back to article SpaceX nails two launches and barge landings in one weekend

No matter what you did over the weekend, you'll struggle to top Elon Musk's after his space trucking venture launched 11 satellites atop two rockets, both of which stuck perfect landings on barges. Mission “BulgariaSat-1” kicked off the fun with a Friday launch of a geosynchronous satellite that will improve telecommunications …

  1. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    SpaceX nails two launches and barge landings in one weekend

    For a second here I was hoping it was done with the same first stage. Oh well, that will come in time, I am sure.

    1. Danny 14

      Re: SpaceX nails two launches and barge landings in one weekend

      I can only do that if i take a small mining ring on my ssto spaceplane. I have had a kerbal, minimus, laythe run before.

      Shit. Not again. Been up playing KSP and its leaking into real life.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: SpaceX nails two launches and barge landings in one weekend

      When a US President gives Elon Musk permission to land a rocket on the White House lawn, that's when you know it's flight proven, though I'm happy to see a few test landings while Donald Trump is President.

    3. rh587

      Re: SpaceX nails two launches and barge landings in one weekend

      For a second here I was hoping it was done with the same first stage. Oh well, that will come in time, I am sure.

      That's the (eventual) plan, but not with one launch from Florida and the other from California!

  2. Chris Tierney

    Doesn't compare.

    My newborn son managed to land a stream of pee onto my shirt while I changed his nappy this morning. Your move Musk.

    1. Sorry that handle is already taken. Silver badge
      Joke

      Re: Doesn't compare.

      The CEP for your shirt is pretty large... Get back to us when he hits your open mouth.

      1. Kevin Johnston

        Re: Doesn't compare.

        According to my parents, I did that to the midwife as I was being born. Quite happy to use it for bragging rights even though I was only mostly there

    2. Ian Michael Gumby
      Boffin

      Re: Doesn't compare.

      This is why some smart SOB invented the pee-pee tee-pee.

      1. Alistair
        Pint

        Re: Doesn't compare.

        @IMG -> Sadly, where my wife works they sell those. Several different models in fact......

        Its a sad sad comment on the western world when you can sell one of those things for $12. (facecloth anyone?)

        Kudos to the team at SpaceX.

  3. Sorry that handle is already taken. Silver badge

    Grid fins

    The new titanium grid fins replace the previous aluminium items that tended to, ahem, catch fire on re-entry:

    http://spaceflight101.com/falcon-9-bulgariasat-1/wp-content/uploads/sites/157/2017/06/bulgariasat-1-launch-9.jpg

    I understand the new fins now hold the record for the largest single-piece titanium forging, so that's something.

    1. AdamT

      Re: Grid fins

      Actually on fire? Or really, _really_ "toasty"?

      1. imanidiot Silver badge

        Re: Grid fins

        Not the fin itself but the ablative coating/paint added to them that burns off during the re-entry burn to keep them intact long enough to do their job when actually reaching a bit of the atmosphere where they are effective. The flames seen in that video are a coating/paint burning off, not the grid fin material itself afaik. --> Plenty of that pretty much guaranteed when re-entering the atmosphere at a balmy 2000 m/s!

        1. imanidiot Silver badge
          Flame

          Re: Grid fins

          ---> That should have been with ^that^ post -->

    2. JCitizen
      Black Helicopters

      Re: Grid fins

      Actually ALCOA holds that record for forging the under (belly) pan of an Army tank.

  4. Milton

    Even old curmudgeons are happy!

    Pleased to see some entirely good news based on intelligent, effective science and engineering. NASA ought to be hiding its face in shame considering (a) the serial failures of the ill-conceived, monstrously expensive Shuttle, and (b) how quickly SpaceX has got a working, vastly cheaper reusable system into operation. This is impressive stuff.

    I hope they are thinking far enough ahead to be considering future SSTO opportunities. Reaction Engines have been plodding away solidly for years developing tech for this one piece at a time (Sabre engines mostly, I think) and I'd love to see SpaceX-type money and energy put into a venture of that kind. Arguably, it's a bigger priority than Mars, though we do need to get our eggs out of this fragile basket of Earth asap.

    Kudos to SpaceX for serious work. It makes Virgin "Galactic's" marketing stunts in the desert look plain childish by comparison. (Vomit-comet lobs to nowhere and "I'm A Big Astronaut, Daddy!" badges for fatheads with more money than sense: heaven help our species).

    Whatever happens, old as I am, I'd like to be alive to see the first heavy-metal asteroid inserted into lunar orbit, or parked at a Lagrange point, and for mining to start. It'll feel like humanity is finally arriving, after a faltering start.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Even old curmudgeons are happy!

