Borgholio wrote:Yeah, how many rockets exactly blew up in our faces before we managed to land on the moon? I'm fairly certain we had our own fair share of facepalm moments.
We also managed to burn three men alive during a test that didn't even involve rocket engines.
The book The Right Stuff has quite a list of people who died on the way to supersonic flight and the Moon. Aerospace, especially the cutting edge, is dangerous work.
A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory.Leonard Nimoy.
Now I did a job. I got nothing but trouble since I did it, not to mention more than a few unkind words as regard to my character so let me make this abundantly clear. I do the job. And then I get paid.- Malcolm Reynolds, Captain of Serenity, which sums up my feelings regarding the lawsuit discussed here.
If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich. - John F. Kennedy
InsaneTD wrote:Is it normal for a rocket motor to be pushed at 108% during a launch?
Depends on the engine and how much it's been updated since the original version. In comparison, the Space Shuttle Main Engine power levels were all relative to its original specification — most of the engine rebuilds were rated at 104% for a normal launch, or 109% if there was an engine-out abort. The final versions used in the last few years of flight operations could go even higher in an emergency.
I can't find any comparison of performance figures, but the Antares engines were updated and modernised when they were bought from Russia; a few extra % would be expected.
“Despite rumor, Death isn't cruel — merely terribly, terribly good at his job.”
Terry Pratchett, Sourcery
InsaneTD wrote:Is it normal for a rocket motor to be pushed at 108% during a launch?
Engine performance is based on the original specifications. If I design a 1000 kilonewton engine, and am then able to make a change that gets me an extra 80 kilonewtons then the new output is listed as a percentage of the original. This is so I don't have to go back and change the rest of the documentation for the rest of the rocket.
"I believe in the future. It is wonderful because it stands on what has been achieved." - Sergei Korolev
TimothyC wrote:From the NASA image of the pad, it looks like it could have been a lot worse.
True. I've seen worse carnage after a simple bonfire party or at the site of a prfessional firework set off.
A minute's thought suggests that the very idea of this is stupid. A more detailed examination raises the possibility that it might be an answer to the question "how could the Germans win the war after the US gets involved?" - Captain Seafort, in a thread proposing a 1942 'D-Day' in Quiberon Bay
If that divot's where the tail came down, looks like it just missed. The pad structure and the flame trench seem to be OK, but the gantry's looking a bit scorched.
Look at what's on the other side of the pad — if it had come down on those tanks...
“Despite rumor, Death isn't cruel — merely terribly, terribly good at his job.”
Terry Pratchett, Sourcery
SpottedKitty wrote:If that divot's where the tail came down, looks like it just missed. The pad structure and the flame trench seem to be OK, but the gantry's looking a bit scorched.
Look at what's on the other side of the pad — if it had come down on those tanks...
You think those would have made the explosion of a almost completely full tank of rocket fuel worse? Only if they were used for storing C4 on-site.
A minute's thought suggests that the very idea of this is stupid. A more detailed examination raises the possibility that it might be an answer to the question "how could the Germans win the war after the US gets involved?" - Captain Seafort, in a thread proposing a 1942 'D-Day' in Quiberon Bay
Elheru Aran wrote:Isn't the launching pad specifically designed to channel any flame and potential explosion anyway? Looks like it did its job pretty near perfectly.
The difference is that the pad is designed to take what are fundamentally transient thermal loads, and the crash was decidedly less transient than a normal launch. There might be a lot more damage that simply isn't visible without close inspection.
I do wish Mid-Atlantic Spaceport and Orbital the best in getting Pad 0A back up and running.
"I believe in the future. It is wonderful because it stands on what has been achieved." - Sergei Korolev
Elheru Aran wrote:Isn't the launching pad specifically designed to channel any flame and potential explosion anyway? Looks like it did its job pretty near perfectly.
The difference is that the pad is designed to take what are fundamentally transient thermal loads, and the crash was decidedly less transient than a normal launch. There might be a lot more damage that simply isn't visible without close inspection.
I do wish Mid-Atlantic Spaceport and Orbital the best in getting Pad 0A back up and running.
Well, true. It's quite probable there's some serious thermal damages to the concrete and of course the gantry is shot. Likely the pad itself may have to be rebuilt. The surrounding infrastructure looks mostly okay, though. It definitely wasn't as bad as it could've been.
The gantry would actually be what's called a strongback. It's movable off the pad anyways, as its moved from the assembly building with the rocket on it. It's possible they have more than one of them.
"preemptive killing of cops might not be such a bad idea from a personal saftey[sic] standpoint..." --Keevan Colton
"There's a word for bias you can't see: Yours." -- William Saletan
... and that's why the airspace around space launches is restricted. For safety.
A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory.Leonard Nimoy.
Now I did a job. I got nothing but trouble since I did it, not to mention more than a few unkind words as regard to my character so let me make this abundantly clear. I do the job. And then I get paid.- Malcolm Reynolds, Captain of Serenity, which sums up my feelings regarding the lawsuit discussed here.
If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich. - John F. Kennedy
Broomstick wrote:... and that's why the airspace around space launches is restricted. For safety.
That's pretty damn close. I read that there was an explosion on the launch pad in Florida, and some debris was found like kilometers away.
STGOD: Byzantine Empire Your spirit, diseased as it is, refuses to allow you to give up, no matter what threats you face... and whatever wreckage you leave behind you.
Kreia
