Tom Spilker's user avatar
Tom Spilker's user avatar
Tom Spilker's user avatar
Tom Spilker
  • Member for 6 years
  • Last seen more than a month ago
  • Southern California, CA, USA
107 votes
Accepted

Why do most space probes survive for far longer than they were designed for?

67 votes
Accepted

Why not increase contact surface when reentering the atmosphere?

60 votes
Accepted

Could a spacecraft spin so fast that it spontaneously deconstructs?

58 votes
Accepted

What skipped test on Genesis would have detected the backwards-inserted accelerometer which didn't deploy the parachute?

50 votes

Do you need to burn fuel between gravity assists?

50 votes
Accepted

Why did Starhopper's exhaust plume become brighter just before landing?

46 votes
Accepted

What is the story behind specific impulse being expressed in seconds?

42 votes
Accepted

Can a spaceship land on an icy body using retropropulsion? wouldn't the ice melt?

40 votes
Accepted

Could a complex system of reaction wheels be used to propel a spacecraft?

40 votes

Why is using a space elevator cheaper than rocket power?

31 votes

What would happen if a satellite took a direct hit from a coronal mass ejection (CME)?

30 votes
Accepted

Soyuz Steering during Re-Entry

29 votes
Accepted

How best to maneuver inside a large room within a space station using only arm and leg motion?

29 votes
Accepted

Is this plot of deep space trajectories correct? Did most launch retrograde from Earth? Why do some change direction between planets?

29 votes

How much more expensive are scientific instruments for space use?

28 votes

Will there be back-side photos of Ultima Thule?

27 votes

Qualitative differences between gravity and a spinning habitat

27 votes
Accepted

If a Voyager crashes into something, would we know?

25 votes

Can we expect to find pure iron or only nickel-iron alloys in asteroids?

24 votes
Accepted

How do I dress for a hike on a hot summer day on Titan?

23 votes

Is Nibiru real or totally science fiction?

22 votes
Accepted

What is the delta-v required to get a mass in Earth orbit into the sun using a SINGLE transfer?

21 votes
Accepted

Was this a rapid SCHEDULED disassembly? How was it done?

21 votes
Accepted

Have Air-breathing Engines ever been used on a reentry vehicle, could they be?

21 votes

Why didn't Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 crash on into Jupiter or Uranus when they approached near to these massive planets?

20 votes

Dangle a cable down to earth - fundamental Physics question

19 votes
Accepted

How can an *increase* in atmospheric temperature cause an *increase* in the atmospheric mass density?

19 votes
Accepted

What limits the speed at which rocket fuel is expelled?

19 votes

When did planetary scientists realize Venus' surface pressure was almost 100x that on Earth? How did they find out?

18 votes

Why is Perseverance's RTG lifetime only 14 years?

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