Firefly Space : Company and Development General Thread

[Redclaws]

They say they never had a Reaver blow up. Sounds to me they aren't pushing hard enough.

(And maybe that's why they didn't engineer it for engine-out?)

There some things in the video that "never happened" that happened, so I would also not be surprised if Reaver had dev issues as well.

It may depend on what definition of “blow up” you want to use - for example, most of that engine still appears to be on the stand, and the stand itself is still there.  Did that engine blow up?  How energetic and chaotic does it have to be before it “blew up” rather than just failed?

I would guess it’s this sort of thing - maybe they never leveled a test stand… but perhaps some chunks of engine flew away pretty fast.

[gongora]

https://apps.fcc.gov/oetcf/els/reports/STA_Print.cfm?mode=current&application_seq=110841

Next flight appears to be NET 2022-01-31

[starchasercowboy]

Blue Ghost
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/10/firefly-completes-design-of-moon-mission-aiming-for-2023-launch/

[Phil Stooke]

Nice... I like the bit where chief engineer William Coogan refers to a camera:  "One camera, at the top of the spacecraft, will be set to track to Earth as it moves over the Moon, and its eclipse as it sets over the horizon. Coogan said he is eager to share such a view of our home planet with the entire world."

I hope he is referring to using the camera in orbit before landing.  He would be waiting a long time for Earth to set when the lander is on the surface.

[Mahurora]

https://www.dongascience.com/news.php?idx=47562

Posting since I haven't found any reply since June (when the article came out) related to the topic.

Apparently Firefly contacted KARI to acquire their new 75 ton 1st stage motor via Noosphere Ventures. It is unknown how exactly they were planning to use the engine but quoting Polyakov, the article mentions that they were planning to develop an alternative option to Firefly Alpha, which I guess would have been a single engine version of the Alpha.

It seems to be that both parties have reached quite an advanced level of negotiations but was met with unfortunate turmoil concerning Korean regulations and a political power game within KARI between former and then head of the institution.

This kinda feels like a contingency plan from Firefly in case the difficulties regarding Reaver-1 persist. It could also possibly be the case that the Korean engine would have been able to be acquired on favorable terms since they are fairly new to the field and back then the engine has only flown once.

Anyways, quite unfortunate this fell through imo.

[Dmitry_V_home]

The engine LRE-75 is, in fact, the Korean counterpart of Merlin 1. Why don't they just buy Merlin from SpaceX?

[ParabolicSnark]

The engine LRE-75 is, in fact, the Korean counterpart of Merlin 1. Why don't they just buy Merlin from SpaceX?

Because that would:
1) Require SpaceX to be interested in selling Merlins
2) Require SpaceX to be interested in selling to Tom Markusic

[Dmitry_V_home]

The engine LRE-75 is, in fact, the Korean counterpart of Merlin 1. Why don't they just buy Merlin from SpaceX?

Because that would:
1) Require SpaceX to be interested in selling Merlins
2) Require SpaceX to be interested in selling to Tom Markusic

Nothing personal, only business

[russianhalo117]

The engine LRE-75 is, in fact, the Korean counterpart of Merlin 1. Why don't they just buy Merlin from SpaceX?

KARI's engines had Ukrainian technology transfer. The predecessor of KRE-75 was the KRE-30 which started in Ukraine and then finished in South Korea. Notable
engine export versions in future upgrades are the RD-808 and RD-816 (Tentatively KRE-250) respectively. There were many contracts across the whole launch vehicle with technology transfer through the whole process.

Paywalled write up: Ukraine helps South Korea to develop indigenous space rocket

[Dmitry_V_home]

The engine LRE-75 is, in fact, the Korean counterpart of Merlin 1. Why don't they just buy Merlin from SpaceX?

