Questions tagged [reuse]
Questions regarding the reuse of parts or equipment.
4
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1answer
104 views
Why was the water-landed Falcon 9 B5-B1050 towed backwards for retrieval?
The rocket was apparently recovered by attaching a towing line to the heavy, lower end (with the engines) and pulling at backwards.
This seems counterintuitive to me, as this pushes the water into ...
4
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0answers
64 views
Purging process of a rocket engine
Does spacex purge Falcon 9 engines after landing ? If so, which gas is used for purging?
3
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0answers
93 views
Final results on Space Shuttle SRB reuse goal?
One of the stated goals of the Space Shuttle solid rocket boosters (SRBs) was their re-usability and cost savings from such reuse. I know that many of them were reused, but in the end, how successful ...
3
votes
1answer
143 views
Satellite retrieval, fix and deploy possible remotely?
Is there any satellites that are designed to come back to Earth for repairs or upgrades and then be deployed again? Would there be any benefits to creating a capsule or inflatable heat shield to go on ...
2
votes
0answers
53 views
How to make a orbital launch tube work?
Normal rockets would not work in a pressurized tube, but could a stage be made for the diagonal launch tube to save fuel and weight? Can the bottom stage be nuclear powered?
Unlike the piston launch ...
19
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5answers
3k views
What would be necessary in order for us to achieve a single stage to orbit, reusable rocket?
I have read articles and seen videos explaining why an SSTO (Single Stage To Orbit) rocket* is not possible. But I was wondering... What would be required to achieve this? Answers can be literally ...
8
votes
1answer
126 views
Are there proven economic advantages to rocket re-usability?
Of course, you save a lot of material, but I have heard some Russian rocket people say that that the main cost in rocket comes from the manufacture and testing. And for reusable rockets, you need to ...
4
votes
5answers
315 views
What if anything makes launching a recovered SpaceX rocket from a drone ship implausible?
Since SpaceX lands their rockets on drone ships (aka ASDS, barges), I'm curious what if anything would prevent rockets from being relaunched from the ship.
Obviously the ship would need ...
6
votes
1answer
116 views
Is the atmosphere a positive or a negative for reusability?
Does the atmosphere provide a benefit or detriment in terms of fuel economy for rockets that take off and land back on Earth? We know that the atmosphere plays a large role in helping slow down ...
0
votes
2answers
158 views
How would the US military switch to re-usable rockets?
The Ars Technica article After 25 years, military told to move from “expendable” to “reusable” rockets gives me pause.
The military rockets I'm aware of generally explode at end of mission by design (...
40
votes
4answers
9k views
Why can't Falcon 9 fairings touch the water?
SpaceX is spending considerable effort to catch Falcon 9 fairings into a giant net on a ship. I am aware that salt water ruins almost everything in the long run, but the fairings are a composite ...
8
votes
1answer
303 views
What makes it so hard to precisely land a fairing?
SpaceX currently tries to land their fairing halves on a boat with a net attached to it. So far they had no success but landed nearby, although quadrupling the net area.
They first tried with this ...
6
votes
0answers
177 views
How is Mr Steven piloted when catching a fairing?
Mr Steven is the ocean-going vessel used by SpaceX in its attempts to catch re-entrant Falcon 9 fairings for possible reuse.
How is this ship controlled during fairing catch attempts?
Is she* manned ...
3
votes
1answer
133 views
Reuse statistics of SpaceX Dragon capsules?
The question about the rolled-up and deployable solar array How does ROSA unroll? (Roll Out Solar Array) begins:
The upcoming SpaceX launch with the apparently first re-use of a dragon capsule will ...
7
votes
1answer
144 views
Why aren't the Ariane 5's SRBs reused?
The Ariane 5 uses two solid rocket boosters (SRBs), which can be recovered by parachute if desired. However, unlike (for instance) the space shuttle SRBs, Ariane 5 SRBs are only occasionally ...
6
votes
3answers
541 views
Will reusable rockets be financially viable?
While the vertical landing of rockets by SpaceX is certainly a significant achievement, there seem to be many who say that reusability is not actually financially viable. Apparently, it is far too ...
15
votes
2answers
2k views
Why is the first stage from the Falcon 9 SES-12 mission not recovered?
Youtube video here
At 4:13 minutes into the Iridium-6/GRACE-FO NASA Launch, the commentator mentions:
The first stage is not going to be recovered, so there won't be any views from the drone ship ...
