Space Exploration megathread

[DaFace]

Since a number of cool things are happening in space exploration these days, we'll widen the scope of this thread a smidge. Conversation about all things space exploration are welcome, whether it be from NASA, SpaceX, ULA, Blue Origin, or anyone else. Chances are most of the discussion will still be about SpaceX since they love to make things public and fun, but nothing's off limits. I'll eventually get around to modifying the OP to include resources for other companies too, but in the meantime, feel free to post any cool stuff you run across.

Lists of Upcoming Missions

Spoiler!

General lists:
https://nextspaceflight.com/
http://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/

SpaceX specific list:
https://spacexnow.com/upcoming.php

How to Watch a Live Launch

Spoiler!

SpaceX:
https://www.youtube.com/user/spacexchannel

ULA:
https://www.youtube.com/user/UnitedLaunchAlliance

RocketLab:
https://www.youtube.com/user/RocketLabNZ

NASATV will also cover some launches (primarily ISS resupply missions):
https://www.youtube.com/user/NASAtelevision

Where to Learn More

Spoiler!

Some cool pics...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/spacex/
https://www.instagram.com/spacex/?hl=en

Twitter feed is usually interesing...

https://twitter.com/SpaceX
https://twitter.com/elonmusk

The SpaceX sub is a great source of info...

https://www.reddit.com/r/spacex
https://www.reddit.com/r/spacex/wiki/index

And for a more forum-style discussion board...

http://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php#c17

And there are plenty of YouTube channels with great content...

• Joe Scott - Lost of "future" discussion. Some about rockets and space. Much that goes beyond.
• Scott Manley - Super smart dude (engineer) who reviews a lot of major events in space exploration.
• Frazer Cain (Universe Today) - Podcast-style videos that go in-depth into space topics.
• Tim Dodd (Everyday Astronaut) - A "random dude" who got really into space (particularly SpaceX). He's a great resource for simple explanations of this stuff, as well as live hosting launches.
• USLaunchReport - Lost of videos of the more mundane stuff (e.g., booster recovery operations). Not a ton of commentary.
• NASASpaceFlight - Live hosting of most launches including a ton of video of Starlink operations.

Glossary

Spoiler!

Space discussions tend to get a little bogged down in jargon, so here's a list of terms you might encounter. (Others, please let me know of others that should be added.)

• ASDS - Autonomous Spaceport Droneship - The "barges" that they sometimes land rockets on.
• Dragon - The cone-shaped capsule that sits at the top of the rocket for ISS-bound launches that holds the cargo (or, in the future, humans).
• F9 - Falcon 9, the name of the rocket itself.
• FH - Falcon Heavy, the three-booster version.
• GTO - Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit, a type of orbit that will eventually result in the satellite orbiting the earth as it turns so that it seems to be in the same spot from the ground (such as DirecTV or Dish satellites). These types of launches are particularly challenging because they require a lot of power to get them into the right orbit, leaving very little fuel left for landing.
• HIF - Horizontal Integration Facility - the building near the launch pad where they put all of the pieces of the rocket together before rolling it out to the pad.
• ISS - The International Space Station
• JRTI - Just Read The Instructions, the name of the "barge" that they land on for west-coast launches.
• LEO - Low Earth Orbit, a fairly low orbit shared by many satellites and ISS. These launches usually require less power to achieve the proper orbit, so the first stage can often be landed back on land rather than on a drone ship.
• LZ1 - Landing Zone 1, basically a big open slab of concrete at Cape Canaveral where the first stage will attempt to land (for some launches).
• NET - No Earlier Than, basically the date they're hoping to launch, but rocket launches have a tendency of getting delayed.
• OCISLY - Of Course I Still Love You, the name of the "barge" that they land on for east-coast launches.
• RTLS - Return to Landing Site, a mission where the first stage comes back and lands at LZ1.
• Starship - SpaceX's next-generation rocket (and spacecraft) that will hopefully one day take us to Mars. Starship is the "second stage" that will carry cargo or people, but also refers to the whole system. (It's confusing, but think of it like the Space Shuttle, which was both the shuttle itself and the entire launch system.)
• Super Heavy - The giant booster that will carry Starship to space.

[Pitt Gorilla]

Not really space exploration and not really new information, but I appreciate how they talk about rockets utilizing the gravity of wherever we're heading.

StarTalk, BTW.

https://fb.watch/u3mtOQ8j9u/

[Shiver Me Timbers]

NASA is set to determine the fate of two stranded astronauts tomorrow, after their ride home aboard Boeing's Starliner was deemed too risky.

Wilmore and Williams are reportedly unable to hitch a lift with a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, which regularly transports humans and cargo to the orbital outpost.

