Author Topic: F9 to Mars!  (Read 18741 times)

Offline guckyfan

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Re: F9 to Mars!
« Reply #40 on: 05/22/2016 12:07 pm »
SpaceX has a sufficiently packed manifest for the next 3 years that they can accept payload mass / orbit energy /pricing requirements that are F9R/FHR only for several years and lose no revenue.

Sure, but if they can get NASA interplanetary or Air Force contracts I doubt that they would reject them because they need expendable capabilities.

Offline speedevil

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Re: F9 to Mars!
« Reply #41 on: 05/22/2016 12:52 pm »
F9 to mars - hmm.

Getting first stages up is quite easy - fit a second stage 'backwards' - when staging would normally occur, flip 180, ignite the second stage, and then you have first stage up with some hundred tons of fuel onboard.

Second stage - mostly empty - similarly.
Dock, and refuel both.
I think that with a light payload, and a partially filled second stage, you could probably get the entire f9 to mars.
Unfortunately, all of the oxygen left would have boiled off in cruise.

Offline sanman

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Re: F9 to Mars!
« Reply #42 on: 05/29/2016 05:45 pm »
Article about it in Motley Fool:

http://www.fool.com/investing/2016/05/29/spacex-news-send-your-stuff-to-mars-today.aspx

I wonder who the most likely customers would be?
« Last Edit: 05/29/2016 05:47 pm by sanman »

Offline douglas100

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Re: F9 to Mars!
« Reply #43 on: 05/29/2016 06:22 pm »
F9 to mars - hmm.

Getting first stages up is quite easy - fit a second stage 'backwards' - when staging would normally occur, flip 180, ignite the second stage, and then you have first stage up with some hundred tons of fuel onboard...

The topic of this thread is using F9 to send a payload to Mars, not the F9 itself. What you describe is completely unworkable.
Douglas Clark

Offline Exastro

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Re: F9 to Mars!
« Reply #44 on: 05/29/2016 06:36 pm »
Article about it in Motley Fool:

http://www.fool.com/investing/2016/05/29/spacex-news-send-your-stuff-to-mars-today.aspx


The handful of Motley Fool space articles I've seen have all triggered my BS detector in one way or another.  This one seems to imply that the price on the SpaceX site is for payload soft-landed on Mars.  But it's almost certainly for payload injected into Mars Transfer Orbit.  That means the payload has to supply its own EDL hardware if it's going to land when it gets there. 

I suspect the author is getting this launch service confused with a full-up Red Dragon mission.

Offline nadreck

Re: F9 to Mars!
« Reply #45 on: 05/29/2016 10:44 pm »
Article about it in Motley Fool:

http://www.fool.com/investing/2016/05/29/spacex-news-send-your-stuff-to-mars-today.aspx


The handful of Motley Fool space articles I've seen have all triggered my BS detector in one way or another.  This one seems to imply that the price on the SpaceX site is for payload soft-landed on Mars.  But it's almost certainly for payload injected into Mars Transfer Orbit.  That means the payload has to supply its own EDL hardware if it's going to land when it gets there. 

I suspect the author is getting this launch service confused with a full-up Red Dragon mission.

No, he writes:
Quote
Note that SpaceX describes these capabilities in a line separate from its "standard payment plan" price of $62 million for a Falcon 9 launch, or $90 million for the Falcon Heavy. The company isn't promising any specific price tag for the Mars launch service, and is not offering to send you, or anyone else, specifically, to Mars. The company is only offering to transport cargo at this time. But even so, it's a unique service.
It is all well and good to quote those things that made it past your confirmation bias that other people wrote, but this is a discussion board damnit! Let us know what you think! And why!

Offline Hotblack Desiato

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Re: F9 to Mars!
« Reply #46 on: 05/30/2016 11:35 am »
F9 to mars - hmm.

Getting first stages up is quite easy - fit a second stage 'backwards' - when staging would normally occur, flip 180, ignite the second stage, and then you have first stage up with some hundred tons of fuel onboard...

The topic of this thread is using F9 to send a payload to Mars, not the F9 itself. What you describe is completely unworkable.

But honestly, that could be quite funny and useful over there. with some sort of ISRU generating RP1 and LOx. The RP1 should even stay liquid on the surface. Heaters for the night would be good though...

Offline TheTraveller

Re: F9 to Mars!
« Reply #47 on: 05/30/2016 04:18 pm »
Seems SpaceX is now offering to sell F9s to send upto 4,020kgs toward Mars:
http://www.spacex.com/about/capabilities

Wasn't MSL cruise mass 3,893kgs?
« Last Edit: 05/30/2016 04:22 pm by TheTraveller »
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Offline Exastro

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Re: F9 to Mars!
« Reply #48 on: 06/05/2016 10:06 pm »
Article about it in Motley Fool:

http://www.fool.com/investing/2016/05/29/spacex-news-send-your-stuff-to-mars-today.aspx


The handful of Motley Fool space articles I've seen have all triggered my BS detector in one way or another.  This one seems to imply that the price on the SpaceX site is for payload soft-landed on Mars.  But it's almost certainly for payload injected into Mars Transfer Orbit.  That means the payload has to supply its own EDL hardware if it's going to land when it gets there. 

I suspect the author is getting this launch service confused with a full-up Red Dragon mission.

No, he writes:
Quote
Note that SpaceX describes these capabilities in a line separate from its "standard payment plan" price of $62 million for a Falcon 9 launch, or $90 million for the Falcon Heavy. The company isn't promising any specific price tag for the Mars launch service, and is not offering to send you, or anyone else, specifically, to Mars. The company is only offering to transport cargo at this time. But even so, it's a unique service.

How are you interpreting the MF quote?  I still read that text as suggesting that the service being sold is delivery of cargo from Earth to the surface of Mars.  While it seems plausible that an F9 could inject 4 tons into Mars Transfer Orbit, it's hard to see it getting anything like that safely to the surface. 


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