Space X nails it again
May 28, 2016 8:27 AM Subscribe
The latest video of a Falcon 9 rocket returning from the upper atmosphere.
To be clear, it's just the first stage of the rocket and the video is a time lapse. But this was the most complicated landing yet, as the rocket was launching a commercial communications satellite, into geostationary orbit. So the first stage was coming back much faster than before and even SpaceX wasn't sure it could do it.
To be clear, it's just the first stage of the rocket and the video is a time lapse. But this was the most complicated landing yet, as the rocket was launching a commercial communications satellite, into geostationary orbit. So the first stage was coming back much faster than before and even SpaceX wasn't sure it could do it.
First the moon landings and now they're faking Earth landings?
posted by peeedro at 8:52 AM on May 28, 2016 [5 favorites]
posted by peeedro at 8:52 AM on May 28, 2016 [5 favorites]
Love the little last celebratory toot of propellant or coolant it makes after touchdown!
posted by nicwolff at 8:56 AM on May 28, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by nicwolff at 8:56 AM on May 28, 2016 [2 favorites]
Each and every successful landing just makes me so happy, and optomistic for the future!
posted by Guy Smiley at 8:57 AM on May 28, 2016 [6 favorites]
posted by Guy Smiley at 8:57 AM on May 28, 2016 [6 favorites]
Ok, these are getting boring*. I expect the next one to dial it up a notch and backflip onto the platform.
(*) not really, could watch these all day long...
posted by Hairy Lobster at 10:24 AM on May 28, 2016 [4 favorites]
(*) not really, could watch these all day long...
posted by Hairy Lobster at 10:24 AM on May 28, 2016 [4 favorites]
A small hatch opening after landing out of which a robot hand extends and drops a mic would be great too.
posted by Hairy Lobster at 10:26 AM on May 28, 2016 [24 favorites]
posted by Hairy Lobster at 10:26 AM on May 28, 2016 [24 favorites]
The backflip it does after separation isn't enough?
posted by rhamphorhynchus at 10:41 AM on May 28, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by rhamphorhynchus at 10:41 AM on May 28, 2016 [1 favorite]
I watched the "technical live stream" (no commentary, just ground crew comms) with some friends yesterday. We saw the view from this camera briefly on the stream and immediately said to each other "wow, I hope we get to see the whole thing." When this was released an hour or two later, there was much rejoicing.
posted by Alterscape at 12:06 PM on May 28, 2016
posted by Alterscape at 12:06 PM on May 28, 2016
I got an Oculus Rift for some work I am doing and I found out that SpaceX released a 3D, 360 degree VR movie of the second landing. It is honestly one of the most amazing media experiences I have ever had. You feel like you are on the deck of the drone ship. And you look up up up and see this tiny dot of light and it gets brighter and you suddenly realize it is the bolster. And it quickly descends in a cloud of fire and you feel like you are there. It made me understand the achievement of that landing.
posted by blahblahblah at 1:10 PM on May 28, 2016 [13 favorites]
posted by blahblahblah at 1:10 PM on May 28, 2016 [13 favorites]
I'm happy to see such progress. I have faith in you guys. I want to go to Mars. Honestly, I won't mind floating around in the spaceship for two or three months on the way there, and on the way back, but can I have bunk near the window? I want to paradive off the rim of Valles Marineris. One time will suffice.
Mrs mule doesn't want to go, but she says she's okay with me taking the trip.
Please. Hurry.
posted by mule98J at 2:07 PM on May 28, 2016 [4 favorites]
Mrs mule doesn't want to go, but she says she's okay with me taking the trip.
Please. Hurry.
posted by mule98J at 2:07 PM on May 28, 2016 [4 favorites]
I missed the initial part of the launch, but managed to turn into the stream just in time to see the first Stage 1 footage.
This is the second geostationary launch they've landed--they did it at night with JCSAT-14 a couple of weeks ago. Though there wasn't any awesome stage 1 cam on that, but was still great to see the droneship's perspective. Dark, dark, light, SUPERBRIGHT, dark, spacecraft.
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 2:59 PM on May 28, 2016
This is the second geostationary launch they've landed--they did it at night with JCSAT-14 a couple of weeks ago. Though there wasn't any awesome stage 1 cam on that, but was still great to see the droneship's perspective. Dark, dark, light, SUPERBRIGHT, dark, spacecraft.
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 2:59 PM on May 28, 2016
Huh, it's no big deal anymore. How can that be!
blahblahblah's mention of a 3D VR of the second landing got me to search youtube for a 360 view video. Here it is. Drag downwards on the view to look up.
It's dropping fast, and the landing legs pop open at the last instant as it kills it's speed.
I picture the landing computer thinking like this eagle owl, with total concentration on the target.
posted by jjj606 at 3:17 PM on May 28, 2016 [2 favorites]
blahblahblah's mention of a 3D VR of the second landing got me to search youtube for a 360 view video. Here it is. Drag downwards on the view to look up.
It's dropping fast, and the landing legs pop open at the last instant as it kills it's speed.