30
votes
3answers
7k views
Why won't they recover the Falcon 9 from CRS-14?
According to the upcoming livestream of SpaceX CRS-14 (resupply of ISS):
SpaceX will not attempt to recover Falcon 9’s first stage after launch.
Why not? Wasn't that the whole point of (among ...
3
votes
1answer
128 views
Is a soot covered flight proven Falcon 9 lighter or heavier than a new falcon 9?
Since SpaceX now does not repaint or clean off the sides of the first stage booster prior to reuse, does this make the soot covered stage heavier or lighter? And is this difference in weight ...
12
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1answer
2k views
Why is there a need for getting rid of ISS trash using the empty ATV and similar vehicles
Why is trash from the ISS sent down in some of the cargo vehicles. Would it not make more sense to dump it overboard in the downward + retrograde direction (as described here) and use reusable cargo ...
23
votes
4answers
8k views
Why is SpaceX building the Big Falcon Ship before the Big Falcon Rocket?
I believe that SpaceX is planning on building the BFS (Big Falcon Spacecraft) before the BFR (Big Falcon Rocket), which serves as the first stage for the second-stage BFS. Does anyone know why they ...
10
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3answers
3k views
Are spacecraft single-use?
Are today's spacecraft and carrier rockets really for one use only (launch and landing)? And then they can't be used anymore?
5
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1answer
221 views
Can (or will) Block5 Falcon 9s be used on the Falcon Heavy?
With the Block5 version of Falcon 9 booster soon to be flying, will they be used for the Falcon Heavy, or will they remain a stand alone thing?
5
votes
1answer
176 views
Why is Mr. Steven in California and not Florida
Mr. Steven is the ship that is used to catch fairings. There is one of these thus far, and it is based to assist Vandenberg, not Cape Canaveral. Why are they choosing to test the fairing catching in ...
7
votes
1answer
217 views
Falcon 9 fairings stability on reentry
On the descent of the fairings into the atmosphere how is stability provided?
Why does it not start to rotate in a uncontrollable fall but reenter gently without apparently damage on the interior ...
6
votes
2answers
244 views
Is SpaceX trying to catch two pieces of fairing with one boat?
During the Paz / Starlink demo mission (2/22/18), SpaceX attempted to catch the fairing before it splashed-down into the ocean. They failed to catch it by just a few hundred meters.
My question is:...
14
votes
2answers
2k views
What is the cause of this Falcon 9 first stage “dance” after landing?
Recently I watched a video on YouTube by Scott Manley: How To Do A Hoverslam - Things Kerbal Space Program Doesn't Teach. It deals about landing burns of Falcon 9 first stages. It features short clips ...
23
votes
1answer
3k views
Why the soot pattern on the nosecone of Falcon Heavy side booster?
When a SpaceX booster is landed, we are used to seeing soot deposited all over it, usually in a specific pattern.
You can read more about that in this question:
Why the strange bands of soot of the ...
2
votes
2answers
798 views
Will SpaceX use a BFR Heavy mode, similar to the Falcon Heavy but with 3 BFR cores? [closed]
Big Falcon Rocket will need several (maybe 6) tanker missions to get enough fuel for a Mars mission.
Does this mean at some point we may witness one BFR Heavy, made of three BFR first stages ...
43
votes
6answers
5k views
What technological breakthroughs were required to land booster stages?
It is only recently that SpaceX developed first stages that can land again, and be reused.
The (until recent) non-existent landing of re-useable rockets is presumably, partially, due to a lack of ...
4
votes
1answer
272 views
Can Falcon Heavy side boosters/center core be reused as Falcon 9s?
Since the Falcon Heavy is just essentially 3 Falcon 9s strapped together, would it be possible to reuse them as Falcon 9s with some modification?
3
votes
1answer
1k views
Just how much of the Falcon Heavy is reusable?
I've been looking for just this one bit of info, in all the press: exactly how much of the Falcon Heavy is recoverable and reusable? Obviously not the fuel, but is all the hardware recovered? If so, ...
7
votes
2answers
2k views
Why did the Falcon Heavy core engines fail to reignite?
I realize that this is a hot take, less than twenty-four hours later at the time of posting, but is any technical detail known about why the core engines failed to restart, causing the crash?
14
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2answers
5k views
Did the fairings from the Falcon Heavy test flight get recovered?
