Falcon 9 Update with Images and Video

kimTHEcorpse · Posted on: Wed Jan 14, 2009 1:12 pm

A few cool images i found of the falcon 9 going vertical

It's going to break!

Lifting the beast

Retro flavour

The lifting mechanism

Closer shot. Move out of the way humans!

Close up of payload fairing

I also found this article relating to the falcon 9.

http://www.spaceflightnow.com/falcon/090112f9vertical/

Quote:

The black-and-white rocket was lowered from Complex 40 Monday afternoon after spending two days atop the pad. The Falcon 9, which weighs more than 30,000 pounds empty, was raised vertically around midday Saturday for two days of fit checks.

Hmm... i didnt see this coming. I never knew they were going to take it down again.

Quote:

But engineers have a long road ahead before clearing the rocket is ready to head skyward this summer.

"It has some more paces to go through. This rocket will come down, it will be disassembled, and then pieces will go back to either test sites or Hawthorne, get into final configuration for flight, and then be returned for the first flight sequence," said Tim Buzza, vice president of launch operations.

Seems like this was only a test run for lifting operations. They're gonna take it down for further test and flight configurations. This is probably the main reason for a launch in summer and also maybe due to the problem below.

Quote:

"We will be going vertical again later in the week to demonstrate operational responsiveness and to collect additional data from vehicle instrumentation," said Brian Mosdell, SpaceX's launch site director at Complex 40.

Prepare for some for action, if you know what i mean

Quote:

The company will build a large integration hangar on the south side of the pad. The building will stretch 225 long and 75 feet wide and stand about 50 feet tall.

Metal for the hangar structure is already at the Cape, and fabrication is expected to begin next week, according to Mosdell.

Expecting the hangar to go up in a few days. Should be exciting!

Another interesting article i stumbled across.

http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2009/01/ ... -falcon-9/

[quote]The launch date for Falcon 9â€™s debut remains fluid, although the vehicle itself is not the determining factor in trying to make a summer launch, claims Musk.

â€œWeâ€™re hoping for a summer launch of the Falcon 9, though I predict that is pending (based on) the development of its payload.â€

