Falcon Heavy Demo Mission Payload Discussion

[Bob Shaw]

The roadster could almost fit in the dragon trunk.

So what would fit in the Roadster’s trunk?

I don't know, but it would glow. Ask Harry Dean Stanton!

[Bob Shaw]

I wonder what sort of preparation will be done to the car to make it safe for the flight.  I would presume that all fluids would be removed to prevent any leaking and the tires would be cut open to avoid them blowing out when the pressure drops.

Also, the windows will be opened slightly.

[Lumina]

Still convinced it’s completely real until Musk says otherwise. It makes too much sense, especially in the Mars Orbit version not in orbit around Mars.

Putting any “Silly” object in earth orbit would draw reasonable criticism for adding to SpaceJunk and adding a nonzero probability of injuring or killing someone on reentry.

Putting it in orbit around Mars would draw criticism for Planetary Protection issues since it would eventually hit the planet. It would also be harder to achieve.

Putting his own Tesla Roadster into the same orbit as Mars seems brilliant. It’s a demonstration of FH but even more a demonstration that he can do what he says he’s going to do even if it seems fantastic. It’s great promotion for Tesla and SpaceX going into 2018 which will be a big year for both of them.

It’s essentially a fulfillment of Musks original ambition before founding SpaceX to send a private mission to Mars simply to promote interest in spacefaring. It would do that very well. The original idea of sending a green house to the surface would have encountered opposition.

Exactly. It's a stroke of genius.

Elon is also acutely aware that customers who've paid their money are waiting for their Teslas. Hence, it's "his own" Tesla that's going up, and not "a Tesla".

[IanThePineapple]

The roadster could almost fit in the dragon trunk.

So what would fit in the Roadster’s trunk?

A Dragon model

[DanielW]

I think it imperative that the Roadster contain a teapot and a bowl of petunias.

[Aussie_Space_Nut]

Clearly this is all about disrupting the current car sales paradigm. Just imagine.......

Tesla has now partnered with SpaceX to give you the following guarantee,

"Order online and we will deliver your new car anywhere in the world within the next hour OR IT'S FREE!"

[Stormbringer]

No need to remove the tires. Just take out the valve stems so they are vented to space.

there are automotive rated tires that consist of hexgonal cells open to the surrounding environment. They cannot go flat or burst. They were developed for the military (i think) and they are now available after market for civilian vehicles.

https://www.google.com/search?q=hexagonal+airless+tires&client=firefox-b-1&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiInuT_8ezXAhXIxYMKHcr9AGsQsAQILg&biw=1536&bih=751

[nacnud]

The roadster could almost fit in the dragon trunk.

So what would fit in the Roadster’s trunk?

A lot of Superman memory crystals. These guys made it to Elon’s Twitter.http://www.archmission.com

So Elon isn't Tony Stark, he's Hari Seldon!

[billh]

The roadster could almost fit in the dragon trunk.

So what would fit in the Roadster’s trunk?

A wheel of cheese.

[Darkseraph]

There should be a actual Teapot, hopefully one that belonged to Bertrand Russell, in the Trunk of the Roadster.

http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?t=123217

If the Roadster is confirmed, we need a thread about other things that ought to be included with it.

And that teapot should be a 3D printed Utah Teapot!

[lamontagne]

Will it simply be tied town to the second stage?

[Ludus]

There should be a actual Teapot, hopefully one that belonged to Bertrand Russell, in the Trunk of the Roadster.

http://forums.xkcd.com/viewtopic.php?t=123217

If the Roadster is confirmed, we need a thread about other things that ought to be included with it.

And that teapot should be a 3D printed Utah Teapot!

Bertrand Russell would likely approve.

[lamontagne]

Down by the left rear wheel. 

[sanman]

A car seems like a waste of money - I would have offered Bigelow a free ride to space for one of their biggest habs, if they'd accept the risk. Come on - give a leg up to your fellow spacefarer, or something - but a car seems like a wasteful indulgence. Ultimately, it's just another piece of space junk to clutter the solar system with.

[docmordrid]

Neither The Verge or Elon come out of this well, but especially not The Verge.

"Musk sent us a response in a direct message on Twitter saying he “totally made it up.” We now know that response was false; a person familiar with the matter told The Verge Saturday evening that the payload is in fact real. "

>

Why believe Verge's interpretation of the Musk comment? It could just as easily have been a misinterpretation of him relating the decision-making process. They screwed up one thing...

[JAFO]

The roadster could almost fit in the dragon trunk.

So what would fit in the Roadster’s trunk?

A copy of The Mars Chronicles.
A Major Matt Mason doll.

[lamontagne]

A car seems like a waste of money - I would have offered Bigelow a free ride to space for one of their biggest habs, if they'd accept the risk. Come on - give a leg up to your fellow spacefarer, or something - but a car seems like a wasteful indulgence. Ultimately, it's just another piece of space junk to clutter the solar system with.

This is the attitude that has killed space exploration. The strange disdain of fun. The solar system is made of junk.  Planets are just accreted junk piles.  So this seems fitting to me.
Bigelow, 'shudder', a lawsuit magnet. 

If you absolutely have to be practical, they might monitor the car to see how various materials behave, in particular the battery, as they are going to need a lot of them, eventually.

[vapour_nudge]

The roadster could almost fit in the dragon trunk.

So what would fit in the Roadster’s trunk?

A lot of Superman memory crystals. These guys made it to Elon’s Twitter.http://www.archmission.com

So Elon isn't Tony Stark, he's Hari Seldon!

Launching the Tesla into space just confirms it for me. The Roadster price is Sky High for me.
Let's hope Elon doesn't blow it all sky high.

[Aussie_Space_Nut]

Given the extreme risk of first flight, the extreme cost of spaceflight, it's rare that you can genuinly have some fun like this. So I'm all for it. I wonder if Abby Garrett will do a cartoon of this one! :-)

[Ludus]

A car seems like a waste of money - I would have offered Bigelow a free ride to space for one of their biggest habs, if they'd accept the risk. Come on - give a leg up to your fellow spacefarer, or something - but a car seems like a wasteful indulgence. Ultimately, it's just another piece of space junk to clutter the solar system with.

It doesn’t cost anything because it’s just a necessary test of FH. NASA or it’s traditional contractors would never do something like this which is exactly why it’s genius and a Declaration of Independence. They wouldn’t dare do something that might be seen as an indulgence. Art is indulgence. Is is Art. It’s very unambiguously only about symbolism and ideas. That happens to bring closure to the first chapter of SpaceX history since Musk first started it after considering what amounted to a Mars mission as an Art installation. SpaceX finally achieves Musk’s Mars Art project without wasting anything but his Tesla Roadster.