When will SpaceX’s Starship SN10 launch, what does it do differently and how high are its chances of a successful landing?
How will RocketLab send humans to space with their new Neutron Rocket?
Let’s find out!
My name is Felix, and I am your host for today’s episode of What about it!?
And as always, there’s been a lot going on in the space industry lately, so let’s dive right in!
Starship Updates
All systems go for launch! SpaceX seems to be ready for launch on Starship SN10.
Elon Musks latest prototype is sitting in Boca Chica Texas, ready to give it another go.
Make sure to watch today’s episode until the end, as there’s an important announcement for the WAI family you can participate in!
And Mauricio from RGV Aerial Photography as always did one of his flyby’s!
As one of his Patrons you get early access to all of these pictures.
Help him if you can and give him some money for the next flight!
And here’s one of the best-looking changes SpaceX has made to the launch site in a long time!
They’ve finally added their typical paintjob to the landing pad!
In Mary’s footage you can also see, that the inner ring now has that typical yellow color.
These markings have a tradition at SpaceX.
Here for example, you can see some footage of one of two SpaceX autonomous drone ships.
This one for example is called of course I still love you and it’s even written on the deck next to the markings.
The second one is called Just read the Instruction and soon they will even be joined by a third one.
A Shortfall of Gravitas
All three names are nods to the famous author, Iain Banks' sci-fi novel series, Culture, published from 1987 to 2012.
They’re names of spaceships.
Now, SpaceX has never named land-based landing pads.
The two in Florida are just called LZ 1 & 2. But wouldn’t it be cool, if SpaceX named this pad?
There are a few fitting spaceship names left in the Culture series.
How about “So much for subtlety” or “Funny, it worked last time”.
Just a little suggestion there for SpaceX.
But SpaceX is good at picking up jokes anyway.
Do you remember the term Wen Hop, which originated from LabPadre’s Nerdle community?
Let me introduce you to Raptor engine 47 or Thunder Chicken!
Wen Hop? Much wow! I just love the way, SpaceX picks up terms from the community.
They’re watching us as much as we’re watching them, and this creates a very special and incredibly unique bond.
Have you ever seen a DeltaIV Heavy with Tory Bruno’s Teeth on it chomping SpaceX to bits?
SpaceX is different in many ways and that’s what makes them so lovable!
Here’s another good one. This is another one of the recent engine deliveries photographed by Jack Beyer from NASA Spaceflight.
On a more serious note, SpaceX doesn’t just joke around.
They also deliver. Here you can see Starship SN10 on the test stand as seen on NASA Spaceflight.
They do an absolutely awesome job of delivering broadcasts from down there and this is the second static fire for Starship SN10.
Everything looks perfect and this sets the stage for yet another Starship test flight!
Maybe even as soon as tomorrow!
Late on Sunday evening Mary aka BocaChicaGal already received an evacuation notice for Monday which was revoked again only a few hours later,
but this tells us that SpaceX is very close to another launch now.
My Live Stream is already set up in cooperation with LabPadre and we’re getting ready for another hype train or two.
Set a reminder and don’t forget to get your favorite food ready.
These streams tend to be a bit longer sometimes, but every second is Gold, watching it all unfold live with the WAI family!
Looking at another picture from Mauricio we can get a clear view at the new fuel farm taking shape at the SpaceX Starship launch site.
Three tank foundations can be spotted on the already finished part of the foundation and two more are starting to take shape on the more unfinished
part. Since the lower part of the foundation facing the water has exactly the same shape as the top one,
we might see another two tank foundations here soon.
That would make it a total of 8 possible tanks to be erected here.
Very large ones too.
The second very interesting spot next to it is taking shape more and more as well.
These pipes sticking out of the ground are all connected.
In this picture from RGV from January 1st you can see it a bit better.
These are actually long u shaped pipes.
On one end connected via the main pipe channel coming from the old tank farm and on the other end…
Leading towards the orbital launch mount.
SpaceX will want Liquid oxygen, liquid methane and liquid nitrogen here at best and water for a deluge and fire extinguisher system.
What is your guess? Where will the different commodities go?
Tell me in the comments!
SpaceX has also been working on these large domes for a while now.
They’re being constructed at the well site, where SpaceX is also right now building a fuel production refinery for Methane and Liquid oxygen.
Here’s another view from NASA spaceflight.
They’re huge in diameter and they’re kind of crudely made.
Does this look like something that’s supposed to hold a high pressure?
In one of RGV’s panoramic shots from last Saturday we can get an idea of how wide they are.
Compared to the hull segments at the construction site they’re at least a third wider.
Almost double in fact. Early on there was a rumor that these could be a prototype dome construction for Starships.
That can now definitely be ruled out.
Another theory right now is that these tanks might be for the orbital launch site.
If we compare the round foundations at the orbital launch site with the diameter of SN7.2 though we can see that it’s about the same size.
If we now try to fit one of those domes from the well site on top of the foundations at the launch site, that doesn’t really fit.
Maybe a big tank and a small one next to each other, but that sounds strange.
Are those domes for something different than the launch site?
They would after all fit in the spot where they’re made right now.
Why would SpaceX make separate foundations at the well site just to craft domes?
Couldn’t they just do that in the construction tents?
There’s another clue as to what sort of tanks will be used at the construction site.
What you’re looking at here is the preparation for the sleeving of a rather strange dome.
With the shape of a forward Starship dome it does have some sort of pipes sticking out on top which you normally can’t find on a Starship dome.
It’s labelled as GSE dome, which normally stands for Ground Support Equipment in rocket talk.
Ground support equipment would be a fuel or water tank for example so there’s a high chance,
that this tank will be installed on the foundations that can be seen at the new fuel farm at the orbital launch site.
In return, if SpaceX uses Starship segments for tank construction at the new fuel farm,
the larger domes from the well site wouldn’t make much sense.
The Refinery complex is steadily growing, and SpaceX might need storage tanks here too.
In fact the construction effort SpaceX is putting into this part of the infrastructure right now rivals the launch site.
The Boca Chica Methane and Oxygen production plant is going to be yet another significant investment for SpaceX.
Looking at an object at the small bay we have yet another very interesting development to discuss.
This is titled the SN15 nose cone in the community and there’s something strange going on here.
Look at the very tip of the nose.
Do you see it?
Here’s another view but from the ground and through Mary’s lens.
It’s… flat. Cut off by SpaceX workers and being used for unknown purposes.
Back in November of last year, Musk stated on Twitter, that Starship SN15 would have major upgrades.
But is this really it or are we looking at a pathfinder?
Maybe a Lunar Starship Mockup that will receive an airlock in the nose tip where we’d normally find one of the header tanks?
Lunar Starships might not need any header tanks as they’re not supposed to land back on Earth and will utilize special descend engines located on the sides of the hull.
But that can’t be found on this nose cone yet.
It is missing flaps but has hinge mounts and it had the nose tip removed after originally being built with one.
It will be very interesting to see, if this really is for Starship Serial Number 15 or if it is for something completely different.
Recently this picture was tweeted by Stephen Clark.
It shows mockup builds of Dynetics, Blue Origin and SpaceX for the Artemis lunar lander program.
The picture in the middle shows a supposed Lunar Starship crane mockup quickly built by SpaceX to demonstrate the concept to NASA.
Now, I couldn’t confirm if those pictures were released by NASA or how Mr. Clark got his hands on them,
but he’s a journalist for Spaceflightnow.com, so I’ll trust the source for now.
Looking at an official concept shot the crane system is visible on the side of the hull coming down from a single hatch opening.
The hatch of course is located above the tank section.
Looking at the nosecone with the cut of nose again does not reveal a hatch of any sort, so the purpose for now stay’s unknown.
All eyes are on Starship SN10 at the moment, which will try to improve on the landing by relighting all three Raptor engines.
Contrary to Starship SN9, which only relit the needed two engines for the landing burn and failed,
because one engine did not ignite properly, this should in theory give SpaceX the needed redundancy to finally perform a good landing.
Again though, this is prototyping.
Elon Musk predicts that the chance is 60% for Starship SN10 to actually make it and that is a good indicator for how likely another failure is
according to the lead engineer himself.
Just a bit less likely than a success.
Do not miss the live stream and let’s find out together!
Now, let’s have a look at RocketLab entering the medium lift rocket business!
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RocketLab’s Neutron Rocket
This one comes with a bang! RocketLab, known for its carbon fiber small lift launch vehicle Electron is introducing a new rocket.
A Reusable one! A big one! One that’s capable of human space flight!
Introducing their first rocket to the public in 2014, RocketLab has since broken many records.
The worlds first carbon fiber composite rocket to reach Space.
The first 3D printed rocket engine to reach space and the first electric pump cycle engine ever produced.
Every 24 hours one engine can be printed.
The world’s first private orbital launch site.
Launching Electron Rockets since May 2017 they’ve delivered 97 satellites to orbit so far and managed to do one of the most difficult things you
can do in the rocket industry.
To be successful as a private competitor.
Now, RocketLab wants to go on.
They want to continue the success story and for that they need something bigger.
Introducing Neutron to the rocket industry is the logical step to take.
A bigger rocket for bigger tasks ahead.
There’s not much known about it yet.
8 Tons to LEO and 1.5 tons to Mars or Venus.
Reusable first stage and on top of all that it’s supposed to be human spaceflight capable.
Caspar Stanley has made a first animation for us and RocketLab has released a detailed Render and both together show RocketLabs new workhorse in detail.
RocketLab has not settled on the hull material yet,
but it won’t be carbon composite like on the Electron rocket as reentry heat makes a tougher material necessary.
Currently RocketLab utilizes the 3D printed Ruhterford engine for their Electron Rocket,
but it won’t even be nearly as strong enough for the task.
A new engine has to be developed.
Good news for the US east coast.
The rocket and the engines will be built and launched near RocketLab’s second launch complex at Wallops.
A new facility will be built and they’re currently holding a competition as to where exactly that will be.
Hundreds of new jobs will be created in the process and it will be close to Wallops for efficiency reasons.
First stages are supposed to land on ocean platforms.
Very similar to SpaceX’s solution and the way to go right now.
And how does RocketLab finance this endeavor?
RocketLab is Partnering with Vector,
a private investment firm focused on the technology sector and will go public later this year on the stock market.
They will be listed as RKLB on the Nasdaq, which should be sufficient to fund such a large project.
RocketLab continues to impress and there aren’t many companies out there to stand by their word as much as Pater Beck does.
Good luck, RocketLab! You Rock etlab.
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If you want to help, fill out the Form and give us some ideas!
A link can be found in the description!
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