Dragon’s Breath an asteroid defense system

[Prober]

Dragon’s Breath an asteroid defense system

Just heard a rumor that someone saw the Dragon trunk reuse thread and wants to develop it into a high power laser defense system for rogue asteroids.

[Chris Bergin]

Isn't that taking Elon as saving the planet a little bit too literally?

Funky graphic all the same.

[FinalFrontier]

Isn't that taking Elon as saving the planet a little bit too literally?

Funky graphic all the same.

I find the graphic to be quite informative sir 

[kevin-rf]

Maybe they can do a LABS maneuver in delivering the knockout asteroid punch!

[neilh]

I have to admit, that's pretty funny, well done.

[Ludus]

"Dragon's Breath" is at the very least a cool name in search of a project.

[rushdrums]

I'm sure Elon will demand at least "One Billion Dollarssssss" from the US for not pointing it at Wash D.C.

-Rush
...

[darkenfast]

"Dragon's Breath" is nothing. I know people who can demonstrate that phenomenon most days!

[go4mars]

The picture does make me wonder about the potential for additively leaving battery packs, radiative cooling parts, & solar panels in space.  Maybe they would be left at future non-ISS stations as spares or extra heating/ radiative cooling.  Perhaps set up so Arkyd 200's can click in.        If things are being redesigned anyways...

[SpacexULA]

The picture does make me wonder about the potential for additively leaving battery packs, radiative cooling parts, & solar panels in space.  Maybe they would be left at future non-ISS stations as spares or extra heating/ radiative cooling.  Perhaps set up so Arkyd 200's can click in.        If things are being redesigned anyways...

The separation of the trunk happens after the vehicle is already going a suborbital speed.  It would require the trunk to be separated before the first deorbit burns, which would give SpaceX much less time to troubleshoot a non optimal Draco firing.

[aero]

I've always thought it was such a waste to carry something to orbit then burn it up. Dragon's trunk is not the only piece of hardware that should be repurposed once it has served its purpose to orbit, instead of just being destroyed. JMO

[dorkmo]

maybe they could colaborate with orbital and make a cygnus+dragon trunk space junk station

[ChefPat]

Would it look anything like this Dragon’s Breath?
http://www.toptenz.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Dragons-Breath-Rounds.jpg

[bob the martian]

I've always thought it was such a waste to carry something to orbit then burn it up. Dragon's trunk is not the only piece of hardware that should be repurposed once it has served its purpose to orbit, instead of just being destroyed. JMO

Baby steps. 

If they can manage to recover the booster stages, they'll have accomplished something altogether remarkable; I won't begrudge them tossing the trunk.  At some point the effort isn't worth the cost. 

Besides, they'd have to redesign both the trunk and the spacecraft (as well as change the conops) to support recovery and reuse; currently, the trunk has to power the spacecraft through the deorbit burn, so by the time it separates it's already doomed. 

Instead of designing a recoverable trunk (and all the compromises that introduces), the better option is to get rid of it, or at least get rid of the bits that make it more than a dumb fairing for unpressurized cargo; figure out a different way to power the spacecraft that doesn't rely on a solar array and can be integrated into the spacecraft itself.  Yes, I realize that's easier said than done, otherwise they'd be doing it already.  But that's the approach I'd take if I were really worried about it. 

[TripD]

maybe they could colaborate with orbital and make a cygnus+dragon trunk space junk station

Does this junk make my trunk look big?  That image up-thread reminds me more of a Dragon's tail.

I do think that space junk management will happen soon enough though.

[Prober]

"Dragon's Breath" is at the very least a cool name in search of a project.

I agree 

[rst]

Besides, they'd have to redesign both the trunk and the spacecraft (as well as change the conops) to support recovery and reuse; currently, the trunk has to power the spacecraft through the deorbit burn, so by the time it separates it's already doomed. 

Instead of designing a recoverable trunk (and all the compromises that introduces), the better option is to get rid of it, or at least get rid of the bits that make it more than a dumb fairing for unpressurized cargo; figure out a different way to power the spacecraft that doesn't rely on a solar array and can be integrated into the spacecraft itself.  Yes, I realize that's easier said than done, otherwise they'd be doing it already.  But that's the approach I'd take if I were really worried about it.

IIRC, Elon's already suggested that DragonRider might run entirely on batteries.  (Which is what they did on the COTS-1 test flight as well, but given how short it was, that's not much of a precedent!)