I picture the landing computer thinking like this eagle owl, with total concentration on the target.
posted by jjj606 at 3:17 PM on May 28, 2016 [2 favorites]
Huh, I just realized this is excellent practice for landing on a planet.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 4:02 PM on May 28, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 4:02 PM on May 28, 2016 [1 favorite]
I love the livestreams of the launches/landings. The crew at mission control going wild when they see the touchdown gives me goosebumps. This one in particular is amazing because they think it crashed and go "wooo! Awww.... YEAAHHHH!"
posted by EndsOfInvention at 5:02 PM on May 28, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by EndsOfInvention at 5:02 PM on May 28, 2016 [2 favorites]
Huh, I just realized this is excellent practice for landing on a planet.
Unless everyone's been keeping me in the dark about some pretty big developments in cosmological theory, it is landing on a planet.
posted by howfar at 5:31 PM on May 28, 2016 [18 favorites]
Unless everyone's been keeping me in the dark about some pretty big developments in cosmological theory, it is landing on a planet.
posted by howfar at 5:31 PM on May 28, 2016 [18 favorites]
And while we could rehash, once again, the debate about the utility of SpaceX, at least we can be relatively confident that Musk isn't just doing all this so he can vicariously sue some Martians in an act of petty revenge.
posted by howfar at 5:37 PM on May 28, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by howfar at 5:37 PM on May 28, 2016 [1 favorite]
The backflip it does after separation isn't enough?
Apparently not.
posted by LURK at 5:41 PM on May 28, 2016 [2 favorites]
Apparently not.
posted by LURK at 5:41 PM on May 28, 2016 [2 favorites]
At KSC visitors complex today they showed the rocket can view of the landing during the #missionupdate today. Applause from the audience and our row was teary-eyed.
posted by tilde at 7:28 PM on May 28, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by tilde at 7:28 PM on May 28, 2016 [2 favorites]
First the moon landings and now they're faking Earth landings?
posted by peeedro at 10:52 AM on May 28
I couldn't even make it through the whole video, but what I did see still broke my brain.
posted by InsertNiftyNameHere at 8:50 PM on May 28, 2016
posted by peeedro at 10:52 AM on May 28
I couldn't even make it through the whole video, but what I did see still broke my brain.
posted by InsertNiftyNameHere at 8:50 PM on May 28, 2016
"Each and every successful landing just makes me so happy, and optomistic for the future!"
Guy Smile, I couldn't have said it better, so I'm quoting you!
posted by james33 at 4:05 AM on May 29, 2016
Guy Smile, I couldn't have said it better, so I'm quoting you!
posted by james33 at 4:05 AM on May 29, 2016
I may have said this before, but if I were younger and single, I would be begging for a job there. As it is I couldn't keep up the pace. :-) Unfortunately when I graduated from college neither NASA nor the contractors were hiring, so off to industry I went.
There have several big steps coming up I'm anxious to see.
Falcon Heavy should hopefully have it's first launch this year, this will expand what markets they can cover.
Hopefully next year Dragon 2 will launch with a human crew, another first for a private company. For the foreseeable future they will be using parachutes and a water landing, but the eventual plan is to use the side rockets for a propulsive landing on land.
And if they can get propulsive landings to work on Earth, then it might also work on Mars. It's a very exciting time for space geeks.
posted by beowulf573 at 7:08 AM on May 29, 2016
There have several big steps coming up I'm anxious to see.
Falcon Heavy should hopefully have it's first launch this year, this will expand what markets they can cover.
Hopefully next year Dragon 2 will launch with a human crew, another first for a private company. For the foreseeable future they will be using parachutes and a water landing, but the eventual plan is to use the side rockets for a propulsive landing on land.
And if they can get propulsive landings to work on Earth, then it might also work on Mars. It's a very exciting time for space geeks.
posted by beowulf573 at 7:08 AM on May 29, 2016
beowulf573: "Falcon Heavy should hopefully have it's first launch this year, this will expand what markets they can cover."
Unfortunately, it was just delayed another month (again). Hopefully it launches soon, but it's been launching-in-the-next-two-years for over five years now!
Someone over at /r/spacex made a great graph: Falcon Heavy flight schedule over time.
posted by vasi at 7:33 AM on May 29, 2016
Unfortunately, it was just delayed another month (again). Hopefully it launches soon, but it's been launching-in-the-next-two-years for over five years now!
Someone over at /r/spacex made a great graph: Falcon Heavy flight schedule over time.
posted by vasi at 7:33 AM on May 29, 2016
Heh, not surprised. I consider SpaceX schedules about as accurate as my software schedules.
posted by beowulf573 at 7:18 AM on May 30, 2016
posted by beowulf573 at 7:18 AM on May 30, 2016
Here's the landing as seen from a camera on the drone ship.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 10:52 AM on June 3, 2016
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 10:52 AM on June 3, 2016
« Older What happened to Google Maps? | The kind of music that makes you say, "Holy Fuck!" Newer »
This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
posted by rhamphorhynchus at 8:48 AM on May 28, 2016