KARI's engines had Ukrainian technology transfer. The predecessor of KRE-75 was the KRE-30 which started in Ukraine and then finished in South Korea. Notable
engine export versions in future upgrades are the RD-808 and RD-816 (Tentatively KRE-250) respectively. There were many contracts across the whole launch vehicle with technology transfer through the whole process.

Paywalled write up: Ukraine helps South Korea to develop indigenous space rocket

Maybe. The problem is that in Ukraine there are no traditions and experience in the development of oxygen-kerosene LRPs with a gas generator cycle. And KRE is just that, and according to circuit solutions, it exactly copies Merlin 1.

[edzieba]

And KRE is just that, and according to circuit solutions, it exactly copies Merlin 1.

Beyond being a Kerolox Gas Gen cycle engine (of which there are... a not insubstantial number of varieties) it doesn't share much with Merlin. No combined pintle injector / main valve, no channel-wall chamber, no common predecessors, etc.

[russianhalo117]

Paywalled Firefly/Skyrora writeup: Ukraine's Elon Musk mulls new rocket

[jstrotha0975]

Paywalled Firefly/Skyrora writeup: Ukraine's Elon Musk mulls new rocket

This is behind a pay wall or something.

[russianhalo117]

Paywalled Firefly/Skyrora writeup: Ukraine's Elon Musk mulls new rocket

This is behind a pay wall or something.

Yep that is what it says. In a year or two from the publish date it wont be

[starchasercowboy]

Could Northrop be the partner for Beta?  Could Northrop be looking for a replacement of Antares that is more competitive to Falcon 9? Infrastructure at Wallops already there. No Russian engines. Liquid second stage.

https://spacenews.com/firefly-aerospace-hires-former-air-force-officer-to-lead-space-transportation-sales/

[russianhalo117]

Could Northrop be the partner for Beta?  Could Northrop be looking for a replacement of Antares that is more competitive to Falcon 9? Infrastructure at Wallops already there. No Russian engines. Liquid second stage.

https://spacenews.com/firefly-aerospace-hires-former-air-force-officer-to-lead-space-transportation-sales/

For all questions you list that is firmly not on NGSS's table of plans. Antares will be around, but with changes. For the upcoming NASA CRS-3 programme they considering some moderate to major architecture changes to the entire launch vehicle.

[Davidthefat]

And KRE is just that, and according to circuit solutions, it exactly copies Merlin 1.

Beyond being a Kerolox Gas Gen cycle engine (of which there are... a not insubstantial number of varieties) it doesn't share much with Merlin. No combined pintle injector / main valve, no channel-wall chamber, no common predecessors, etc.

If their promotional videos are to be trusted, they seem to be running swirl injectors for both the main and GG injectors.

[textbookwarrior]

How Ex-SpaceX Engineers Are Fueling The Space Race With Firefly

[zubenelgenubi]

Belated cross-post, article dated November 3:

https://spacenews.com/firefly-aerospace-hires-former-air-force-officer-to-lead-space-transportation-sales/

He said the first stage of the second Alpha rocket will go on a test stand late this week, followed by the second stage. The vehicle should be at Vandenberg in December for a launch planned for late January.

If that next launch is successful, Markusic said Firefly plans four more Alpha launches in 2022. That includes a launch for NASA’s Venture Class Launch Services program, slated to be the fourth Alpha launch.

The company is working in parallel on its Space Utility Vehicle space tug. Firefly planned to test a thruster for that tug on the first Alpha launch, and Markusic said an “identical technology demo” for it will fly on the next Alpha mission. The first fully functional version of the SUV is scheduled to fly in about 15 months, he projected.

Firefly recently completed the critical design review for the Blue Ghost lunar lander that will fly in 2023 on a mission for NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services program.

[zubenelgenubi]

The following satellites are listed for the Firefly inaugural launch, NET January 31.

Source: https://amsat-dl.org/satelliten-geplant/

Sapling-1
QUBIK-3/4/5/6
Spinnaker3 (hosted payload)
GENESIS-G
GENESIS-J