Author	Message
kimTHEcorpse Spaceflight Trainee Joined: Sat Dec 27, 2008 1:51 pm Posts: 27	Falcon 9 Update with Images and Video Posted on: Wed Jan 14, 2009 1:12 pm A few cool images i found of the falcon 9 going vertical It's going to break! Lifting the beast Retro flavour The lifting mechanism Closer shot. Move out of the way humans! Close up of payload fairing I also found this article relating to the falcon 9. http://www.spaceflightnow.com/falcon/090112f9vertical/ Quote: The black-and-white rocket was lowered from Complex 40 Monday afternoon after spending two days atop the pad. The Falcon 9, which weighs more than 30,000 pounds empty, was raised vertically around midday Saturday for two days of fit checks. Hmm... i didnt see this coming. I never knew they were going to take it down again. Quote: But engineers have a long road ahead before clearing the rocket is ready to head skyward this summer. "It has some more paces to go through. This rocket will come down, it will be disassembled, and then pieces will go back to either test sites or Hawthorne, get into final configuration for flight, and then be returned for the first flight sequence," said Tim Buzza, vice president of launch operations. Seems like this was only a test run for lifting operations. They're gonna take it down for further test and flight configurations. This is probably the main reason for a launch in summer and also maybe due to the problem below. Quote: "We will be going vertical again later in the week to demonstrate operational responsiveness and to collect additional data from vehicle instrumentation," said Brian Mosdell, SpaceX's launch site director at Complex 40. Prepare for some for action, if you know what i mean Quote: The company will build a large integration hangar on the south side of the pad. The building will stretch 225 long and 75 feet wide and stand about 50 feet tall. Metal for the hangar structure is already at the Cape, and fabrication is expected to begin next week, according to Mosdell. Expecting the hangar to go up in a few days. Should be exciting! Another interesting article i stumbled across. http://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2009/01/ ... -falcon-9/ [quote]The launch date for Falcon 9â€™s debut remains fluid, although the vehicle itself is not the determining factor in trying to make a summer launch, claims Musk. â€œWeâ€™re hoping for a summer launch of the Falcon 9, though I predict that is pending (based on) the development of its payload.â€
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Marcus Zottl Space Station Member Joined: Mon Feb 25, 2008 9:51 am Posts: 420 Location: Vienna, Austria, Europe, Earth	Posted on: Wed Jan 14, 2009 3:32 pm Wow, thank you very much for putting together so many interesting facts! A summer launch? That's a bit of a disappointment, I was expecting this would happen sooner, still Q1 2009. (The SpaceX website still says Q4 2008 :p). _________________ pride comes before a fall
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Ben Space Station Member Joined: Thu Mar 06, 2008 9:22 pm Posts: 267	Posted on: Thu Jan 15, 2009 3:14 am Word is that the payload is something dark from the government. Apparently they're willing to risk a spy sat (or whatever) on a first attempt. I knew it'd come down, but I didn't know that they were shipping parts back to the other locations. They must have found some issues during the integration.
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idiom Moderator Joined: Mon Feb 09, 2004 4:01 am Posts: 750 Location: New Zealand	Posted on: Thu Jan 22, 2009 8:51 am Ben wrote: Word is that the payload is something dark from the government. Apparently they're willing to risk a spy sat (or whatever) on a first attempt. Or they can say it came down, failed to insert or whatever. Its more believable on a first rocket flight. _________________ What goes up better doggone well stay up! - Morgan Gravitronics, Company Slogan.
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Ben Space Station Member Joined: Thu Mar 06, 2008 9:22 pm Posts: 267	Posted on: Thu Jan 22, 2009 10:52 am If you mean they'd make orbit and then claim they didn't, you can't really hide satellites of the size that you'd launch on an F9. It would be seen and the trajectory calculated by amateurs within a month of launch.
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idiom Moderator Joined: Mon Feb 09, 2004 4:01 am Posts: 750 Location: New Zealand	Posted on: Thu Jan 22, 2009 8:47 pm That doesn't stop them from trying. And if you can make a big enough burn then its orbit could be anywhere. _________________ What goes up better doggone well stay up! - Morgan Gravitronics, Company Slogan.
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Ekkehard Augustin Moderator Joined: Thu Jun 03, 2004 11:23 am Posts: 3745 Location: Hamburg, Germany	Posted on: Thu Feb 26, 2009 9:09 pm They also seem to have achieved another milestone towards reusability of Dragon according to their homepage: Quote: HAWTHORNE, CA â€“ February 23, 2009 â€“ Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) announces the passing of a significant technical milestone in the development of its Dragon spacecraft with the successful arc jet testing of PICA-X high performance heat shield material. Subjected to temperatures as high as 1850 degrees Celsius (3360 degrees Fahrenheit), the tests simulated the reentry heating conditions that will be experienced by the Dragon capsule. Panels of the high performance carbon-based material will protect cargo and crew during the spacecraft's return from Earth orbit. and Quote: The Dragon capsule will enter the Earth's atmosphere at around 7 kilometers per second (15,660 miles per hour), heating the exterior of the shield to up to 1850 degrees Celsius. However, just a few inches of the PICA-X material will keep the interior of the capsule at room temperature. So might that mean that their upper stage is close to reusability as well? Might the launch be delayed due to this? Dipl.-Volkswirt (bdvb) Augustin (Political Economist)
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VAXHeadroom Spaceflight Participant Joined: Wed May 21, 2008 4:21 pm Posts: 75 Location: Baltimore, MD	Posted on: Thu Feb 26, 2009 10:13 pm Ben wrote: Word is that the payload is something dark from the government. Apparently they're willing to risk a spy sat (or whatever) on a first attempt. I knew it'd come down, but I didn't know that they were shipping parts back to the other locations. They must have found some issues during the integration. I had understood this to be the plan all along. Some of these parts are (apparently) test or prototype parts and they were testing the process as much as the components.
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