Space X Becomes First Private Company to Build Space Craft and Put Humans in Space - Politics Forum.org | PoFo

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#15095589
Here is some good news for the U.S. today. Space X has become the first private company to build a space craft, make it much more cost effective than previous government built spacecraft and put humans into space:



CNN wrote:The Crew Dragon capsule, carrying astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, is now flying free through Earth's orbit. The capsule uses tiny thrusters to stay oriented and help steer the spacecraft toward the International Space Station.

It's a slow and precise journey. Behnken and Hurley will spend about 19 hours in the spacecraft as climbs toward the ISS, where they're expected to dock around 10:30 am ET tomorrow.


https://www.cnn.com/business/live-news/ ... index.html
#15095666
@wat0n

I agree. I am glad to finally see the private sector get into the business of building rockets for space travel. I think they can probably do it more efficiently and cost effectively. I like the re-usable rocket parts which makes space travel cheaper and more viable. Elon Musk and his engineers did an outstanding job. I would assume other entrepreneurs and private companies around the world might try to follow suit. NASA is talking about putting women on the moon which will help garner Democratic support for traveling to the moon again. I hope to see the first human land on Mars in my lifetime as well. Tom Cruise is also wanting to go take a flight up to the Space Station to do some filming for a movie I read somewhere. These private sector space rockets make all that a possibility.
#15095690
@Rugoz

Rugoz wrote:Previous spacecraft were also built by private companies, it's just that SpaceX had the lead on this one (with oversight from NASA).

SpaceX has definitely reduced the cost though, in particular development cost. They've changed the game in that regard.


I wasn't sure about that. I am assuming the Space Shuttle was developed by a private company, correct? Either way, it really looks like Elon Musk and his team of engineers have done an outstanding job and have helped to push space travel forward and helped to make space more accessible than it was previously. It's pretty impressive what his company has accomplished. I am amazed and I admire Elon Musk's entrepreneurial skills.
#15095909
@ingliz

UUUHHH OHHH! An American hater and communist has showed up to the party here in this thread. :lol: Ingliz, I can't imagine you and your Russian comrads are too happy at such a successful launch yesterday. I imagine the Russian space program is feeling threatened given that Space X can do it better and cheaper than them.

And HERE'S THE THING, the Space X rocket from what I have been reading is actually a BETTER and MORE RELIABLE rocket than the Soyuz. I can't see how you and your Russian friends would be happy or thrilled. :lol: The glory days of Sputnik and Yuri Gagarin seem to be fading with the winds of time if the Russian space program doesn't start coming up with new and innovative ideas. :lol:

Ohh, and I also wanted to mention that it seems, that Elon Musk's CAPITALIST PRIVATE COMPANY is developing a heavy rocket to take A LOT of supplies to the moon and Mars. Here is a link to their Starship Heavy Rocket that they are developing for carrying supplies to the cosmos: https://www.spacex.com/vehicles/starship/

#15095943
Politics_Observer wrote:Musk's CAPITALIST PRIVATE COMPANY is developing a heavy rocket to take A LOT of supplies to the moon and Mars.

I don't think you will be taking ANY supplies to the Moon and Mars any time soon. Both of Mr Musk's heavy lift prototypes blew up on the pad.


:lol:
#15095951
@ingliz

I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THAT. It might be sooner than you think. One thing is for sure, IT'S ONLY A MATTER OF TIME before we have the capability to do so. The question is, what are your comrades in Moscow doing about it!? NOTHING! :lol: *Putting my hand on my chest and shaking my head a little bit* I guess it's up to us Americans to LEAD THE WORLD IN PROGRESS since Moscow doesn't appear to be answering the challenge. 8)
#15095963
Politics_Observer wrote:I wasn't sure about that. I am assuming the Space Shuttle was developed by a private company, correct?


NASA was managing the project but contracting out different parts to private companies. Problem with that method is, it can get political. For example, funding is dependent on handing out contracts to companies in certain states. A current example of that is SLS (dubbed the Senate Launch System), where NASA was forced to make it Shuttle-derived, because certain Senators wanted the maintain the Shuttle industrial base in their states. Needless to say the contractors are aware of their privileged position and tend to rank up the cost.

Politics_Observer wrote:Either way, it really looks like Elon Musk and his team of engineers have done an outstanding job and have helped to push space travel forward and helped to make space more accessible than it was previously. It's pretty impressive what his company has accomplished. I am amazed and I admire Elon Musk's entrepreneurial skills.


Not to belittle SpaceX' achievements, but it's arguably not that difficult to shake up an industry where everybody is content with living off the government tit. Not to say SpaceX doesn't depend on government funding, but it does more with less.

Politics_Observer wrote:Ohh, and I also wanted to mention that it seems, that Elon Musk's CAPITALIST PRIVATE COMPANY is developing a heavy rocket to take A LOT of supplies to the moon and Mars.


You should know that Musk refuses to go public with SpaceX because shareholders would force him to stop his crazy Mars plans.

ingliz wrote:I don't think you will be taking ANY supplies to the Moon and Mars any time soon. Both of Mr Musk's heavy lift prototypes blew up on the pad.


