Author Topic: SpaceX COTS Demo 2 Updates (Read 448913 times)

Chris Bergin · « **Reply #340 on:** 05/09/2011 12:44 pm »

C2/C3 article will be later today, as Endeavour's behaving herself and I'm getting the updates I need.

butters · « **Reply #341 on:** 05/09/2011 01:41 pm »

In addition to reducing flight test costs and luring NASA funds for ground tests, I suspect that another operational advantage that SpaceX seeks to exploit during this ~1 year mission holiday is to retool their production line for volume while they work through their development long poles for C2/3 (e.g. software and training).

This is the quiet time they need to morph into the production powerhouse they aspire to be but clearly aren't in their current trim (still in agile incremental prototyping mode). I suspect it's not nearly as quiet inside their Hawthorne plant as it is at LC-40.

R.Simko · « **Reply #342 on:** 05/09/2011 02:05 pm »

Yes there is added risk to combining C2 and C3, but I also see possible benefits.

1. If they don't combine the two flights, then the C3 flight won't take place until sometime next year. I would think later than if they combine the two flights. Combining the two flights could move the schedual ahead, especially if C2/C3 brings cargo.

2. By combining the flights, if the C2 part goes well, then they get to move on to the C3 part, with the berthing. If they run into a problem in the C3 stage of the combined flight, then they will know in December (aprox) of this year that something needs to be fixed, rather than finding out some time next year that there is a problem with the C3 portion.

3. As others have said, it will save SpaceX money. They are operating on a modest budget and have started developing FH on their dime. A hundred million or so to them, can make a big difference.

Everyone talks about the gap, this could potentially shorten the gap. Yes I know it could go the other way, but this is a part of measured risk and NASA and SpaceX are the ones best able to weigh the risk.

MP99 · « **Reply #343 on:** 05/09/2011 02:05 pm »

Quote from: mr. mark on 05/06/2011 04:11 am

Don't thank me for the pictures, thank NASA. NASA is now publishing regular pictures on their website, nasa.gov, of Spacex at KSC. Type in KSC media and then type in Spacex. You'll see some great pics of the Falcon 9 COTS 2/3 first stage hanger roll in and the pictures I showed here. It may be that NASA will now publish pictures faster than Spacex so, if you are interested, I'd check the NASA website on a regular basis for picture updates.

Note that there is also an RSS feed for the "hot pics" category on that site. See the link in the left side of the search page, or add the following to your RSS reader:-

http://mediaarchive.ksc.nasa.gov/HotPicsRSS.cfm

cheers, Martin

yg1968 · « **Reply #344 on:** 05/09/2011 02:55 pm »

Quote from: ugordan on 05/09/2011 11:46 am

Quote from: Alpha Control on 05/09/2011 05:40 am
Personally, I think there's much to be gained by keeping the SpaceX C2 and C3 flights as separate events.

Realistically, we all know the reason for combining the flights is cost (and potentially hardware production schedules) to SpaceX. There is risk to combining them because any problems would then be discovered later in the game (the combined flight would be delayed from C2 date), hence why NASA is paying them to do more ground tests in the meantime.

Basically, instead of SpaceX spending its own money on this, NASA is. But hey, if they can pay Orbital ~$100M for a Taurus II test flight...

SpaceX got no funds from NASA for its test flight of the Falcon 9. Orbital only had one COTS Demo flight prior to FY 2011. If all of the milestones of COTS 2 and 3 can be met by SpaceX in the same flight. Why not? NASA is interested because it will likely accelerate the first CRS flight which is also in their interest.

Orbital getting 100$ million for a test flight is probably equal to the cost of the test flight. Orbital was not going to do a test flight unless NASA asked for one.

Chris Bergin · « **Reply #345 on:** 05/09/2011 05:45 pm »

Published the article:

NASA managers aligning to combine final Dragon COTS test missions
http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2011/05/nasa-aligning-combine-final-dragon-cots-missions/

Will give the article a standalone thread on this forum section to allow the above conversation to continue,

MP99 · « **Reply #346 on:** 05/10/2011 07:29 am »

Quote from: mr. mark on 04/30/2011 04:47 pm

AS we look forward to COTS 2/3, It's great to look back and review just how far both Orbital and Spacex have come. Here is a great overview of the COTS project.

