SpaceX

[Sigmetnow]

—— Fairing catch
(Orbital rendezvous for refueling seems simple compared to the fairing-momentum/parachute-control/wind/sea currents/waves/ship-control this involves!)

Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 8/18/20, 5:36 PM
Ms Tree catches fairing in her net
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1295837003444039682
⬇️ Photo below.

Elon Musk:  Fairing chute control & ship control are closing the loop locally. Both operating on (SpaceX) autopilot.

Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 8/18/20, 6:17 PM
Aloha, welcome back from space   
➡️ https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1295847382073171970

45 sec drone video of the catch, edited, with music, at the link.


————
—- Starship SN6 static fire schedule

Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) 8/18/20, 2:32 PM
Starship SN6 static fire is set for Aug. 24 with Aug. 25 and 26 the available backup days. Windows are 8 am to 8 pm daily.

https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/status/1295790775637172224
Text image at the link.  “Launch name/Designation:  SN6 Static Fire”

———
Re: SpaceX Raises Nearly $2 Billion In Equity And Grows Total Investors To 75

Eric Berger (@SciGuySpace) 8/18/20, 6:15 PM
Kind of decimates the argument that SpaceX won't have enough funds to complete Starship. Which, if you didn't know, was probably the biggest question.

https://twitter.com/sciguyspace/status/1295846881562628099

[Sigmetnow]

—— Reusability

Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) 8/18/20, 10:49 AM
ULA has said that you need to refly a booster ten times for the economics of reusability to make sense. SpaceX is now up to six with Falcon 9.

Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 8/18/20, 8:42 PM
Payload reduction due to reusability of booster & fairing is <40% for F9 & recovery & refurb is <10%, so you’re roughly even with 2 flights, definitely ahead with 3

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1295883862380294144

Eric Berger (@SciGuySpace) 8/18/20, 4:56 PM
Hearing that Northrop Grumman will cancel the Omega rocket after it failed to win the recent Air Force contest.
SpaceGal:  Yep letters were sent out today!
Eric B:  Don't feel too bad for Northrop. NASA is still paying them a king's ransom for side-boosters for the slS rocket.
< What about Antares once the last two Cygnus launches are done ?
Eric Berger: If they have other customers it may continue to fly, if they don't it won't. So far, they don't.
> Guess that frees up 39-B for all of those SLS launches.
< Makes it pretty clear that the DOD contracts are padded with a lot of profit ... so much so that it's worth designing a rocket, and a launch infrastructure, then throwing it away immediately when the DOD dumps your bid.

https://twitter.com/sciguyspace/status/1295826841853403139


Meanwhile, in China:

Linkspace (@Linkspace_China) 8/18/20, 9:03 PM
300m hop test of Newline Baby reusable rocket from LinkSpace China

https://twitter.com/linkspace_china/status/1295888996367654912
2 min vid at the link.


—— Future SpaceX missions
SES flew on the very first previously-flown F9
SpaceX secures contracts to deploy the next fleet of SES satellites atop Falcon 9

SES, a satellite network that provides data and video connection globally to television broadcasters and internet service providers, announced today it selected SpaceX to deploy its next-generation fleet of satellites.
…
SES currently operates around 70 satellites; 50 of those are operating in a Geostationary orbit, beaming signals for broadband and television. The other 20 satellites operate in Medium Earth Orbit to provide low-latency internet services. The constellation provides communications services to customers operating in nearly 50 countries. …

https://www.tesmanian.com/blogs/tesmanian-blog/spacex-contracts

[Sigmetnow]

—— Starship

Mary (@BocaChicaGal) 8/18/20, 10:14 AM
Raptor SN29 has arrived at SpaceX Boca Chica launch site. Starship SN6 will hop with Raptor SN29.
https://twitter.com/bocachicagal/status/1295725642089205760
Photo at the link.

cnunezimages (@cnunezimages) 8/18/20, 6:38 PM
"The full-flow valve just below the Methane staged switch" - #SN29RaptorEngine #BocaChicaToMars
https://twitter.com/cnunezimages/status/1295852518409490433

⬇️ Pic below: Pointing out something on Raptor SN 29

Mary (@BocaChicaGal) 8/19/20, 11:38 PM  
SN8 aft thrust and aft skirt mate at SpaceX Boca Chica production site.
@NASASpaceflight

https://twitter.com/bocachicagal/status/1296290572068626434
⬇️ Night photo below.

Mary (@BocaChicaGal) 8/20/20, 10:45 AM
Starship SN8 forward dome section has been stacked in the mid bay this morning at SpaceX Boca Chica.
https://twitter.com/bocachicagal/status/1296458253862346753

Chris B - NSF (@NASASpaceflight) 8/21/20, 11:16 AM
The latest Starship video was published overnight, ICYMI.
Spotted: Starship SN5 (Mid Bay), SN6 (Pad), SN7.1 (preps), SN8 (Mid Bay Mate) and SN9 (preps). It's a growing family in Boca Chica!

Video + Photos by Mary (@BocaChicaGal) for @NASASpaceflight.
https://twitter.com/nasaspaceflight/status/1296828613430521856

SpaceX Boca Chica - 4 Starships and a Test Tank - SN5, 6, 7.1, 8, and 9 all in work



SpaceX installs Starship Raptor engine, moves next test forward as storms near
Eric Ralph
https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-starship-sn6-raptor-install-next-test-date/amp/

[Sigmetnow]

—— Time lapse: Transitioning the six-time F9 booster from ship configuration to shore

John Kraus (@johnkrausphotos) 8/21/20, 4:11 PM
Time lapses from today’s lift of Falcon 9 B1049.6. Great showcase of humans for scale.
Lots of cool things to spot here! …

https://twitter.com/johnkrausphotos/status/1296902681727045635
Video at the link.