Definitely not anytime soon, if ever, but not because their prototypes blew up, they do that all the time.
#15095979
@Rugoz

I think Elon Musk is smart in not opening Space X to the public and keeping it private. If he opens it up to the public, then public investors will stop him from achieving his vision of putting supplies and men on Mars. That would not be good for mankind or Elon Musk's vision for his company. I would do the same thing if I were him. That was a smart move. Don't be so sure Elon won't suceed with building that Starship heavy rocket. I believe in Elon and I believe he can do it and it might be sooner than what you think it is.
#15096010
@ingliz

And I just can't resist but to add, that perhaps that given the Russians are not preparing any rockets for travel to Mars, that perhaps they should just take a trampoline to Mars :lol:

https://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ukrai ... eap-n92616

I like those Merlin rockets myself!
Last edited by Politics_Observer on 31 May 2020 23:37, edited 1 time in total.
#15096020
Politics_Observer wrote:And HERE'S THE THING, the Space X rocket from what I have been reading is actually a BETTER and MORE RELIABLE rocket than the Soyuz.


Reliability is closely related to success rate. Once the Falcon 9 has more than a 1,000 starts under its belly, you can start to compare its reliability to Soyuz.

I don't believe that space exploration or manned space flight will become a commercial option any time soon. The risk involved is far too high. But I don't want to stop American venture capitalism from pissing away tens of billions in space. It wouldn't be the first time either.
#15096169
@Atlantis @ingliz @Wellsy @Rugoz

One cool thing we studied about in my networking class a few years ago was a technology that NASA is developing for solar system internet. I thought that was pretty interesting. The technology is called Disruption Tolerant Networking. Disruption Tolerant Networking is NASA's solution for reliable networking and internet for the solar system. Here is a quote from NASA's website which describes the technology and the challenges it seeks to solve:

NASA wrote:DTN is a computer networking model and a system of rules for transmitting information, often referred to as a protocol suite, that extends the terrestrial Internet capabilities into the challenging communication environments in space where the conventional Internet does not work well. These environments are typically subject to frequent disruptions, links that are limited to one direction, possibly long delays and high error rates.

The DTN protocol suite can operate in tandem with the terrestrial IP suite or it can operate independently. DTN provides assured delivery of data using automatic store-and-forward mechanisms. Each data packet that is received is forwarded immediately if possible, but stored for future transmission if forwarding is not currently possible but is expected to be possible in the future. As a result, only the next hop needs to be available when using DTN.

The DTN suite also contains network management, security, routing and quality-of-service capabilities, which are similar to the capabilities provided by the terrestrial Internet suite.

Even though DTN was developed with space applications in mind, the benefits hold true for terrestrial applications where frequent disruptions and high-error rates are common. Some examples include disaster response and wireless sensor networks.


https://www.nasa.gov/content/dtn

That my friends is computer networking and the internet of the future. According to NASA's website, the International Space Station currently uses Disruption Tolerant Networking so that astronauts and cosmonauts have reliable and decent internet while in space in the space station.
#15096290
Politics_Observer wrote:a trampoline to Mars

If or when the Russians need or want fully reusable launchers, they certainly know how to build them.

32 years ago the Russians built a semi-reusable launcher known as the Energia-Buran, a better space shuttle. But that was not the end of it. They realised they had all the bits needed to make a fully reusable super heavy lift launcher by tweaking the Buran concept to make the orbital boosters fully steerable after separation, The core components of the Vulkan-Hercules, after shedding their payload (175 tonnes), would have been capable of re-entering and gliding to a landing on a conventional airfield. Unfortunately, the production of Energia rockets stopped with the collapse of the Soviet Union.


:)
#15096337
@ingliz

Well, on a more serious note. Healthy competition is a good thing. I enjoy healthy competition as it makes us all better and it benefits humanity. I actually really do hope that the Russians respond to the challenge. If they have this ability to build this sort of rocket that you mentioned, they had ample money coming from the American taxpayer to do so. While they took our astronauts to the space station for the past 9 or 10 years, they were launching their Soyuz rockets for free. And imagine they were making plenty of money. They could have taken that money they were getting and spent it on building a better a rocket.
#15096338
Politics_Observer wrote:Don't be so sure Elon won't suceed with building that Starship heavy rocket. I believe in Elon and I believe he can do it and it might be sooner than what you think it is.


I didn't say SpaceX won't succeed with building Starship. But it will take years until a version of it lands on the Moon, and longer until it lands on Mars. SpaceX might also run out of money before that, especially if NASA isn't willing to fund it (indirectly).

Atlantis wrote:I don't believe that space exploration or manned space flight will become a commercial option any time soon. The risk involved is far too high.


Not one that makes a lot of money anyway.

Atlantis wrote:But I don't want to stop American venture capitalism from pissing away tens of billions in space. It wouldn't be the first time either.


:lol:

If SpaceX were a German company funded by German venture capitalists, you would be gushing praise and lecturing Americans about how they lost manufacturing due to Wall Street yadda yadda yadda.

ingliz wrote:32 years ago the Russians built a semi-reusable launcher known as the Energia-Buran, a better space shuttle. But that was not the end of it. They realised they had all the bits needed to make a fully reusable super heavy lift launcher by tweaking the Buran concept to make the orbital boosters fully steerable after separation, The core components of the Vulkan-Hercules, after shedding their payload (175 tonnes), would have been capable of re-entering and gliding to a landing on a conventional airfield. Unfortunately, the production of Energia rockets stopped with the collapse of the Soviet Union.


Only the Buran orbiter was designed to be reusable. Theoretically, because it only flew a single time. All engines and tanks were discarded. They had a concept for a fully reusable vehicle, Energia 2, but all space agencies had such concepts. Making a rocket reusable isn't necessarily that difficult. What is difficult is to make it work economically, given the small demand for launches compared to other forms of transportation. NASA kept the Shuttle flying even though an expendable rocket would have been cheaper.

Whether SpaceX will find a market for its gigantic reusable rocket besides NASA is an open question. They're currently deploying a sat constellation called Starlink, but the success of that is uncertain.

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