(YouTube link removed)

Delayed thanks from me. Neat view of a Merlin (Barber & Nichols?) turbo pump (in 1080 HD) at 8:53.

cheers, Martin

Adaptation · « **Reply #347 on:** 05/10/2011 05:11 pm »

"(YouTube link removed)"
I wanted to see it

AnalogMan · « **Reply #348 on:** 05/10/2011 05:33 pm »

Quote from: Adaptation on 05/10/2011 05:11 pm

"(YouTube link removed)"
I wanted to see it

You just need to look in the original post by mr. mark:
http://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=23538.msg732104#msg732104

MP99 · « **Reply #349 on:** 05/11/2011 03:13 am »

Quote from: AnalogMan on 05/10/2011 05:33 pm

Quote from: Adaptation on 05/10/2011 05:11 pm
"(YouTube link removed)"
I wanted to see it

You just need to look in the original post by mr. mark:
http://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=23538.msg732104#msg732104

AnalogMan,

thanks.

Adaptation,

when you see a dark blue heading above a quote box that says:-

Quote from: mr. mark on 30-04-2011, 17:47:28

You only have to click that link to go back to the original post. Embedded video is still there.

cheers, Martin

Antares · « **Reply #350 on:** 05/11/2011 03:52 am »

Anyone notice that the thrusters at 9:39 are painted on?

dragon44 · « **Reply #351 on:** 05/11/2011 04:26 am »

Quote from: Antares on 05/11/2011 03:52 am

Anyone notice that the thrusters at 9:39 are painted on?

That's the Dragon 'Engineering Unit'. A closer look is attached.

It is basically an empty pressure section (like the one below) with a fake unpressurized section. It sits next to the SpaceX cafeteria area if you get a tour. Nice to show the size of Dragon if there isn't a real one around.

You'll also notice the fake side hatch isn't something you'd want to protect you from the vacuum of space

Pics from the SpaceX Updates page.

Comga · « **Reply #352 on:** 05/11/2011 04:30 am »

Quote from: Antares on 05/11/2011 03:52 am

Anyone notice that the thrusters at 9:39 are painted on?

So what if they are? This is NASA C3PO using other people's old images of early mock-ups. The COTS-1 flight surely didn't have its thrusters "painted on". It completed a hypersonic targeting to hit within a kilometer of its ocean target.

Antares · « **Reply #353 on:** 05/11/2011 03:16 pm »

I wasn't intending anything except pointing out a fact.

What's the source for 1km?

ugordan · « **Reply #354 on:** 05/11/2011 03:22 pm »

I haven't seen a specific figure for 1 km accuracy, but the updates page does say this:

Quote

The Dragon spacecraft orbited the Earth at speeds greater than 7,600 meters per second (17,000 miles per hour), reentered the Earth’s atmosphere, and landed just after 2:00 PM EST less than one mile from the center of the targeted landing zone in the Pacific Ocean.

Comga · « **Reply #355 on:** 05/11/2011 04:51 pm »

Quote from: Antares on 05/11/2011 03:16 pm

I wasn't intending anything except pointing out a fact.

What's the source for 1km?

SpaceX, of course. There is little to back it up, but the figure of 800 meters has been repeated. Nothing like GPS coordinate tracks has been released to my knowledge. They could be making this up, but if so, it would be over the top and unnecessary.

docmordrid · « **Reply #356 on:** 05/11/2011 05:34 pm »

TSR published this pic as being the touchdown of the Dec. Dragon flight, and if so it had to be taken from a recovery ship. Seems to this longtime photographer it's either very close, perhaps <1km, or the photographer was usong one helluva big lens.

http://www.thespacereview.com/archive/1743a.jpg

Quote

Caption: SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft descends under parachutes to a splashdown in the Pacific a few hours after its launch from Cape Canaveral. (credit: SpaceX)

TSR page....

mduncan36 · « **Reply #357 on:** 05/11/2011 05:43 pm »

Quote from: docmordrid on 05/11/2011 05:34 pm

TSR published this pic as being the touchdown of the Dec. Dragon flight, and if so it had to be taken from a recovery ship. Seems to this longtime photographer it's either very close, perhaps <1km, or the photographer was usong one helluva big lens.

http://www.thespacereview.com/archive/1743a.jpg

I'm a pretty serious photographer and for a shot like that you might not be so close. With the resolution that modern digital cameras provide you might have a 200-400mm lens and then crop the living daylights out of the shot. I regularly take aircraft pictures that way.

vt_hokie · « **Reply #358 on:** 05/11/2011 05:45 pm »

I'm always struck by how small that thing is. They really plan to squeeze 7 people into the manned version?!

Ben the Space Brit · « **Reply #359 on:** 05/11/2011 05:49 pm »

Quote from: vt_hokie on 05/11/2011 05:45 pm

I'm always struck by how small that thing is. They really plan to squeeze 7 people into the manned version?!

It's actually a lot bigger than it looks. Seven people will fit in, although they won't have much in the way of moving space. Good thing that the maximum crew capacity is likely only to be used for emergency ISS evac. I'd imagine that the normal operational crew would be four.