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0 pointsarghwhat11mo ago0 comments

> Whatever you build, it would land on the moon perhaps once, and never again.

But it would also never land on Mars, so it would be a waste to build it for that. Build it for what it will actually spend its life doing.

Not saying SpaceX won't go to Mars, but if/when they do it will likely be several rocket generations later and possibly with specialized rockets, with a significant portion of it being one-time-use as you ain't returning.

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hliyan11mo ago

I completely forgot about this. Current aerodynamics and heat shielding are optimized for Earth reentry. They may have to significantly rethink the design for Mars. What they land on Mars will likely be very different from what we see today.

rtkwe11mo ago

Even if it does go to Mars there are some major warts on the design. When you land you're 35-40 meters or so up in the air so there's a whole other elevator assembly needed just to get people out of the rocket to the ground.

ceejayoz11mo ago

We've been hoisting people and cargo up/down with pulleys and cables for thousands of years. This seems like the smallest obstacle Starship has to face.

pennomi11mo ago

We’ve been opening and closing doors for even longer and yet it has still posed a challenge for SpaceX when dealing with the payload door on Starship. Space makes even trivial things hard.

ceejayoz11mo ago

Sure. But they gotta fix the door, either way.

Winching stuff out of said open door seems like a much, much easier task.

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rtkwe11mo ago

On another planet as their only way on or off of the spacecraft is a whole different level of risk.

ceejayoz11mo ago

Everything's a risk nine months from Earth.

A hatch with a winch (or two!) seems likely to be one of the smaller ones.

Teever11mo ago

What viable alternative design would not have this constraint?

rtkwe11mo ago

A smaller purpose build lander that doesn't need the fuel capacity for the entire journey would be significantly shorter and could be wider too. That would get it significantly closer. Enough that a simple ladder would be viable so they aren't reliant on a winch/elevator.

Teever11mo ago

So you're suggesting something similar to the Apollo LEM that will land, and carry enough fuel to return to orbit to dock with something that will contain enough fuel that will return to Earth?

Wouldn't that make the mission unfeasible because it requires ISRU of return fuel?

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hliyan11mo ago

rtkwe11mo ago

ceejayoz11mo ago

We've been hoisting people and cargo up/down with pulleys and cables for thousands of years. This seems like the smallest obstacle Starship has to face.

pennomi11mo ago

We’ve been opening and closing doors for even longer and yet it has still posed a challenge for SpaceX when dealing with the payload door on Starship. Space makes even trivial things hard.

ceejayoz11mo ago

Sure. But they gotta fix the door, either way.

Winching stuff out of said open door seems like a much, much easier task.

1 more reply

rtkwe11mo ago

On another planet as their only way on or off of the spacecraft is a whole different level of risk.

ceejayoz11mo ago

Everything's a risk nine months from Earth.

A hatch with a winch (or two!) seems likely to be one of the smaller ones.

Teever11mo ago

What viable alternative design would not have this constraint?

rtkwe11mo ago

Teever11mo ago

So you're suggesting something similar to the Apollo LEM that will land, and carry enough fuel to return to orbit to dock with something that will contain enough fuel that will return to Earth?

Wouldn't that make the mission unfeasible because it requires ISRU of return fuel?

1 more reply

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse