Sea Speed said:

---

One of our best family friends is MC for Artemis, so that's pretty cool.

---

Master Chief of Artemis. Nice!

nortex97 said:

---

Good morning. Just found this was going on NASA Video - the Artemis I post flight update. Preps for Artemis II continue. Mobile launcher took more damage than thought, looking at a couple of anomalies also. #SLS pic.twitter.com/9I6ifc5UOe

— Justin Davenport (@Bubbinski) March 7, 2023

We need Starship to launch and buy down technical risk for prop transfer. We have contract milestones with SpaceX to buy down risk. Several flights to buy down risk for prop transfer.

— Justin Davenport (@Bubbinski) March 7, 2023

Interesting.

---

Can someone explain what "Buy down risk for prop transfer" means?

I think the issue is lunar starship has to refuel in space, so to move forward with the contract at a certain phase, SpaceX needs to demonstrate an ability to do that in orbit.

Hence, 'buying down' the risk in 'phase 4' of the lunar starship research and development award' or some such language.

NASAg03 said:

---

High-res version:



They indicated that the black material will be replaced with white for actual missions to address thermal concerns. I'm guessing this would be mission dependent as you might want black on the dark side to absorb heat.

---

No. Even in the dark, black will be colder due to radiation. It has to be white.

Why did they make a black one then?

double aught said:

---

Why did they make a black one then?

---

Looks?

They may not have settled on the material for the white suit yet and needed to have some sort of mockup, dunno.

double aught said:

---

Why did they make a black one then?

---

Their logo and orange racing stripes show up much better on a black background? It's a mock up. I would be shocked if it were made up of anything real.

SpaceX used an all female vehicle recovery team for last night's launch...

Virgin Orbit stopped all work. All employees furloughed for the week.

Looks like they are folding if they don't find more capital.

https://myrgv.com/local-news/2023/03/14/flight-delay-spacex-now-targeting-april-for-first-orbital-launch/

Pretty much summarizes what we already knew, blames the delay on the deluge system.

Really cool.

By popular demand, here is a brief essay on why different rockets do different things: The Secrets of Rocket Design Revealed https://t.co/5AJHtlPiEI

— Tory Bruno (@torybruno) March 15, 2023

Regardless of what happens with ULA, I bet Bruno is a 'force' to be reckoned with in space launch/exploration/politics for many years to come.

I'm not going to try to excerpt a few parts here, but just wish to emphasize this is a great article explaining things in layman's terms that rocket designers have to measure out/consider as to designing launch systems for different missions.

The material underneath the outer layers is probably close to what they expect to use for flight. As others have said, the exterior layer will not be black. It also is probably not going to be so form-fitting, since a form-fitting exterior creates what are called 'thermal shorts', which means however hot or cold the outer layer is gets conducted to the inner layers of the suit, and, if the crewmember happens to be touching it, them as well.

The suits are designed to have space between the outer layers, which acts like a thermal barrier, much like how a thermos works. It's not only the material that keeps you hot/cold; it's the gap between the materials that acts as an insulator, too.

SpaceX will be ready to launch Starship in a few weeks, then launch timing depends on FAA license approval.

Assuming that takes a few weeks, first launch attempt will be near end of third week of April, aka …

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 16, 2023

will25u said:

---

SpaceX will be ready to launch Starship in a few weeks, then launch timing depends on FAA license approval.

Assuming that takes a few weeks, first launch attempt will be near end of third week of April, aka …

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 16, 2023

---

…420
Fire it up!

Awe man....

I definitely learned a lot about start up from the experts that are featured in this video from @elonmusk talking about Raptor's crazy start up process, to @stoke_space's @AndyLapsa & @Firefly_Space's Tom Markusic! I'm so thankful for the knowledge gained from them! 🙏

— Everyday Astronaut (@Erdayastronaut) March 17, 2023

So it looks like we got extremely lucky. Most powerful Coronal Mass Ejection ever:

Some recent thoughts on the smaller space start ups.

Virgin Orbit:

I'm surprised at the lack of interest in the Virgin Orbit news. They're one of the few to have put multiple payloads in orbit.

They have a great technology but from what I hear it sounds like they were mismanaged. Their launch cadence was too slow, which isn't an impossible technical hurdle, it's a managerial and strategic execution failure. I think there is a case for their existence but it revolves around rapid and flexible launch cadence which is why they failed.

Even if they do get bought for pennies, I'm not sure if they can recover this stop work since the employees are not going to hang around.

I don't think people appreciate how hard it actually is to launch such a large liquid fueled rocket horizontally from an aircraft.

ABL Space Systems

These guys have majorly been flying under the radar, but they have a solid operation and strong foundation laid for scaling low cost and high cadence launch. They have very strong support from their funding partners. PR isn't a big part of their growth or fund raising strategy so they make minimal investments there which is why you don't see much from them, but they're in a really strong position. ABLs innovations are centered around cost optimization and containerized ground support. They're not trying to invent any novel technologies, just optimize old ones balancing cost and performance.

Relativity Space

I believe their PR is a lot more rosy than the reality. They've got tons of launch contracts but they're "3D printed" rocket is not the miracle technology they paint it as. It's heavy, expensive, and there is inherent structural risks within the print layers. They've invested hundreds of millions into this tank manufacturing architecture that has a lot of downsides. They've got a lot of momentum and have a talented work force which should carry them through the development of a larger class rocket. But I won't be surprised if we see massive delays and schedule slip because what they are trying to do, that is developing two rockets in parallel with new engine (methane) and tank (printed) architectures, is simply very hard. They also have a huge workforce and very high cash burn rate, which isn't good for a company with little to no revenue.