      "[...] I'd like to be alive to see the first heavy-metal asteroid inserted into lunar orbit, or parked at a Lagrange point, and for mining to start."

      Let's hope they devise a "used asteroid" disposal system by then - otherwise near-space will look like a fly-tipper's paradise. Various booms have usually left the disposal problem to a future generation to try to sort out - either on earth or in its orbits. By which time the problem has usually caused a few disasters.

      1. Geoff Campbell Silver badge
        Boffin

        Re: Fly-tipping

        Oh, that's easy - use the hollowed-out asteroids to live in.

        GJC

      2. CrazyOldCatMan Silver badge

        Re: Even old curmudgeons are happy!

        Let's hope they devise a "used asteroid" disposal system by then

        Well, the moon is pretty close by and pretty uninhabited..

        Failing that, there's an unimportant building in Washington, USA that could do with some remodelling[1]..

        [1] Again. Party like it's 1812, just with bigger booms..

    2. AdamT

      Re: Even old curmudgeons are happy!

      That's a little bit harsh on the "sub-orbital lob" companies. Yes, a lot of the money will be from tourists but there are (or were - they have been a bit quiet lately!) a few companies (including VG) who were planning science-only jaunts. Apparently there is a surprising amount of zero-g science you can get done in a few minutes. Even though the time is short, for the same money that you would spend on launch to ISS, or whatever, you can get a _lot_ of 6 minute sessions and you can sit right next to your experiment so the apparatus can be a lot simpler.

    3. tony2heads
      Coat

      heavy metal asteroid

      can we name it Led Zeppelin?

    4. Nik 2

      Re: Even old curmudgeons are happy!

      <quote>Pleased to see some entirely good news based on intelligent, effective science and engineering. NASA ought to be hiding its face in shame considering (a) the serial failures of the ill-conceived, monstrously expensive Shuttle, and (b) how quickly SpaceX has got a working, vastly cheaper reusable system into operation. This is impressive stuff.</qoute>

      Elon Musk is always very careful to put NASA on his thank-you list, and to say that SpaceX couldn't have done what they do without NASA's contribution. How much this is a political (small 'p') gesture I don't know, but do remember that space shuttle design work began before the Apollo 11 landing.

      SpaceX's ability to take feedback from missions and get improved parts into operation is truly impressive.

      1. Malcolm 1

        Re: Even old curmudgeons are happy!

        NASA's vote of confidence in SpaceX (and money) saved the company from bankruptcy in its early days. I get the impression they do as much as feasible within the strictures of a political governance.

      2. Robert Helpmann??

        Re: Even old curmudgeons are happy!

        ...remember that space shuttle design work began before the Apollo 11 landing.

        Yes, in 1968, IIRC. I have pic on my phone of the first concept design for the shuttle (1969). It looks an awful lot like SpaceShipOne.

    5. mathew42

      Re: Even old curmudgeons are happy!

      > NASA ought to be hiding its face in shame considering (a) the serial failures of the ill-conceived, monstrously expensive Shuttle, and (b) how quickly SpaceX has got a working, vastly cheaper reusable system into operation.

      NASA's spending is controlled by the US Congress, which has members very interested in ensuring jobs remain in their state, and it bends to the demands of the US Airforce increasing the cost and design complexity.

    6. John Smith 19 Gold badge
      Unhappy

      Re: Even old curmudgeons knows nothing of any use about subject they are posting on.

      And you really don't. You're comments about Shuttle and Skylon demonstrate a truly American level of ignorance in both.

      Let's put this in perspective.

      2 separate launch sites on opposite sides of the country, with 2 completely separate but equally experienced launch crews, manage two launches within 49 hours of each other that land on 2 completely separate landing barges

      None of this is a record, which IIRC was 44 hours apart.

      Now had they landed both boosters on the same barge that would have been astonishing.

      Had they launched 44 minutes apart and rendezvoused in space that would have astonishing. Just the 44 mins apart bit would have been very impressive.

      To anyone who knows what resources are available and what's happening this is not amazing. It's competent (and steadily improving) Launch Operations.

      1. rh587

        Re: Even old curmudgeons knows nothing of any use about subject they are posting on.

        None of this is a record, which IIRC was 44 hours apart.

        It's a record for SpaceX, which is worth popping a bottle of bubbly as it marks - as you say - a significant evolution in the maturity of their Launch Operations capability.