According to the flight plan that Elon Musk posted on Twitter, there's a section listed as 'Fairing Recovery', was this section successful? Did the Fairings get recovered?
8
votes
1answer
247 views
How will they lower the landed side boosters after landing, if there is a nose cone?
To lower/handle landed stages, SpaceX has a rig that connects to the inter stage and they use it as an attach point for the crane to lift/move it.
The two cores landed in Florida after the first ...
14
votes
2answers
2k views
What was the point of the re-entry and landing burn of the first stage of the GovSat-1 launch?
Supposedly SpaceX did not intend to recover the first stage of the GovSat-1 launch. If so, what was the point of doing a re-entry burn and a landing burn, if they were just planning on dumping the ...
8
votes
2answers
930 views
What is the turnaround time for SpaceX's barges?
I believe that currently, SpaceX only has two landing barges - one in the Atlantic (Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY)), and one barge in the Pacific (Just Read The Instructions (JRTI)). How long ...
4
votes
1answer
323 views
Was Sea Dragon second stage reusability ever plausible?
Many websites consistently claim that the first stage of the enormous Sea Dragon rocket was intended to be reusable. While recovering a giant booster from sea after a splashdown may seem tricky, it ...
3
votes
1answer
273 views
Will the Falcon Heavy make the first full fairing reuse ever?
The two side boosters will need some kind of aerodynamic protection, which could very much be recovered with the rocket in one piece.
Will they be recovered and reused?
2
votes
1answer
196 views
Why are electrodynamic tethers not used to propel payloads beyond LEO?
Bringing spacecraft to higher orbits than LEO is quite expensive and as rocket reusability gains traction, it will probably get even more expensive when compared to a standard LEO deployment since the ...
14
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7answers
5k views
Would reusable rockets render the idea of space elevators useless? [closed]
With the expected advances in reusable rocket technology within the next decade, will constructing a space elevator become meaningless? Or will it still be way cheaper, safer and convenient to use ...
16
votes
1answer
1k views
Has SpaceX re-used a first stage twice yet?
SpaceX has re-used a first stage once, several times now. Has it re-used the same first stage twice yet? If not, has a particular mission been named that will be the first second re-use?
7
votes
1answer
150 views
Are there any viable hot structure orbital spacecraft designs capable of re-entry?
The current design of all orbital spacecraft capable of re-entry is cold-structure, using ablative materials, insulating tiles other approaches to keep the structure of the spacecraft relatively low ...
2
votes
0answers
104 views
Would the lunar rovers work (again) today? What would be needed? [duplicate]
3 Apollo missions brought their lunar rovers (Lunar Roving Vehicle) LRV with them, and they remained on the moon.
Some of them have broken parts, and their batteries seem to be emtpy, according to ...
4
votes
2answers
314 views
Could refueled upper stages re-enter by retro-propulsion?
Let us suppose we manage to mine water on the Moon and return lots of it to LEO. Would it be hard to design an upper stage that could refuel at that depot, and uses that fuel to return to the surface ...
1
vote
1answer
174 views
Why can't spacecrafts create a complete heatshield cover around them during re-entry?
Like the Soyuz or Apollo spacecrafts, the crew module detaches itself from the service module during re-entry, is it possible to cover the total space-craft with a sleek-aerodynamic heat shield at the ...
3
votes
1answer
349 views
Were there problems with the Russian Buran space shuttle's reusability?
The Soviet space shuttle Buran launched and landed (unmanned, because it could) once very successfully. I would think it would be a very valuable industrial asset for the bankrupt Russian Republic ...
3
votes
1answer
131 views
What type of work goes into refurbishing a launch pad?
I read that launch pads need to be refurbished after every launch. What stuff on the pad takes damage? What is stopping them from covering the "stuff" in some sort of flame-retardant, explosion-proof ...
12
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3answers
3k views
Why didn't the space shuttle SRBs have wings and tires?
Why didn't the space shuttle solid rocket boosters have wings and tires to land the same way the orbiter lands? I don't think they haven't thought of that so there must be something that led them not ...
1
vote
0answers
448 views
How much fuel is necessary for 2nd stage of Falcon 9 rocket to land?
What is the fuel mass nedeed for the 2nd stage of Falcon 9 rocket to land, how much compared with its total fuel mass that it has? Or how much delta-v is necessary? Would it be able for Falcon 9 to ...