—— Starship
SpaceX: Two hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico early next week?  OK then, we’ll launch on Friday.

Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) 8/21/20, 5:34 PM
SpaceX is targeting Aug. 28 for the 150-meter hop of Starship SN6, per the latest road closures. Backup opportunities are available on Aug. 29 and 30. Windows are 8 am to 8 pm central on each day.

https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/status/1296923691339534338
Text image of schedule at the link.

—- ars Rocket Report

SpaceX raises heaps of money. SpaceX is close to finalizing $2 billion in new funding after the company increased the size of the round due to strong demand, according to people familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reports. The company did not comment.
The funding round is oversubscribed ... When the transaction is finalized, the company will have an equity value of $46 billion, including the fresh $2 billion in capital, the publication reports. This puts SpaceX as one of the most valuable US venture-backed companies. The funds will likely be used to support the company's Starship and Starlink projects. …

SLS rocket may shake too much for Clipper. At a meeting of NASA's Planetary Science Advisory Committee this week, Lori Glaze, director of NASA's planetary science division, said the Europa Clipper mission had recently discovered compatibility issues involving the Space Launch System. This is the vehicle preferred by Congress to launch the Clipper spacecraft, SpaceNews reports.
A valuable, $4 billion spacecraft ... "There have been some issues that have been uncovered just recently," she said of the use of SLS for Europa Clipper. Industry sources told the publication that these compatibility issues likely involve the environment the spacecraft would experience during launch, such as vibrations. If NASA doesn't want to launch the Clipper on the SLS, the alternative is SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket.   …

Could a Falcon Heavy fly Dragon to the Moon?  In a feature story, Ars explores the political and technical dimensions behind the possibility of substituting the Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon Heavy rocket into the Artemis Moon mission. The rocket and the spacecraft could provide an alternative to NASA's Orion spacecraft and SLS rocket for ferrying crews to and from lunar orbit.
But, but, but ... Such a solution has advantages in terms of much lower cost, and the SpaceX vehicles are now proven in flight. However, reworking Dragon to meet the demands of longer-duration, deep-space flight would not be trivial. And Congress seems unlikely to fund such an approach given its desire to keep legacy jobs in place. At the least, SpaceX seems like a nice option for NASA to keep in its back pocket if there are further delays with the SLS rocket. … [see referenced articles below]

https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/08/rocket-report-raptor-engine-sets-record-northrop-may-say-aloha-to-omega/
More SpaceX (and other) news at the link.

—-
Send the SpaceX Dragon to the moon
Homer Hickam June 22, 2020

… We recognize the hard work that NASA and its contractors have put forth on Orion/SLS, but they have simply been left behind by more nimble commercial companies. Dragon is not just cheaper than Orion; it is much better, because it is much lighter. The Dragon has a mass of 9.5 tons, compared to Orion’s 26.5 tons. Orion could have been designed lighter, but NASA has received so many conflicting directives from successive administrations — Orion was once required to fly to the asteroid belt! — it ended up with an elephant, not the racehorse it needed.

Moreover, SLS cannot deliver Orion to low lunar orbit like Apollo with enough propellant to fly it home. To fix this, NASA wants to build a new space station in high lunar orbit, which it calls the Gateway, to provide Orion with a destination that it can reach. But to travel down to the moon and back up to the high Gateway orbit requires a lander with double the propellant needed from low orbit. This Rube Goldbergian plan will cost billions and add years to the schedule of what has become known as the Artemis program. …

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/06/22/send-spacex-dragon-moon/

—-
Could a Dragon spacecraft fly humans to the Moon? It’s complicated
"Do you really want to get to the Moon by 2024 or not?"
Eric Berger - 8/16/2020

Gray [moon] Dragon —
But, but, but
NASA Administrator Bridenstine was dismissive when asked about using Dragons instead of Orions for the Artemis Program. “I think it’s important to note that Crew Dragon was specifically designed for low Earth orbit and, in order to send it to the Moon, would require a ton of modifications,” he said. “I’m not saying you couldn’t modify it, but if you modified it, it would look a lot like Orion.”

To get a sense of how difficult it would be to modify Dragon for lunar operations, Ars spoke with Garrett Reismann, a former NASA astronaut who joined SpaceX in 2011 to direct crew operations. He left SpaceX about two years ago but remains a consultant. For this article, he made it clear he was not speaking on behalf of the company.

Although Crew Dragon was designed for low Earth orbit, the company did look beyond that, Reismann said. He cited the short-lived Red Dragon program, which at one time the company considered as a means of delivering cargo to Mars, before deciding to focus on Starship. Starship was deemed a better use of internal research and development funds than development of a Gray or Red Dragon, he said.

Traveling beyond low Earth orbit would therefore require some substantial but feasible changes to the spacecraft, Reismann said. Dragon’s communication system works through GPS, so it would need a new communications and navigation system. In terms of radiation, he said, addressing this for astronauts is relatively straightforward, but hardening electronics would require some work. The heat shield could be made capable of returning from the Moon relatively easily, Reismann said. Additional consumables for a longer journey would take up interior volume.

Another consideration is that the Falcon Heavy is not rated for human launches, meaning it does not include various safety factors that would increase its reliability. However, NASA could solve that problem by launching a Dragon separately on a Falcon 9 and a propulsion module on another Falcon 9. They could then dock, a procedure NASA perfected during the Gemini Program more than a half-century ago, and proceed to the Moon. …

https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/08/could-a-dragon-spacecraft-fly-humans-to-the-moon-its-complicated/

[Sigmetnow]

StarshipS — Update

—- New rocket, new engine!  On the third try, a static fire on Starship SN6.