        Once SLC-40 comes back online, it'll be a test of their West-coast team to develop the ability to perform rapid turn around on alternating pads (although 39A will presumably go offline for a period to receive final modifications for Falcon Heavy operations).

        1. John Smith 19 Gold badge
          Unhappy

          "It's a record for SpaceX, "

          It's meaningless.

          It's like two service engineers visiting two sites coming from two service depots and (OMG) arriving at the offices of the companies they've come to service at the same time.

          Only they didn't.

          Sorry but it's just not that impressive. Not even historically as NASA did it with a shorter window (about 44 hr s IIRC) in the 1960's

          Had it been a single team rushing between those sites that would have been unprecedented, but it wasn't. .

      2. Ian Michael Gumby
        Boffin

        @John Smith ... Re: Even old curmudgeons knows nothing of any use about subject they are posting on.

        John,

        Elon Musk's wet dream: Launching a rocket, recovering and relaunching within 24 hours.

        (Not going to happen for a long time. )

        That said, launching from two different sites within 44 hours? NASA hasn't done that, have they?

        And both landing and able to be recovered... also impressive. Even the reuse of boosters is impressive.

        Now if someone could invent a rail launcher that can safely launch satellites and other non human payloads in to space... even better.

        1. cray74

          Re: @John Smith ... Even old curmudgeons knows nothing of any use about subject they are posting on.

          NASA hasn't done that, have they? And both landing and able to be recovered... also impressive. Even the reuse of boosters is impressive.

          I think the USAF once simultaneously test launched a pair of ICBMs, but practically speaking SpaceX just did something that:

          1) NASA hasn't

          2) ULA hasn't

          3) ArianeSpace hasn't

          4) ILS hasn't

          5) ISRO hasn't

          etc.

          If I'm wrong about getting 2 orbital launches up in less than 3 days, I'd welcome the correction. When it comes to fast, frequent space travel: the more the merrier.

          And I'll "me three" the point about NASA's utility to SpaceX. SpaceX wouldn't be here without a lot successes, hard lessons, missteps, and triumphs from NASA.

          1. John Smith 19 Gold badge
            Unhappy

            " If I'm wrong about getting 2 orbital launches up in less than 3 days, I"

            You are.

            1989 Titan at Cape Canaveral and VAFB within 44 hrs.

            Also Dec 1966 2 Atlas SLV3's.

            It's not as impressive to people with background knowledge of the subject.

            And these days getting that knowledge is quite easy.

            1. imanidiot Silver badge

              Re: " If I'm wrong about getting 2 orbital launches up in less than 3 days, I"

              In this regard I find the 9 days between Gemini 7 and Gemini 6 much more impressive. A crewed launch from the same launchpad (Cape Kennedy, LC-19). Ok, Gemini 6 didn't actually launch as 6A until 3 days later (which is impressive in it's own right given what happened) but that's just technicality. They were ready to launch in 9 days.

            2. Sorry that handle is already taken. Silver badge

              Re: " If I'm wrong about getting 2 orbital launches up in less than 3 days, I"

              In addition to the simultaneous flight (and rendezvous) of Gemini 6A and 7, the Gemini program included numerous side-by-side launches of the Gemini capsule and the Agena Target Vehicle, which was used for various tests including orbital rendezvous and boosting, throughout 1965-66.

              During the Gemini 8, 10, 11 and 12 missions, their respective ATVs were all launched approximately 100 minutes ahead of the Gemini capsule.

          2. ridley

            Re: @John Smith ... Even old curmudgeons knows nothing of any use about subject they are posting on.

            The Soviets launched two manned spacecraft from the same launchpad less than 24 hours apart in 1962 https://www.seeker.com/the-soviets-first-space-rendezvous-1765928597.html

            So it can be done.

        2. John Smith 19 Gold badge
          Unhappy

          "That said, launching from two different sites within 44 hours?"

          Actually they did.

          September 1989. Titan III from Cap Canaveral and Titan II from VAFB 44 Hrs later.

          It's like a United Airlines 747 taking off from New York at the same time as another United Airlines 747 takes off from Chicago. What are the odds?

          The answer is of course "who cares?"

          Now landing them both on the same barge 49 hours apart. That would have been phenomenal.

    7. handleoclast
      Mushroom

      Re: Even old curmudgeons are happy!

      There was a time when I hoped I'd see asteroids being brought to earth orbit.

      Then 9/11 happened.

      Now I fear what some religious idiot might do if we ever brought asteroids to earth orbit. They really are stupid enough to do it. Especially the ones that want the end times to happen.

      1. Alistair
        Windows

        Re: Even old curmudgeons are happy!