I'm looking forward to their first launch getting off the ground.

Rocket Lab

I don't know as much about thee guys, but I hear their hours and pressure on employees is on par with SpaceX. They're working on a larger class rocket trying to work a nearly impossible development schedule. They've been pretty reliable with their small rocket so I'm hoping they succeed with their larger one. I think the small rocket just lacks the profit potential of the larger payload class.

Astra

I don't know how this company manages to still exist. I think they'll eventually fold or get bought by a larger company.

Firefly

They have made or it and scored some contracts recently. It's a wait and see with them if they continue to execute and become another Rocket Lab or if they struggle and fold.

I hear their founder has been the target of lawsuits and controversy regarding IP theft from other launch vehicle companies.

SpinLaunch

Throwing them a bone because they've had surprisingly good PR recently. They were dubbed Gizmodo's science fair winner and made some other list of 10 most innovative space companies. Late last year they managed to raise a 71 million dollar Series B. If you haven't seen their YouTube videos yet, they've got a few cool videos they've put out and an in-depth 40 minute deep dive from Real Engineering.

Their latest projections are that they are tracking to a 2026 orbital launch. I think that's a bit optimistic and will take a lot more fundraising.

OnlyForNow said:

---

AgBQ-00 said:

---

So it looks like we got extremely lucky. Most powerful Coronal Mass Ejection ever:

---

Ever recorded….

---

Wait, so Frequency wasn't a documentary?

Hahah

just like all things that humans have been monitoring for a short amount of time, whatever we see is obviously the most extreme to have ever have existed.

Kazakhstan seized Russian Roscosmos operated equipment because they owe $27 million. They have basically laid claim to Baikonur.

Here's a video on this and the recent history and troubles of the Russian space program

The thing is, the cosmodrome is useless unless they allow Russia to continue to operate it. Kazakhstan, to those who are perhaps unaware, is run by an absolute nut job autocrat who has built a lot of weird junk.

Honestly, it seems like Russia's #1 failure in all things is coordination and management. They just don't work well together or with others at just about anything.

Any inside info or thoughts on Stoke Space?

Wet dress rehearsal complete. ✔️ #hopper pic.twitter.com/ePke5cMH74

— Stoke Space (@stoke_space) March 18, 2023

OnlyForNow said:

---

AgBQ-00 said:

---

So it looks like we got extremely lucky. Most powerful Coronal Mass Ejection ever:

---

Ever recorded….

---

Yes, but when you consider it was stronger than estimates of the storm that caused the Carrington Event it puts it in perspective.

Not debating that there are most definitely stronger storms that have occurred. Just saying this one was mere days from wreaking havoc.

We also have to admit that there IS a possibility, however small, it actually is the biggest ever.

So much of the space industry has adjusted their builds to accommodate Falcon 9 since there's so much launch flexibility (aside from no vertical integration), it's going to be hard to go back to the way it used to be.

I'm curious what that number would look like without Starlink, I still think SpaceX would dominate.

Nine non-Starlink launches this year.

I recognize form follows function to a very large degree but it's interesting how similar these Amazon Kuiper terminals are, packaging wise to Starlink:

Amazon reveals a trio of satellite antennas for its Project Kuiper internet network, with initial service slated to begin in 2024.

Standard, up to 400 Mbps
Ultra-compact, up to 100 Mbps
Pro, up to 1 Gbps

Read more: https://t.co/iDwoWDRdHK$AMZN pic.twitter.com/SAbqWHWQZe

— Michael Sheetz (@thesheetztweetz) March 14, 2023

Quote:

---

There's also an even more compact terminal weighing only one pound and measuring just seven inches square. Amazon says this device is its "smallest and most affordable" one and can deliver speeds up to 100MBps, making it ideal for anyone who needs a low-cost internet option or service on the go. Lastly, Amazon showed off its commercial terminal that's meant for use by large companies or government organizations. It's the biggest and most powerful of all three terminals, measuring at 19 by 30 inches and providing speeds of up to 1Gbps.

All of these terminals come outfitted with Amazon's in-house baseband chip, nicknamed Prometheus. According to Amazon, the chip "combines the processing power of a 5G modem chip found in modern smartphones, the capability of a cellular base station to handle traffic from thousands of customers at once, and the ability of a microwave backhaul antenna to support powerful point-to-point connection.

---

As a reminder these will actually be much fewer in quantity (3,200 planned vs. 10K plus) and higher in orbit vs. starlinks;

Quote:

---

Amazon's Project Kuiper will orbit 370 to 390 miles above the earth's surface, according to its FCC filing.4 That means the future constellation is in low-earth orbit, much like Starlink, though Project Kuiper will be just a bit higher compared to Starlink's 340-mile-above-earth orbit.

---

If it all sounds vaguely similar, well, yeah.

Quote:

---

Rajeev Badyal is Project Kuiper's vice president of technology. He's got plenty of experience in the satellite internet space, too, since he also used to be the vice president of satellites at Elon Musk's SpaceX.

---

Damn. Corporate espionage much?