Shuttle successor succeeds in first test flight

[bananas]

Source: MSNBC

After one aborted countdown, a privately developed rocket that could take on many of the jobs now done by NASA's space shuttles lifted off on its first test flight Friday.

California-based SpaceX said its Falcon 9 rocket reached orbit, notching a significant success for the eight-year-old space program.

Liftoff came after hours of delay, sparked initially by launch-pad telemetry problems, then by a sailboat that strayed into a restricted area of the launch range. The day's first countdown was aborted at virtually the last second, due to a problem with the engine parameters, but the launch software was adjusted and a second countdown went all the way to the end.
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Cheers could be heard in the background as SpaceX broadcast a live webcast of the ascent, including stunning rocket-cam views from orbit.

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Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/37509776/ns/technology_and_science-space/

[Kolesar]

1. Wow. And it is not taxpayer-subsidized Boeing or Lockheed

I cannot help but think of the space ship that Han Solo was piloting.

[OnlinePoker]

2. Read the article

$278 million from NASA. Of course the final flight costs will be about half what a conventional NASA launch costs and 15-20 times less than a shuttle flight so the upfront money will be saved after just a couple of launches.

[Kelvin Mace]

7. Provided that the ship doesn't blow up

or disintegrate in flight because the contractor skimped on safety in order to maximize profit. Personally I am not optimistic about space travel as a corporate endeavour.

[OnlinePoker]

8. Yes...because NASA has been such a perfect safety record. n/t

[liberation]

9. Well, they still have a better record than any private outfit in getting people into space

In the big scheme of things, NASA's safety record is rather stellar. It gets tiring when people who have no freaking clue about the realities of the complexity (and risks) of space travel get to tout their BS talking points... as if private enterprise is the answer to everything.

BTW, most of NASA is outsourced to private contractors anyways.

[knitter4democracy]

10. Better than the Soviets ever did.

They lost dozens and dozens and just never talked about it.

I'm just sayin', of the space programs out there, NASA's done a good overall job.

[Kelvin Mace]

12. NASA's safety record was pretty damend good

until they started "outsourcing" to private contractors.

NASA - 3 Deaths during entire Apollo program
Contractors - 14 deaths during shuttle program

[Kolesar]

13. thanks. I think of the space program as another gift for Boeing &the weapons industry

However, I am in favor of deep space probes and Earth observation satellites.
While we are on the subject, may I please have a 'nutter Hubble?

[pinboy3niner]

4. Ah, yes--the Millennium Falcon

It looked like a bucket of bolts, but actually was pretty souped-up:

Millennium Falcon


From the Movies
A legendary starship despite its humble origins and deceptively dilapidated exterior, the Millennium Falcon has factored into some of the Rebel Alliance's greatest victories over the Empire. On the surface, the Falcon looks like any other Corellian freighter, with a saucer-shaped primary hull, a pair of forward cargo-gripping mandibles, and a cylindrical cockpit mounted to the ship's side.

Beneath its hull, though, the Falcon packs many powerful secrets. Its owners made "special modifications" on the freighter, boosting its speed, shielding and performance to downright illegal levels. Its weaponry has been upgraded to military-class quad laser turrets. To cover rapid escapes, the Falcon sports a ventrally mounted hatch-concealed antipersonnel repeating laser. Between its forward mandibles rest concussion missile launchers. The habitable interior of the vessel also has a few surprises, such as concealed scanner-proof smuggling compartments.

The Falcon pays a heavy price for its augmented performance, though. It is extremely recalcitrant and often unpredictable. Its reconditioned hyperdrive often fails. Its current captain, Han Solo, has even been seen to restart a failed ignition sequence with a hard rap on the bulkhead with his fist.


http://www.starwars.com/databank/starship/millenniumfalcon/

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

5. And then of course it was bigger on the inside than it was on the outside.

But unlike the TARDIS it couldn't time travel.

[pinboy3niner]

6. Time travel--and multi-dimensional travel--would be cool add-ons

Though any necessary trade-offs in other departments probably would be too high a price to pay.

Somehow, I think Wookies wouldn't time-travel well, anyway--and I wouldn't want to be around one to find out! :)

[nichomachus]

3. Of course it succeeded - that's why it's a successor

[Trajan]

11. Congrats to Elon Musk and SpaceX, with caveats ...

This effort is not considered the 'successor' to the Space Shuttle - It is a stop gap for ISS Resupply, and a NASA 'experiment' to assay private launch possibilities ....

The ARIES/CONSTELLATION is the formal successor to the Space Transportation System .... It will not be available until 2015 (?), and so this provided an opening for someone with Mr. Musk's considerable bank to wedge his foot into the door .... Still : Space X worked hard for this, and it worked ... congratulations ....

That being said: I agree with an earlier poster about safety .... I dont think they have earned their chops yet .... This was a great start for them, but there is so much that can and WILL go wrong in future launches .... 'Success' is fleeting and shortlived in rocketry .... so far luck has been on their side ...

A disclaimer: I worked on all Shuttles except Enterprise (as well as a number of satellite programs), and I was rejected by Space X as an Avionics Technician, even though I have nearly 30 years in the biz ....

I made the mistake of mentioning money ..... They felt working on such a grand idea would make workers amenable to accepting lower pay. and therefore, my experience was a liability ...