        One point to be made here -

        a) we wont stick the target object in earth orbit - for one, too many artificial satellites already and it would be large enough to cause them orbital perturbation, requiring additional fuel to adjust

        b) we really aren't likely to use lunar orbit either - although it would be substantially better than earth orbit the only *SANE* place to stick really large asteroids for (mining/residential rebuilding) will be the L2/L3/L5 lagrange points. And we'd be wisest (given your scenario) to use *only* the trailing lagrange points.

        c) asteroid in *solar* orbit inserting to earth atmosphere - easy peasy - theyre usually *well* above entry speed. Getting an orbiting or parked asteroid, no matter *how* large up to entry speed is going to be rather harder than one might think.

    8. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

      Re: Even old curmudgeons are happy!

      "NASA ought to be hiding its face in shame "

      Standing on the shoulders of giants. And NASA is one of the bigger giants and it's always nice to learn from the mistakes others made before you got your chance to make those mistakes. That's not to denigrate the achievements of SpaceX, but how long would they have taken to do this without what NASA and others did before them?

      1. Ian Michael Gumby

        @John Brown Re: Even old curmudgeons are happy!

        Exactly.

        Everything we have today... from Tang (if you remember it) to your PC and phone would not exist were it not for NASA and DARPA. Or even velcro or other things. People forget the R&D that went in to putting a man on the moon.

        1. Will Godfrey Silver badge
          Meh

          Re: @John Brown Even old curmudgeons are happy!

          All very well, but then again who's shoulders were NASA standing on?

          1. cray74

            Re: @John Brown Even old curmudgeons are happy!

            All very well, but then again who's shoulders were NASA standing on?

            Elephants, its elephants all the way down. ;) Or the Zeta Reticulans who crashed at Roswell.

            But more seriously: NASA was really standing on the shoulders of a number of US 1950s ICBM and spy satellite programs, which got a boost from Peenemünde's crowd and then amateur rocketry groups in the 1920s and 1930s.

            1. Andus McCoatover
              Windows

              Re: @John Brown Even old curmudgeons are happy!

              Stood on the shoulders of...

              V2 Nazi rockets. I know.

              Sometimes the expression written on my porridge syrup tin "From the strong comes forth sweetness" (Book of Daniel) comes to reality... Truly sad, but equally true.

    9. Francis Boyle Silver badge

      Re: Even old curmudgeons are happy!

      "[T]he ill-conceived, monstrously expensive Shuttle"

      The shuttle design, brilliant that it was, was largely determined by USAF requirements. A rocket launched space-plane like the shuttle is only useful for returning things from orbit. You only need a large space-plane if you intend to bring back large objects (like enemy satellites) from orbit. So basically the Shuttle was just a design run for the X-37. And as you say a monstrously expensive one. But no one ever said the military industrial complex wasn't smart. (Getting the civilians to pay is Trump level smart.) Luckily Musk seems smarter.

  5. 0laf

    Congratulations

    Congratulations to everyone's favourite Bond villain.

    If he could just start launching and landing the rockets in a hollowed out volcano thank you.

  6. wyatt

    Why do people still want to go to Mars? Don't we need a moon defence base first patrolled by sharks?

    1. Kevin Johnston

      Definitely need the moonbase, otherwise there will be nowhere to store the nuclear waste in order to get an unmanaged de-orbiting thrust. Would help if someone could get building the Eagles too :)

      1. Alister
        Thumb Up

        Would help if someone could get building the Eagles too

        +1 (at least) for that, I always thought the Eagles looked "doable" unlike some other Sci-Fi vehicles.

        I wonder if Musk knows about them?

    2. Aladdin Sane

      moon defence base

      That's no moon.

    3. hplasm
      Happy

      " Don't we need a moon defence base first patrolled by sharks?"

      Don't we need a moon defence base first patrolled by women in purple wigs?

      FTFY

      1. Aladdin Sane

        Re: " Don't we need a moon defence base first patrolled by sharks?"

        No, it needs sharks with frickin lasers.

  7. Michael H.F. Wilkinson Silver badge
    Pint

    Excellent work

    Big thumbs up to the boffins at SpaceX. Really good rocket-boffinry. I'll raise a glass to their continuing success

  8. tonybarry

    I'll second the motion. Kudos to SpaceX. Excellent engineering. If I were thirty years younger ...