Jack Beyer (@thejackbeyer) 8/24/20, 2:47 AM
Starship SN6 Static Fired its Raptor engine (SN29) for the first time in magnificent golden hour lighting. Enjoy some close up, slo mo video with glorious ambient audio.

Video + Photos by Mary (@BocaChicaGal) for @NASASpaceflight. Edited by me.

https://twitter.com/thejackbeyer/status/1297787716822687744
SpaceX Boca Chica - Starship SN6 Static Fire - YouTube
➡️https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuBb_MeWdsc
 
Status on the multiple Starships.  Also: Out at the launch site, progress continues to be made on the “Orbital Launch Pad” facility that is expected to host the first Super Heavy rocket.
Starship SN6 prepares to firing up Raptor SN29

While SN6 is out at the launch site, numerous Starships are being worked on at the Production Facility, with SN5 undergoing post-hop processing, SN7.1 – a test tank – being prepared for an over-pressure test, along with SN8 stacking in the Mid Bay and SN9’s first sections also appearing out in the open. …

https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2020/08/starship-sn6-raptor-sn29/
 
——- High Bay news

Mary (@BocaChicaGal) 8/24/20, 8:00 AM
The high bay goes another level higher this morning at SpaceX Boca Chica. …
https://twitter.com/bocachicagal/status/1297866370533724160

Chris B - NSF (@NASASpaceflight) 8/24/20, 8:12 AM
And with this, they should be the full 81 meters.
Just add a roof, internal structures and equipment, and then they can start throwing steel rings/sections into there. Tap a magic wand and Super Heavy boosters will then roll out!
https://twitter.com/nasaspaceflight/status/1297869344165306371 /size]

⬇️The color of the high bay has magically changed in the photo below.  Sunrise sunlight?

[Sigmetnow]

Next scheduled SpaceX launches:
Thursday Aug 27:  Falcon 9 with SAOCOM1B
Friday Aug 28:  Starship SN6 hop
Saturday Aug 29:  Falcon 9 with Starlinks

Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) 8/24/20, 10:50 AM
The backup road closures for Starship SN6 static fire attempts have been canceled. Closures remain in place starting Aug. 28 for the hop.
Presumably, yesterday's static fire went well! #SpaceX 

https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/status/1297909099208642561
Text image of the schedule at the link.

Aug. 27:  Falcon 9 • SAOCOM 1B
Launch time: 2319 GMT (7:19 p.m. EDT)
Launch site: SLC-40, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the SAOCOM 1B satellite for CONAE, Argentina’s space agency. SAOCOM 1B is the second of two SAOCOM 1-series Earth observation satellites designed to provide radar imagery to help emergency responders and monitor the environment, including the collection of soil moisture measurements. Delayed from 4th Quarter of 2019, January and February. This mission was originally scheduled to launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. Delayed from March 30 due to coronavirus pandemic.
 
Aug. 29:  Falcon 9 • Starlink 11
Launch time: TBD
Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the 12th batch of approximately 60 satellites for SpaceX’s Starlink broadband network, a mission designated Starlink 11. 

https://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/

[vox_mundi]

Astronomers Slam SpaceX's Growing Starlink Satellite Constellation
https://futurism.com/astronomers-slam-spacex-growing-starlink-satellite-constellation/amp
https://aas.org/press/report-offers-roadmap-mitigate-effects-large-satellite-constellations-astronomy

In May 2019 SpaceX launched its first batch of 60 Starlink communication satellites, which surprised astronomers and laypeople with their appearance in the night sky. Astronomers have only now, a little over a year later, accumulated enough observations of constellation satellites like those being launched by SpaceX and OneWeb, and run computer simulations of their likely impact when fully deployed, to thoroughly understand the magnitude and complexity of the problem.

“In the last year, the sky has changed, with growing numbers of satellite trails contaminating astronomical images,” reads the report.

“With tens of thousands of low-Earth orbit satellites, we find that generally no combination of mitigations can completely avoid the impacts of satellite trails on the science programs of the coming generation of optical astronomy facilities.”

Scientific discoveries such as the identification of a near-Earth object or a super-Earth exoplanet candidate could be missed thanks to noise created by the satellites’ trails.

The report warned that “Starlink alone may roughly double the number of space-based moving objects detectable by the unaided eye around twilight.”

Options to reduce the impact include “darken them”, “keep them low”, “orient them to reflect less sunlight”, but number one on the list was “don’t launch them”.

Report: https://aas.org/sites/default/files/2020-08/SATCON1-Report.pdf

[Sigmetnow]

Launch Schedule updates

A powerful Delta 4-Heavy rocket built by United Launch Alliance is set for liftoff from Cape Canaveral at 2:12 a.m. EDT (0612 GMT) with a top secret payload for the National Reconnaissance Office, the U.S. government’s spy satellite agency.

The delay of the (priority) NROL launch means SpaceX SAOCOM and Starlink launches are moved to the right as well.  Starship SN6 hop has also been bumped a day. (Elon must want to be there for sure. )

Delta IV Heavy: NET Thursday Aug 27,  06:12 UTC (2:12 a.m. EDT)

Falcon 9/SAOCOM-1B: NET Friday Aug 28,  23:19 UTC (7:19 p.m. EDT)
Starship SN6 150-meter hop: NET Saturday Aug 29 (Road closure is 8am to 8pm Boca Chica time.)
Falcon 9/Starlink v1.0 L11: NET Sunday Aug 30 14:08 UTC (10:08 a.m. EDT)

Reminder:  SAOCOM-1B will be the first polar orbit launch from the East Coast in half a century!
Unusual Launch Hazard Areas, and the booster will return to “Landing Zone 1” at the Cape.

