement Margaritaville Beach Resort South Padre Island
Advertisement Brady Kenniston
Advertisement NextSpaceflight
Advertisement Nathan Barker Photography
0