  9. imanidiot Silver badge

    Things are getting interesting

    Watched the BulgariaSat launch live, the 1st stage seemed to have a LOT of drift on the landing but unfortunately the live video feed was lost right at the landing (Seems to be a common problem, the acoustic vibrations from the incoming stage blast around the antennas so much the video downlink is lost). It certainly came in over the port edge of the barge and ended up nearly going over the side on the starboard side. The stage had a noticeable lean towards the port side after landing, probably it came down just slightly off axis to compensate for the drift.

    SpaceX is certainly now proving they have wat it takes to run a more demanding launch schedule. Let's see if they can keep it up without RUDs occuring.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Things are getting interesting

      Obviously, the more Iridium Satellites SpaceX send up, they better the landing barge live video link will become ;)

      1. I ain't Spartacus Gold badge
        Black Helicopters

        Re: Things are getting interesting

        I don't think the satellites will help, if the rocket is interfering with the signal. So it's obvious what he needs to do. A sonar link for the telemetry to his submarine, which can broadcast it via its own antenna from a safe distance.

        Even if he's not yet bought himself an old soviet ballistic missile boat (or captured one with a giant oil tanker), he'll have a few mini-subs around for moving the stolen nuclear warheads to and from his yacht. I'm sure they'll do the job.

        Oh, perhaps I wasn't supposed to say that. No! Please not the pirhana tank! NOOOOOooooooooo!!!!!

    2. AdamT

      Re: Things are getting interesting

      Is it just the physical vibrations? I was also wondering if there could be ionisation in the rocket exhaust that could mess up radio signals?

  10. IglooDude
    Pint

    This is a great example of why SpaceX is kicking ULA's ass - they're doing great engineering trusting that it will solve political/contracting issues, and ULA is doing great political/contracting work trusting that it will solve engineering issues.

    And pints all around for the two-fer, lads.

  11. John Smith 19 Gold badge
    Coat

    "Watched the BulgariaSat launch live,"

    I wondered how many Bulgaria's are on board. *

    *I think they're like Budgerigars on Steroids.

    1. Alister

      Re: "Watched the BulgariaSat launch live,"

      I wondered how many Bulgaria's are on board. *

      I wondered how many airbags it had... :)

    2. I ain't Spartacus Gold badge
      Happy

      Re: "Watched the BulgariaSat launch live,"

      BulgariaSat is a vital part of the infrastructure for the litter collection equivalent of Interantional Rescue. Instead of Brains or John Tracy being up there in Thunderbird 5 - this early warning satellite is manned, or should that be wombled, by Uncle Bulgaria.

  12. JJKing
    Thumb Up

    Damn, this is now so common it's no longer big news (and I missed it). SAD!

    NASA's vote of confidence in SpaceX (and money) saved the company from bankruptcy in its early days.

    Watched a YouTube video where Musk mentioned this very thing so based on that I imagine his mentioning his thanks to NASA is not political but is genuinely genuine. I guess if he had gone bankrupt then he would have started up again later (He gets knocked down but he gets up again, you're never gonna keep him down) and it would have taken longer to get where SpaceX presently is. SpaceX also wouldn't have had the massive lead over their competitors and may have even been muscled out of the race.

    Why do people still want to go to Mars? Don't we need a moon defence base first patrolled by sharks?

    Wyatt, wyatt, wyatt. You forgot about the lasers (unless the implication of them being attached was a given. My apologies if that was so :-) )

    Has SpaceX given any indication of how much refurbishment the only used once to go to space on Sunday 1st stages require before being blasted aloft again?

    How many of them of them have now recovered? I've lost count as I know I missed the last two. It must take some pressure of the 1st stage line having to try and keep up production when they keep getting back the ones that space rejects.

    I anxiously await the next SpaceX big thing. What do you reckon, two on the same barge or the one that was spotted being worked on some months back that appeared to have clamps being fitted to the deck?

    1. Brangdon

      Re: Damn, this is now so common it's no longer big news (and I missed it). SAD!

      Apparently the first booster took 4 months to refurbish, and the second 2 months. Obviously that will come down as they get more experience, and especially as Block 5 starts flying. (Block 5 is a design refresh which takes into account what they've learned from the earlier boosters.)

  13. John Smith 19 Gold badge
    Unhappy

    The big item is what this will do to $/lb of mass to orbit

    That's the end game.

    Unless that drops a lot, and for a payload that in the tonnes, not the 100s of tonnes class, you can forget any dreams of opening the "space frontier" to "the rest of us."

  14. Andus McCoatover
    Joke

    So, chuck a couple of drainpipes onto two boats...Not exactly rocket science.

POST COMMENT House rules

Not a member of The Register? Create a new account here.

  • Enter your comment

  • Add an icon

Anonymous cowards cannot choose their icon

Other stories you might like