......The spacesuits Wilmore and Williams arrived in are only suitable for Boeing's Starliner spacecraft, and will not work with the Dragon vessel.The Dragon spacecraft has its own range of spacesuits that it can operate with.

Not to sound like an idiot but why couldn't they have suitable spacex suits delivered on an earlier supply flight? I have read they could be up there until February.

[DaFace]

Originally Posted by Shiver Me Timbers

Not to sound like an idiot but why couldn't they have suitable spacex suits delivered on an earlier supply flight? I have read they could be up there until February.

(Assuming they don't somehow decide to send them home on Starliner after all...)

They can and will get suits up to them. The issue with timing is that there's a crew of four who have been up there since March. There aren't extra seats on Dragon, so the priority is getting those four home.

Butch and Suni will slot in as members of the next expedition, which would launch in September with only 2 out of 4 originally-planned crew. Then that set of four would come home in March.

It's not ideal, but astronauts are trained to be able to do anything they're asked. Butch and Suni have already been doing plenty of work on station and will continue to do so.

[DaFace]

Eric is about as good a space beat writer as there is. This sounds like a done deal to me.

I'm now hearing from multiple people that Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams will come back to Earth on Crew Dragon. It's not official, and won't be until NASA says so. Still, it is shocking to think about. I mean, Dragon is named after Puff the Magic Dragon. This industry is wild.

— Eric Berger (@SciGuySpace) August 23, 2024

[Easy 6]

Originally Posted by LagunaSWana

If they have to stay there until February, are they going to start growing potatoes to keep from starving?

Originally Posted by DaFace

Supplies really aren't an issue. They keep the place very well-stocked, and they can adjust what they send up on resupply missions if needed.

Is there enough food to last with two extra people, that was my biggest question... its at least good to know that isn't an issue

Still a big ask of those two astronauts tho, thats why I admire astronauts so much... they're right there with elite James Bond/door kicking spec ops when it comes to selfless guts

Amazingly brave people

[4th and Long]

Originally Posted by Easy 6

Is there enough food to last with two extra people, that was my biggest question

Normally they have around 6 months worth of stored food onboard, and the various cargo vehicles restock the supplies each time they visit. The intent is to have enough reserves in case some of the supply vehicles are late or crash. Minimum reserves are set at 45 days, at which point they would need to take action.

[GeorgeZimZam]

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson makes it official: "NASA has decided that Butch and Suni will return with Crew-9 next February."

— Eric Berger (@SciGuySpace) August 24, 2024

Starliner will return uncrewed and Butch and Suni will come home with @SpaceX’s Crew-9. Better safe than sorry, let’s hope @BoeingSpace collects all the data necessary to fly crew safely in the future! I’m sure this wasn’t an easy decision to make.

— Everyday Astronaut (@Erdayastronaut) August 24, 2024

[GeorgeZimZam]

SpaceX stands ready to support @NASA however we can https://t.co/wekmURt8CX

— Gwynne Shotwell (@Gwynne_Shotwell) August 24, 2024

[DaFace]

No surprise at this point. Hopefully Starliner makes it back without issue and they can figure out the valve issue on the ground.

[GeorgeZimZam]

"Game on"

>Can't return their own crew pic.twitter.com/3VyWyB9eN8

— Truthful🛰️ (@Truthful_ast) August 24, 2024

NASA just decided that SpaceX needs to rescue Boeing’s astronauts.

Written before the Starliner debacle, Berger’s forthcoming book Reentry tells the backstory with plenty of foreshadowing, starting with Boeing’s attempt to be the sole crewed spacecraft provider:

“Boeing had a… pic.twitter.com/B3uwAKG2r2

— Steve Jurvetson (@FutureJurvetson) August 24, 2024

Spoiler!

NASA just decided that SpaceX needs to rescue Boeing’s astronauts.

Written before the Starliner debacle, Berger’s forthcoming book Reentry tells the backstory with plenty of foreshadowing, starting with Boeing’s attempt to be the sole crewed spacecraft provider:

“Boeing had a solution, telling NASA it needed the entire Commercial Crew budget to succeed. Because a lot of decision makers believed that only Boeing could safely fly astronauts, the company’s gambit very nearly worked.” (p.270)

After “a cascade of pro-Boeing opinions swept around the table, a building and unbreakable wave of consensus” (272), NASA’s human exploration lead Gerstenmeier took a month to decide, eventually asking for more budget to support two competing efforts. Ultimately, Boeing would receive twice as much funding as SpaceX, but SpaceX was in the game, as the new kid on the block.