Raul (@Raul74Cz) 8/24/20, 11:46 AM
#SAOCOM-1B LHAs for Aug 27 23:14 UTC, altern.Aug 28. LZ1 landing for B1059.4. Drop area (red) in case of boostback failure. Possible fairing recovery in southern (orange) area. Dogleg maneuver to polar orbit azimuth. S2 debris reentry west of Easter Island.

https://twitter.com/raul74cz/status/1297923202019143680
Images below.


 —- Ocean launch platforms

< Odessy is a self-propelled semi-submersible mobile spacecraft launch platform converted from a mobile drilling rig
The .. Zenit-3SL rocket that Sea Launch used to roll out of the hanger on deck, to a launch mount. Sea Launch was cool.
<< Russia will restore the #SeaLaunch cosmodrome, said the Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov today at the Army-2020 forum. According to him, the preliminary calculations showed that the restoration will cost about 35 billion rubles (ca $450 million).

Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 8/24/20, 2:37 PM
Starship/Super Heavy, which is ~10X mass of Zenit, will mostly launch from ocean spaceports long-term
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1297966299671228416

< Ocean spaceports are coming. Certainly solves the issue of a herd of Raptors waking the neighbors!
Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 8/24/20, 6:10 PM
Yeah. Occasional flights from land are ok, but frequent (daily) flights probably need ~30km / 18 miles clear area for noise.
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1298019842356703232

—— Rocket Fuels
Huge DELTA IV HEAVY rocket launches slowly off the launch pad because: Hydrogen.

< ULA's Tony Taliancich on Wednesday's Delta IV Heavy launch: "It poses for pictures on the way out."
<< That's because it's Hydrogen (as opposed to Hydrocarbon) first stage engines aren't high-thrust. Atlas 5 and Falcon 9 both use Kerosene, Starship will use Methane, and Vulcan and New Glenn will use LNG (basically cheaper, less-pure methane).

> How will lunar starship refuel? It needs to go back to Earth orbit, and then get refueled by multiple tankers to do that round trip each time right? Can’t make methane on the moon sans a large cow farm, right? 
Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 8/25/20, 9:05 PM
Starship propellant is ~78% oxygen, so an O2 plant on the moon would be enough. Otherwise, we could brute-force it with tankers to low Earth orbit. That’s probably faster.
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1298426245991063554

[Sigmetnow]

Astronomers Slam SpaceX's Growing Starlink Satellite Constellation
...
https://aas.org/press/report-offers-roadmap-mitigate-effects-large-satellite-constellations-astronomy

The satellites orbiting earth as depicted on the cover of the aas report would be several hundred miles long in size. If our skies are suddenly filled with spacecraft that large, astronomical obstruction would be the least of our worries.

[Sigmetnow]

—-  Another SAOCOM 1B delay, due to another NROL-44 launch delay.  This is the first mission for ULA’s Delta IV-Heavy rocket in 19 months.  Both SpaceX launches must wait until after the priority NROL launch.

ULA (@ulalaunch) 8/27/20, 2:23 PM
The launch of the United Launch Alliance #DeltaIVHeavy #NROL44 mission is now set for Sat., Aug. 29. Additional time is needed for the team to validate the appropriate path forward with the ground pneumatics control system.
https://twitter.com/ulalaunch/status/1299049908108963841
~ The launch will take place from Space Launch Complex-37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The forecast shows an 80 percent chance of favorable weather conditions for launch. The launch time is 2:04 a.m. EDT. bit.ly/div_nrol44

< How about moving Starlink 11 launch to the opened window tomorrow?
<< Not really an option. There are configuration changes that have to take place going from a ULA launch to a SpaceX launch that take a significant amount of time. In addition ULA has priority over the range with national security related launches.
< What about two SpaceX launches Sunday? Morning and night?
<< I'm really hoping this is the case. Not too often do you end up with multiple rockets waiting to launch

Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) 8/27/20, 9:55 AM
The SAOCOM 1B launch has been delayed due to the NROL-44 scrub, per the launch customer for the SOACOM mission. The new date will be announced soon.
[Photo of the SAOCOM folks, in masks, in the subtweet.]
Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) 8/27/20, 10:19 AM
New launch date is likely going to be Aug. 30, per marine hazard notices.
forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topi…

https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/status/1298988408438575121

Space Odjobs (@SOdjobs) 8/27/20, 9:46 AM
Little fun fact: The reason why Saocom 1B was unable to press ahead of NROL-44 is because the Southbound trajectory of the F9 will put it flying DIRECTLY ABOVE pad 37, where a billion dollar National Security payload it's awaiting liftoff. Surely they would not like that idea

https://twitter.com/sodjobs/status/1298980122502950912
Satellite/path image below.

—-

Gavin - SpaceXFleet.com (@SpaceXFleet) 8/27/20, 7:30 AM
Good Morning! Ms. Tree and Ms. Chief departed from Cape Canaveral late last night and are heading south towards the SAOCOM-1B fairing recovery zone.
https://twitter.com/spacexfleet/status/1298945922886504448
~ No droneship deployment. Booster will land at LZ-1, Cape Canaveral!

Just kidding!

Julia (@julia_bergeron) 8/27/20, 7:39 PM
Fleet Update: After being at dead stop in the #SAOCOM1B fairing catch zone it appears the sisters did an about face to head north. It is possible we could see a shuffle of the SpaceX launch cadence this weekend. Are they heading to the #Starlink LZ instead? #SpaceXFleet
https://twitter.com/julia_bergeron/status/1299129564149489665

Julia (@julia_bergeron) 8/28/20, 9:27 AM
While GO Ms. Tree continues [north] to the #Starlink LZ, it appears GO Ms. Chief may have stayed at the southern #SAOCOM1B landing zone after all. Last ping was almost 23:00 ET last night, well after Mystery left. A double header recovery weekend is looking promising. #SpaceXFleet
https://twitter.com/julia_bergeron/status/1299337739217838080

Gavin - SpaceXFleet.com (@SpaceXFleet) 8/27/20, 10:08 AM
OCISLY droneship is getting underway from Port Canaveral for the Starlink mission.

https://twitter.com/spacexfleet/status/1298985752508817408
Photo at the link.


SpaceX eyes two Falcon 9 launches and a Starship hop in three days
https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-two-launches-one-hop-three-days/amp/


——-  Boeing Starliner Orbital Flight Test #2  (OFT 2)
Boeing plans second Starliner test flight in December or January
August 25, 2020   Stephen Clark

Boeing said Tuesday it is “making excellent progress” toward launching a second unpiloted test flight of its Starliner crew capsule to the International Space Station by the end of this year or in early January, setting the stage for the first Starliner demonstration mission with astronauts in mid-2021.
…
NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Josh Cassada were assigned to the first “post-certification” Starliner flight in 2018. NASA announced Tuesday that astronaut Jeanette Epps will join Williams and Cassada on the mission. Epps will become the first Black woman to be part of a long-term space station crew.

A fourth crew member — likely from one of NASA’s international partners — is expected to be assigned to the Williams-led Starliner crew. …

https://spaceflightnow.com/2020/08/25/boeing-plans-second-starliner-test-flight-in-december-or-january/

[Sigmetnow]

Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) 8/28/20, 1:12 PM
SpaceX's current schedule for Sunday is absolute madness:

- Starlink V1 L11 from LC-39A at 10:12 Eastern
- SAOCOM 1B from SLC-40 at 19:19 Eastern
- Starship SN6 150-meter hop from Boca Chica sometime after 09:00 Eastern

That is two launches from the Cape in just over 9 hrs.

https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/status/1299394453933707265

And a leisurely ~32 hours for the Range to reset from the ULA launch — if it launches on time!

— Fairing recovery — one ship for each Falcon 9 mission on Sunday

Gavin - SpaceXFleet.com (@SpaceXFleet) 8/28/20, 1:28 PM
Each ship can carry both fairing halves but can only attempt to catch one and then hopefully scoop the other from the water.

SpaceX experimented with two halves on one ship a few weeks ago:

https://twitter.com/spacexfleet/status/1299398366615474178
⬇️ Photo below from: https://twitter.com/kyle_m_photo/status/1294374068926451715


—- Starship Booster hop by October?!

Scott Manley (@DJSnM) 8/22/20, 4:04 PM
I think @elonmusk enjoys watching rocket nerds making guesses about construction at Boca Chica.
https://twitter.com/djsnm/status/1297263343816724480
Elon Musk: They’re quite accurate!

< Any update on this year’s Starship event? Still aiming for September?
Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 8/28/20, 2:56 AM
Neuralink this month & Tesla next month, SpaceX probably October. We will have made a lot of progress by then. Might have a prototype booster hop done by then.
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1299239536535375872

< [No way SH booster hop by October!?]
Daryl Corbin (@darylcorbin) 8/28/20, 11:14 AM
Well....
I’ve thought that 7.1 was the test article for the first Super Heavy ever since Elon first mentioned it. Since it incorporates the new 304L material and the updated thrust puck/lower bulkhead designs from all the previous testing, it’s not hard to imagine...
~ ...that a Super Heavy thrust section has also been in development and possibly even fabrication of a test article.
We also know Raptor SN40 is out there, and with SN6 using Raptor SN29, there’s enough Raptors out there for SN8 and a center section (7 Raptors) test flight. …
https://twitter.com/darylcorbin/status/1299364755711328256

[vox_mundi]

If ya can't get it off the ground, at least put on a good show ...



The Delta IV Heavy rocket is scheduled to launch the NROL-44 spy satellite on Saturday (Aug. 29) at 2:04 a.m. EDT (0604 GMT) from Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral in Florida. However, on Aug. 24, the spacecraft served as a backdrop for a 3D projection celebrating ULA's legacy and the company's successful delivery of 140 missions to orbit.

[Sigmetnow]

...
< Any update on this year’s Starship event? Still aiming for September?
Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 8/28/20, 2:56 AM
Neuralink this month & Tesla next month, SpaceX probably October. We will have made a lot of progress by then. Might have a prototype booster hop done by then.
...
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1299239536535375872

< For just a booster hop you could probably get away with 3 or 6 Raptors only... But it’ll be a while before you have 2 dozen + similar and capable engines for an orbital booster, right?
Elon Musk: Only need 2 engines
   https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1299373520179216384

Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 8/28/20, 3:02 PM
Raptor reached 230 mT-F (over half a million pounds of thrust) at peak pressure with some damage, so this version of the engine can probably sustain ~210 tons. Should have a 250+ ton engine in about 6 to 9 months. Target for booster is 7500 tons (16.5 million pounds) of thrust.
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1299422160667250689
> the final plumbing diagram for 31 engines will be interesting indeed.

