SpaceX Falcon 9/Dragon COTS Demo (C2+) GENERAL DISCUSSION

[Airlock]

Slight mix up by NASA here......this looks very much like an ATV to me! 


http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_2258.html

"A Dragon Approaches
This image of SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft as it approached the space station was taken NASA astronaut Don Pettit. The SpaceX Falcon 9 and its Dragon spacecraft launched on Tuesday, May 22, at 3:44 a.m. EDT.

This mission is a demonstration flight by Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, as part of its contract with NASA to have private companies launch cargo safely to the International Space Station."

Seems to be corrected now.

[docmordrid]

IIRC there are 206 nations/states etc. in the world. 100 have signed and ratified the Outer Space Treaty and 26 have only signed it. Only 80 to go

[FinalFrontier]

Is there a chance at any point after splashdown that the dragon will be on display by the public before being sent to Hawthorn?

Before Hawthorne? Not likely. They will most certainly partially disassemble the capsule for postflight analysis just like they did for C1. Once that's done they may put it back together and have it go around for displays.

Fair to assume this one won't fly again as it was a history maker? (like the first one before it which ofc had less equipment on board and was not even full up)

[oiorionsbelt]

As these things are about to be tested again, I was wondering about the attachment points for Dragon, where it mates with the Trunk.
These attachment points seem to pass through the heat shield. I believe there are 6 of them. Anyone have insight into them?

[Lars_J]

As these things are about to be tested again, I was wondering about the attachment points for Dragon, where it mates with the Trunk.
These attachment points seem to pass through the heat shield. I believe there are 6 of them. Anyone have insight into them?

Yes, there are 6, and the pass through the heat shield. (Just like Apollo used, and Orion will use) You can see them here:

(Someone else on the forum stated that they are frangible nut connections = separated by small pyro charges).

[oiorionsbelt]

Thanks Lars_J. Do you know what they are made of? As they obviously need to withstand the heat of reentry and yet probably need to be stronger than the heat shield itself.

[WulfTheSaxon]

The problem is not with the packing that was carried out on the ground -- the problem is packing the trash and other downmass back into the vehicle.

Why don't they use vacuum packing for soft items? As I understand, most of the cargo capacity is volume-limited, not weight-limited.
They have plenty of it (vacuum) up there...

To utilise that vacuum they would need to discard the air inside the bag, which would then need to be replaced by shipping more air up.

Doesn't apply if you use a vacuum to remove the air, just like down here.

cheers, Martin

But don’t they “discard the air inside the bag” already? Just as wasted volume in the Dragon, rather than to space.

[LegendCJS]

The problem is not with the packing that was carried out on the ground -- the problem is packing the trash and other downmass back into the vehicle.

Why don't they use vacuum packing for soft items? As I understand, most of the cargo capacity is volume-limited, not weight-limited.
They have plenty of it (vacuum) up there...

To utilise that vacuum they would need to discard the air inside the bag, which would then need to be replaced by shipping more air up.

Doesn't apply if you use a vacuum to remove the air, just like down here.

cheers, Martin

But don’t they “discard the air inside the bag” already? Just as wasted volume in the Dragon, rather than to space.

Think about it carefully:

The air lost in the dragon and returned to earth is a constant amount weather the bags are vacuum packed or not, the solid occupied volume in the dragon is the same. 

However, if you are vacuum packing the bags in the airlock by discarding the air in them before putting them in the dragon you are discarding air overboard that would otherwise not be lost.

[Lars_J]

Think about it carefully:

The air lost in the dragon and returned to earth is a constant amount weather the bags are vacuum packed or not, the solid occupied volume in the dragon is the same. 

However, if you are vacuum packing the bags in the airlock by discarding the air in them before putting them in the dragon you are discarding air overboard that would otherwise not be lost.

Wha.. Why in the world would you need to vacuum pack using an airlock? Just do what we do here on earth - a simply air pump to suck out most of the air. The air on ISS or Dragon remains constant, it is just displaced.

Just because people talk about vacuum packing does not mean that LITERAL vacuum is involved. (not that LEO space is a pure vacuum either, but that is a separate topic)

[WulfTheSaxon]

Think about it carefully:

The air lost in the dragon and returned to earth is a constant amount weather the bags are vacuum packed or not, the solid occupied volume in the dragon is the same. 

However, if you are vacuum packing the bags in the airlock by discarding the air in them before putting them in the dragon you are discarding air overboard that would otherwise not be lost.

/me slaps himself upside the head, then makes himself another coffee

Of course.

[clongton]

Thats just sad...

21st century NASA

[beancounter]

Thanks Lars_J. Do you know what they are made of? As they obviously need to withstand the heat of reentry and yet probably need to be stronger than the heat shield itself.

As I understand it, the openings are shaped so that the heat flow is curved around and only flows a shallow way in.  The bulkhead never receives the full effects of entry like the shield does.

[LegendCJS]

Think about it carefully:

The air lost in the dragon and returned to earth is a constant amount weather the bags are vacuum packed or not, the solid occupied volume in the dragon is the same. 

However, if you are vacuum packing the bags in the airlock by discarding the air in them before putting them in the dragon you are discarding air overboard that would otherwise not be lost.

Wha.. Why in the world would you need to vacuum pack using an airlock? Just do what we do here on earth - a simply air pump to suck out most of the air. The air on ISS or Dragon remains constant, it is just displaced.

Just because people talk about vacuum packing does not mean that LITERAL vacuum is involved. (not that LEO space is a pure vacuum either, but that is a separate topic)

I was just keeping to the theme of the original poster who said (paraphrasing) "why don't they vacuum pack those cargo transfer bags, its space they have lots of vacuum up there..."  The poster presumably thought that vacuum packing would already be standard if a vacuum packing pump was already on station, or was trying to defend against the obvious reply of pointing out that the station doesn't have a CTB vacuum packing pump available.

[VatTas]

I was just keeping to the theme of the original poster who said (paraphrasing) "why don't they vacuum pack those cargo transfer bags, its space they have lots of vacuum up there..."

My remark about plenty of vacuum up there was meant more as a joke than actual solution to vacuum packing.
I really wonder why that's not used to transfer "soft" cargo. Maybe such kind makes up only small percent of total cargo and it doesn't make sense to have special bags/pump for this.

[majormajor42]

Do we know where Dragon will be unloaded?  Where/when residual prop will be removed?

VAFB for destow and probably the Sealaunch facilities for prop unloading

I'm now reading that the capsule will go to McGregor first after the port of LA. Why is post-flight cargo handling done at McGregor? Will prop unloading take place before hitting the road for TX?

[Jason Sole]

Are SpaceX playing on the young angle again?

https://twitter.com/SpaceX/status/207961150774706176/photo/1/large

ALL of the older people are hidden at the back, with the kids at the front.

[Silmfeanor]

Are SpaceX playing on the young angle again?

https://twitter.com/SpaceX/status/207961150774706176/photo/1/large

ALL of the older people are hidden at the back, with the kids at the front.

I think you might be reading too much into a single group photograph - as if the people are arranged by the PR team?
All the women are in front too....
It's just a photograph of a happy team. No need to be "playing an angle".

[SpacexULA]

Are SpaceX playing on the young angle again?

https://twitter.com/SpaceX/status/207961150774706176/photo/1/large

ALL of the older people are hidden at the back, with the kids at the front.

I know where I work, usually the younger folks are much more pumped to get in the front, and older folks rather the back.  I for some reason seriously doubt that the photo was engineered to shove the older folks to the back.

Really one 4 of the folks in that photo look 40+ and 2 are semi hidden and 2 are plain as day.  I call no foul

[rickl]

Most group photos like that tend to have shorter people in the front and taller ones in the back.

All of them look pretty happy, though.   

[oiorionsbelt]

Photographers tend to put short people in front.

Whoops didn't see rickl's post