ISS crew fling out arm, grab SpaceX Dragon capsule
The first contracted SpaceX Dragon has successfully docked with the International Space Station after being snagged with the Canadarm2 robotic arm. Space X Dragon in Orbit The Dragon berthed with the Earth-facing side of the Harmony node at 14.03 BST (9.03 EDT) today. Around two hours earlier, Japanese flight engineer Aki …
This topic is closed for new posts.
One step closer
Finally! Now we need another enterprise (no pun intended) to step up and begin competing with SpaceX. We so need for space flight to be not only commercially viable but also affordable for space tourism. Get going building out infrastructure and truly make that first step off of this rock we are inhabiting.
Re: One step closer
I disagree. Unless someone invents an anti-gravity drive or starts bringing all the waste back to earth intact, rather than dumping it in the ocean. I for one do not want rich peoples turds raining down on me from space. We get enough of that down here already.
Re: One step closer
This is surely The Enterprise that will usher in a new era of commercial space flight.
And you can bet your arse that pun was intended.
Re: One step closer
Do the sums for how big the turd would need to be to not be vaporised by the atmosphere. I don't think anyone's planning on putting herds of elephants into space any time soon.
(And for those on the "I had a curry last night , and boy did that burn up on re-entry" gag - tough titty, I got there first!)
Re: One step closer
They're not dumping it in the ocean. It has multiple experiments on board which need to be analysed. Everything is returned to NASA and SpaceX.
Re: One step closer
do not want rich peoples turds raining down on me from space.
don't worry, the tsa will radiate them so fcsking bad they won't be around long.
Re: One step closer
If they say "splashdown", I assume that means they're recovering the capsule and the stuff inside, right? Left to its own devices on release, the capsule would burn up like the progress ones did.
I'm loving what spaceX is doing, it's a shame the satellite launch didn't go off.
Re: One step closer
"Finally! Now we need another enterprise (no pun intended) to step up and begin competing with SpaceX. We so need for space flight to be not only commercially viable but also affordable for space tourism. "
That will not happen until 2017 *unless* NASA gets a *much* bigger chunk of cash.
The Oribital Sciences Corp Antares/Cygnus launch vehicle and capsule are neither crew rated nor designed for re-entry.
So if any Merkins want that they'd better contact their local Congressmen and Senators and tell them they want the CCiCap programme fully funded at the Presidents requested level.
Or get the ESA to do it...
The ESA could certainly pony-up cash to stimulate commercial development. The EU is a MUCH larger economy than the USA!
Re: One step closer
So... Rich Peoples Turds raining down on us... Sorta sounds like the Republican Trickle Down theory or as I like to call it the Trickled ON theory.
Yes, I agree that I don't like it.
Re: Or get the ESA to do it...
And all the commercial partner would have to do is ensure that an equal proportion of each component was built in all contributing countries and that the first crew were French.
If you think Nasa is a bureaucratic bunch of pork-barrelled politicians you haven't worked on anything with ESA
Re: One step closer
Unless someone invents an anti-gravity drive or starts bringing all the waste back to earth intact, rather than dumping it in the ocean.
It's going for splashdown because we want it back! If we didn't want it, they'd send it in at a different angle and vapourise it on the way down.
Re: Or get the ESA to do it...
I can assure you that there is UK kit on board the Dragon.
UK space missions were outsourced to India a long time ago - we give them far more to "improve basic sanitation" than they spend on the 'luxury' of a space program.
I once worked for a spaced ex
Well it seemed like work to me!
What's with the..
...lbs/pounds. This is the 21st Century and high tech; SI units only please unless someone is taking the proverbial, in the pub, or both.
Re: What's with the..
Blasphemy - reg standard units only on these hallowed pages!
Re: What's with the..
Agree completely... I recall reading a story just yesterday when Reg suggested that SI should be the standard. 10 metres and 300 kg please! :)
Re: What's with the..
Oops... 400 kg! Damned conversion errors!
Units
What's the pisser here is that largenumbersofpounds is a totally US-centric unit. Old-school UK is cwt and tons.
Re: Units
US-centric units for a US-built rocket.
Thrrrrp!
8op 8ob 8op
I don't see what you are complaining about...
The metric system has been legal in the USA since 1866 [Metric Act of 1866, Public Law 39-183]. The USA was a signatory of "The conversion of the Metre" in 1875. The American Treasury has placed all measurements officially as metric-equivalence since 1895.
I certainly think that we covered nearly all the bases 100 years ago!
Re: Units
Except that SpaceX works in S.I. units. So (apparently) does NASA these days - see the reports coming off the current Mars rover project. That all seems to be in S.I. too. It's NASA's traditional aerospace partners (Boeing, Northropp, McDonell Douglas etc) who appear to be the U.S.C Luddities.
SpaceX is *not* one of those.
Bad taste in decoration?!
Shouldn't there be a stencil of Ayn Rand's likeness on the capsule instead of the flag of some failed state?
Shouldn't that be...
the Canadarm2 successfully grabbed the dragon by the shorties?
Vestibule.
Seems awfully archaic and somewhat quaint to refer to something on a Space Station as a "vestibule".
This topic is closed for new posts.
