SpaceX sends Iridium-8 into space while Musk flaunts his retro rocket

It's made with fully hardened stainless steel so heavy starch, no fold. We'll hangar these.

"Some people would wait until they were on a truly solid commercial footing with their main business before starting on glory projects with no obvious way to pay for them"

And some people would be working an average job, living an average life in an average suburb making an average contribution to the world.

Between you, me and Musk only one of us has built an orbital launch business and it's not you or me...

Some people would wait until they were on a truly solid commercial footing with their main business before starting on glory projects with no obvious way to pay for them.

SpaceX are on a solid commercial footing. They have the cheapest launch solution on the market (F9) and the most powerful rocket in service anywhere in the world (Falcon Heavy, available for 1/3 the price of a Delta IV Heavy). They also have the only cargo capsule capable of returning significant downmass from the ISS (Dragon) and will shortly have a man-rated launch vehicle (Crew Dragon) that will allow the US to send it's own astronauts up instead of buying seats from the Russians. The "traditional" space industry have failed to manage any of those things.

SpaceX's actual launch business is structurally sound and profitable. If it wasn't he wouldn't have got this far and Falcon Heavy would still be a paper rocket.

Their R&D for Starship is funded through share sales to new private investors, as well as the profits form their lucrative launch business. On paper they turn a loss because they're spending more than they earn, but they could scale back "the glory projects" if investor income dried up and keep the lights on with their world-leading launch business.

Rich gits

"Then again why change the pattern of a lifetime and finish one thing before moving onto the next ten halfarsed, late, underdelivered projects?"

Personally I find Musk as bit of a dick. Ego all over the place, visions of personal glory, picking fights on twitter etc. He's not even being a fun Bond villain anymore :)

But compared to many other mega wealthy individuals, he's actually doing something with his money that might result in making life better. It's supposed to be how market capitalism works, but too often those who've made their billion decide that their purpose is to use that money to shoe off. Subterranean swimming pools in Chelsea, buying sports teams, competing for the silliest yacht etc.

If every millionaire acted a bit more like Musk, maybe we would already have our flying cars.... :)

Their commercial footing is just fine.

I appreciate it's much easier to run your mouth and not bother to look shit up, but you perhaps should research the reasons behind the current shiny design before berrating it for looking like something out of an old comic. The switch from carbon fibre to high grade stainless steel is not for shits and giggles.

I suggest looking up things like "Hot metal structures", "thermal mass", and the reasons for the surface being polished. Apparently the shiny finish is better at withstanding and rejecting the heat from the re-entry bow shock, than a matte surface.

Though how long it remains shiny under those conditions... be the mother of all detailing jobs after landing.

Re: Star bangled banner

You only need enough wall to look good on a TV camera,. Stick it on Fox and he wouldn't know any different.