[Sigmetnow]

NOPE!
(Article has a tweet with a vid of the hotfire abort. Now they must replace igniter things before the next attempt.)
ULA Launch of NRO spy satellite delayed at least a week
https://spaceflightnow.com/2020/08/29/launch-of-nro-spy-satellite-delayed-at-least-a-week/

Tory Bruno (@torybruno) 8/29/20, 4:23 AM
The bird is in good shape. This was an automatic abort during the ignition sequence. Cause appears to have been in the ground system. System functioned as intended to protect the vehicle and payload.

https://twitter.com/torybruno/status/1299623698090135552
< ULA says that the recycle time will be seven days minimum prior to the next launch attempt. #NROL44

—-
Given the NROL-44 abort, SAOCOM is expected to be delayed again.   However, the SpaceX fleet is still in position for the Starlink launch on Sunday.

Gavin - SpaceXFleet.com (@SpaceXFleet) 8/29/20, 11:12 AM
Here's the full recovery fleet update:

OCISLY droneship and GO Quest have arrived at the Starlink LZ. Ms. Tree will be arriving later today.
Ms. Chief is still at the SAOCOM-1B recovery zone for now. That mission will face further delay because of a range conflict with NROL-44. 

https://twitter.com/spacexfleet/status/1299726562229661697

[Sigmetnow]

Bribes?  Threats?  Public humiliation?  Or did SpaceX reprogram SAOCOM’s Falcon 9 launch trajectory so it will be a safe distance away from the ULA/NROL launch pad?

Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) 8/29/20, 1:18 PM
Not sure what factor changed to allow SAOCOM to launch before NROL-44, but as of now, it is going to happen.
https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/status/1299758375329083393

Emre Kelly (@EmreKelly) 8/29/20, 1:09 PM
Latest Eastern Range schedule still points to two Falcon 9 launches tomorrow: Starlink from 39A at 1012 ET and SAOCOM from 40 at 1918 ET. Buckle up.
https://twitter.com/emrekelly/status/1299756124212785152

[Sigmetnow]

The SpaceX.com website says:  “SpaceX is targeting Sunday, August 30th for two launches – a Starlink mission in the morning and the SAOCOM 1B mission in the evening.  Upon completion of the Starlink mission, this page will be updated with information on the SAOCOM 1B mission.”

The latest schedule I have is:
1412 GMT (10:12 a.m. EDT) for the Starlink mission
2319 GMT (7:19 p.m. EDT) for SAOCOM

———————-
-—-  SpaceX chosen as taxi to the moon

Michael Sheetz (@thesheetztweetz) 8/26/20, 2:04 PM
Masten Space Systems signed a contract with SpaceX to launch the Masten Mission One (MM1) to the Moon in 2022, with the XL-1 lander set to deliver 9 payloads to the lunar south pole under NASA's CLPS program. 

https://twitter.com/thesheetztweetz/status/1298682689491329024

What’s fascinating about this news is that the contract does not specify which SpaceX rocket will be used, nor what, or how many, other payloads might also be aboard — just that SpaceX will get them to the moon on schedule.  Could this turn out to be an early Starship demo mission?  I can see SpaceX giving Masten a great price to permit that flexibility.

SpaceX to launch Masten lunar lander

In an Aug. 27 interview, Sean Mahoney, chief executive of Masten, said the contract does not cover a specific launch vehicle, but rather a service to get the spacecraft to the moon on the company’s desired schedule. “We’re buying the performance that we need,” he said. SpaceX will have the ability to place other spacecraft on the launch on a noninterference basis.
…
NASA will be an anchor customer for the mission but Masten intends to sign up others. “There is a tremendous amount of interest,” he said, including from both the public and private sector, although he didn’t mention any specific potential customers.

Mahoney said the level of customer interest soared after Masten won the CLPS award and had a firm schedule for the mission. “Once the CLPS award was made and we crossed from speculative to having a schedule, the tenor and tone of our conversations have changed dramatically.”

The limiting factor for the lander mission has not been the amount of mass available for payloads, he said, but instead positions on the lander that have views of the surface desired by payloads. “There’s a game of positioning among the various instruments so that they can get the view angles that they need and not interfere,” he said.
…
Masten joins a growing list of companies and organizations using SpaceX to launch lunar lander missions. Intuitive Machines, which won one of the first NASA CLPS awards last year, selected SpaceX to launch its IM-1 lunar lander mission on a Falcon 9 in 2021. Intuitive Machines said at the time that it would be part of a rideshare mission, but didn’t state if its lander would be considered the primary payload or not.

Japanese company ispace selected SpaceX in 2018 to launch its first two lunar missions, which at the time were to be an orbiter and lander launching in 2020 and 2021 respectively on Falcon 9 rockets. The company now says both will be lander missions, launching in 2022 and 2023.

SpaceX has already launched one lunar lander mission. Beresheet, the lunar lander built by Israel Aerospace Industries for Israeli organization SpaceIL, flew as a secondary payload on the SpaceX Falcon 9 launch of an Indonesian communications satellite in February 2019. Beresheet used its onboard propulsion to move from a geostationary transfer orbit to lunar orbit, but crashed attempting a landing in April 2019. …

https://spacenews.com/spacex-to-launch-masten-lunar-lander/


=====  The SLS rocket just got 30+% more expensive
   •   NASA has announced changes to its “baseline cost” for the SLS rocket, stating that it’s going to spend an additional 30% or more to get the rocket ready for its late 2021 debut.
   •   The SLS program has been plagued by delays and cost overruns for years now.
   •   The tentative first launch date for the SLS is November 2021.
https://bgr.com/2020/08/28/sls-rocket-nasa-cost-budget/

[crandles]

What’s fascinating about this news is that the contract does not specify which SpaceX rocket will be used, nor what, or how many, other payloads might also be aboard — just that SpaceX will get them to the moon on schedule.  Could this turn out to be an early Starship demo mission?  I can see SpaceX giving Masten a great price to permit that flexibility.

That has been the plan for some time:

"We are aiming to be able to drop Starship on the lunar surface in 2022," SpaceX president and chief operating officer Gwynne Shotwell said during a NASA-organized CLPS teleconference Monday (Nov. 18)."

https://www.space.com/spacex-starship-moon-missions-2022.html

Is it a demo mission if they are getting paid for it?

Perhaps surprising there hasn't been any slippage to date yet?

Mixed review on timing May 2020 says it is still scheduled for 2022:
https://spaceflightnow.com/2020/05/01/nasa-identifies-risks-in-spacexs-starship-lunar-lander-proposal/

[Sigmetnow]

I guess “to the moon” isn’t specific enough anymore.

The Masten spacecraft and the others, if I’m not mistaken, will land under their own power, after being sent towards the moon on a mission either a Falcon 9 or Falcon Heavy could accomplish.  Early [Edit:]Starship flights Starship lunar flights should be similar:  get a payload successfully to TLI (Trans-Lunar Injection).   Later SpaceX launches would be to lunar orbit, and later still to the lunar surface using Lunar Starship.

As to whether the first Starship flights can be called “demonstrations” — didn’t NASA pay for Demo-1 and Demo-2 to the ISS?    Sharing the risk along with the potential benefits....

[Sigmetnow]

SpaceX (@SpaceX) 8/30/20, 7:49 AM
Standing down from today’s launch of Starlink due to inclement weather during pre-flight operations. Next launch opportunity is Tuesday, September 1 at 9:29 a.m. EDT, pending Range acceptance

https://twitter.com/spacex/status/1300037857793290243


 

SpaceX (@SpaceX) 8/30/20, 7:51 AM
Targeting launch of SAOCOM 1B at 7:18 p.m. EDT tonight. Falcon 9 and SAOCOM 1B are vertical on SLC-40. Weather continues to be 40% favorable for liftoff

https://twitter.com/spacex/status/1300038419108605953

[Sigmetnow]

...
Perhaps surprising there hasn't been any slippage to date yet?

Mixed review on timing May 2020 says it is still scheduled for 2022:
https://spaceflightnow.com/2020/05/01/nasa-identifies-risks-in-spacexs-starship-lunar-lander-proposal/

That May 2020 article is from when the Human Landing System first selections were announced — the NASA Artemis Source Selection Statement (trying real hard to be fair [while at the same time dumping Boeing from the process entirely, AKA the Loverro fiasco]) documented similar pros and cons for the Blue Origin and Dynetics moon landers that were also chosen in this first round. 

This article discusses the selection notes for all three.  Here’s the Starship section:
NASA Selects Blue Origin, Dynetics, and SpaceX Human Landers for Artemis

SpaceX Starship
The third vehicle selected by NASA is SpaceX’s Starship spacecraft. Starship is the only HLS selected that is fully reusable, and the only single stage design. While the Starship vehicle is not a new proposal, there appear to be new changes and details for the variant of Starship which would serve the HLS role.

A flight profile to the lunar surface would see a fuel tanker variant of Starship launched to Low Earth Orbit first, utilizing the Super Heavy booster. The crew-rated Starship would launch second, rendezvous with the tanker in order to refuel, and then perform a trans-lunar injection to lunar orbit. Like the other HLS proposals, Starship is capable of docking either to Orion or the Lunar Gateway.

While the Starship’s primary propulsion is still the Raptor engine, it would likely use a different engine to perform the final descent to the lunar surface, according to renders SpaceX shared on social media. These thrusters appear higher up on the vehicle and are likely to mitigate the potential hazards with powerful engine plumes near the lunar surface.

The renders also show a lack of aerodynamic control surfaces, meaning that the Starship would never return to land on Earth. Instead, the spacecraft would travel to and from the lunar surface many times. The vehicle offers a payload capability of up to 100 tons to the lunar surface.

Starship meets or exceeds all performance requirements, and features a significant strength in extravehicular activity (EVA) support capabilities. According to NASA’s source selection statement, Starship thoroughly addressed these requirements with an effective dust mitigation strategy and two fully redundant airlocks.

Other strengths of the Starship proposal include the immediate capability to support sustainable operations through full reusability and plans to conduct numerous ground and flight demonstrations. The Starhopper and Starship flight test campaign is already underway at SpaceX’s facility in Boca Chica, Texas, and the Raptor engine has been tested extensively on test stands in McGregor, Texas.

SpaceX plans to conduct a Low Earth Orbit demonstration of Starship and the Super Heavy booster, a reflight of a Starship vehicle, a long duration orbital Starship mission, and a flight beyond Low Earth Orbit, all prior to an uncrewed lunar landing demonstration mission in 2022. Through these flights, in-space propellant transfer between Starship vehicles would also be demonstrated.

NASA did highlight two weaknesses with SpaceX’s proposal. Starship’s propulsion systems were described as “notably complex,” and the report referred to prior delays under the Commercial Crew program and Falcon Heavy launch vehicle development as evidence for potential threats to their development schedule. However, the report also commends the rigorous testing and demonstration plans as a potential mitigation to these concerns. …

https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2020/04/nasa-blue-origin-dynetics-spacex-hls-artemis/

So, that plan is for Lunar Starship, which won’t return to earth, versus other Starship versions, which will.

Elon Musk (@elonmusk)  5/1/20, 6:46 PM
We’re going to try landing Starship on the moon with enough propellant to return to Earth

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1256354387720417280
Responding to:
SpaceX’s Moon Starship is a brilliant step towards reusable Mars rockets
https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-moon-starship-step-towards-mars/

——-
SpaceX has a Starship Users Guide, v.1 published in March 2020:
https://www.spacex.com/media/starship_users_guide_v1.pdf
(No dates or schedules, yet. )

Below: Render of the Starship HLS during final descent to the lunar surface – via SpaceX

[crandles]

SN6 fuel recycled, could be getting 10 min siren soon.