“It had been a very near thing. NASA officials had already written a justification for selecting Boeing, solely for the Commercial Crew contract. It was ready to go and had to be hastily rewritten to include SpaceX. This delayed the announcement to September 16.” (274)

“Former NASA astronaut Garrett Reisman helped write the proposal and provide and astronaut’s perspective. But their small team was no match for Boeing’s proposal-writing machine. It was intimidating knowing that 200 people were working on Boeing’s proposal, when Dragon’s team could fit in a small conference room.” (275) With Reisman in photo 2 above from 2012, after pulling an all-nighter at SpaceX: https://flic.kr/p/c5sY3N

“BOEING HAS AN ASTRONAUT PROBLEM” (291)

“When the SpaceX engineers could be corralled, they were eager to hear feedback from the NASA astronauts , excited to work with them, and attentive to their suggestions. By contrast, Boeing engineers seemed indifferent to hearing from the four commercial crew astronauts.” (293)

“There was an arrogance with them that you certainly didn’t see at SpaceX.” (astronaut Hurley, p.294)

“Boeing also underperformed. Not only were its engineers overconfident, but the company’s management also was not putting skin in the game. Hurley did not see any urgency from Boeing’s teams. Rather, they appeared to be working part-time on Starliner. ‘It was all about managing dollars and cents from Boeing’s perspective,’ Hurley said.” (295)

“During the summer of 2018 as Boeing worked toward a pad abort test in White Sands, New Mexico (Boeing never flew an in-flight abort test)… a significant problem occurred due to a propellant leak. Ultimately, this would delay the company’s pad abort test by more than a year, but at the time, Boeing neglected to tell the Commercial Crew astronauts about the issue.” (295)

“That summer NASA was closing in on making crew assignments for the first flights. Hurley told the chief of the astronaut office he would not fly on Starliner.” (296)

He went on to fly the first SpaceX Dragon to bring crew to the ISS (we were there for the launch, photo 3). “‘It was the second space age,’ Hurley said. ‘And it started in 2020.’” (313) My video from Mission Control captured the excitement of capture: https://youtube.com/watch?v=bwqdEKLitC8

“SpaceX emerged triumphant over another major domestic competitor, Boeing, as well. The company that supposedly went for substance over pizzazz, ended up with neither in the Commercial Crew race.” (340)

Just prior to their first human flight, there were several “shocking discoveries, especially so close to the flight. Neither NASA nor Boeing had good answers for why they had been found as astronauts were about to strap into Starliner. Questions emerged about the company’s commitment to the program. Because it operates on a fixed-price contract [and despite being 2x higher than SpaceX’s], Boeing has reported losses of nearly $1 billion on Starliner.” (342)

After being stranded in space, Suni will fly with SpaceX, as she originally hoped (photo 1 above).

And during this same time, there was a Boeing – Lockheed joint venture competing for launch, ULA: “The U.S. rocket wars were over. SpaceX had won. Since then, SpaceX has kept beating the dead horse. Over one stretch, from the end of 2022 into the first half of 2023, SpaceX launched more than fifty rockets between ULA flights. It has become difficult to remember that these two companies were once rivals, or that ULA’s employees would drive up to the SpaceX fence, jeering.” (339)

Reentry book pre-order: https://amazon.com/Reentry-SpaceX-Re.../dp/1637745273 cc
@ElonMusk

[Donger]

[Donger]

SpaceX is targeting Wednesday, August 28 at 3:38 a.m. ET for Falcon 9’s launch of Polaris Dawn to low-Earth orbit from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. There are two additional launch opportunities within the four-hour window at 5:23 a.m. ET and 7:09 a.m. ET. If needed, backup opportunities are available on Thursday, August 29 at the same times.

A live webcast of this mission will begin about 3.5 hours prior to liftoff, which you can watch here and on X @SpaceX.

The Dragon spacecraft supporting this mission previously flew Crew-1 to and from the International Space Station, and Inspiration4, the first all-civilian mission to orbit. This will be the fourth flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched Crew-8 and two Starlink missions. Following stage separation, Falcon 9’s first stage will land on the A Shortfall of Gravitas droneship stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.

MISSION OBJECTIVES
During their multi-day mission to orbit, Dragon and the crew will endeavor to reach the highest Earth orbit ever flown since the Apollo program and participate in the first-ever extravehicular activity (EVA) by commercial astronauts wearing SpaceX-developed EVA suits. They will also conduct 36 research studies and experiments from 31 partner institutions designed to advance both human health on Earth and during long-duration spaceflight, and test Starlink laser-based communications in space.

The Polaris Dawn crew will combine their expertise, knowledge, and passion for spaceflight to further human space exploration. This will be the first human spaceflight for Mission Pilot Kidd Poteet, Mission Specialist Sarah Gillis, and Mission Specialist and Medical Officer Anna Menon. Mission Commander Jared Isaacman previously flew to space as commander of Inspiration4. This will also be the first time two SpaceX employees will be part of a human spaceflight crew, providing valuable insight to future missions on the road to making life multiplanetary.

[BlackHelicopters]

Anxiety inducing.