Edit: Siren has gone off.

Edit 2: Scrub for today.

[Sigmetnow]

—- Starlink launch this morning scrubbed due to storms

SpaceX (@SpaceX) 8/30/20, 7:49 AM
Standing down from today’s launch of Starlink due to inclement weather during pre-flight operations. Next launch opportunity is Tuesday, September 1 at 9:29 a.m. EDT, pending Range acceptance 

  https://twitter.com/spacex/status/1300037857793290243

— And weather threatened tonight’s SAOCOM 1B mission, but they proceeded with propellant loading anyway and the clouds thinned out a few minutes before T-0 and... liftoff!
Weather scuttles Starlink flight; SpaceX still targets evening launch with SAOCOM
https://spaceflightnow.com/2020/08/29/spacex-poised-for-back-to-back-launches-sunday-at-cape-canaveral/

We were treated to some amazing tracking shots as the rocket stayed close to the Florida coast, including a unique double fairing separation shot.  And the booster landed back at Landing Zone 1 at the Cape.
⬇️ Screencaps below.

—- Looks like several Starship SN6 hop attempts were aborted today — reasons unknown, but heat index reached 107°F and winds were howling....

Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) 8/30/20, 8:46 PM
SpaceX has cancelled road closures for the Starship SN6 hop attempts on Aug. 31 and Sept. 1. It is believed that this cancellation is due to more unfavorable weather forecasts.

https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/status/1300233353400991744

[Sigmetnow]

Mystery solved — sort of.  From the above article:  Why the SAOCOMM launch finally happened.

...  SpaceX elected to use the polar launch trajectory from Cape Canaveral to allow the company to reduce staffing levels at Vandenberg during a period with few launches there, Gwynne Shotwell, company’s president and chief operating officer, told reporters last year.

SAOCOM 1B was previously scheduled for launch in March, but Argentine officials called off the mission due to concerns about the coronavirus pandemic. Engineers placed SAOCOM 1B in storage at Cape Canaveral until early July, when engineers returned to Florida from Argentina to finish readying the spacecraft for liftoff.

The launch of SAOCOM 1B was again delayed from late July because the range was not available for the launch, according to SAOCOM 1B team members. Sources said the delay was caused by range safety and overflight concerns with the classified payload mounted on top of ULA’s Delta 4-Heavy rocket at a neighboring launch pad.

The southerly trajectory required for the SAOCOM 1B mission will take the Falcon 9 rocket on a track closer to the Delta 4 pad than for a typical launch toward the east.

The overflight range safety concerns associated with the Delta 4’s NRO payload appeared to suddenly evaporate without explanation Saturday, when military officials agreed to permit the SAOCOM 1B launch to go ahead.

A ULA spokesperson said the Delta 4-Heavy and its national security payload were secured after the aborted launch attempt early Saturday morning. The protective mobile gantry at the Delta 4 launch pad was moved back into position around the rocket, and the spokesperson told Spaceflight Now no further securing measures are needed before the SAOCOM 1B mission.

A spokesperson for the 45th Space Wing referred questions about the safety concerns to SpaceX. A SpaceX spokesperson did not respond to questions from Spaceflight Now on the matter.

https://spaceflightnow.com/2020/08/29/spacex-poised-for-back-to-back-launches-sunday-at-cape-canaveral/

SpaceX (@SpaceX) 8/30/20, 10:51 PM
After launching SAOCOM 1B and two rideshare payloads to orbit, Falcon 9’s first stage returns to Earth and lands at Landing Zone 1 — completing SpaceX’s first polar orbit mission from Florida.

https://twitter.com/spacex/status/1300265030424956928
Photos below, others at the link.

[Sigmetnow]

—- More eye candy from yesterday’s SAOCOMM launch/landing.

SpaceX (@SpaceX) 8/31/20, 12:27 PM
Falcon 9 first stage lands at Landing Zone 1 to complete this booster’s fourth flight

https://twitter.com/spacex/status/1300470390213365761
⬇️ Image below; 15 sec clip at the link.
The RCS thrusters firing at the top of the F9 booster remind me of the retro rockets firing near the top of Lunar Starship as it lands in SpaceX’s rendering….

Elon Musk:
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1300503031470010370
⬇️ Image below.


—- Starlink
Per SpaceX.com, the Starlink launch scrubbed on Sunday due to weather is on for tomorrow.

Sept. 1 :  Falcon 9 • Starlink 11
Launch time: 1329 GMT (9:29 a.m. EDT)
Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the 12th batch of approximately 60 satellites for SpaceX’s Starlink broadband network, a mission designated Starlink 11. Delayed from Aug. 29.

https://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/
Two additional Starlink missions are expected in September.

Update:

SpaceX (@SpaceX) 8/31/20, 3:46 PM
Now targeting Thursday, September 3 at 8:46 a.m. EDT for launch of Starlink from Launch Complex 39A, pending Range acceptance — team is using additional time for data review
https://twitter.com/spacex/status/1300520230855172096

—- Starship

Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) 8/31/20, 3:15 PM
Starship SN6 150-meter hop now set for Sept. 3 with backup opportunities on Sept. 4 and 5.
SN7.1 prototype testing begins Sept. 6 with additional testing opportunities on Sept. 7 and 8.

https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/status/1300512635247501312
Text images: “Spaceflight Activity Beach Closure Request” at the link.

—-

Kerbal Space Academy (@KSpaceAcademy) 8/31/20, 11:07 AM
If it looks stupid, but it works... it ain't stupid.
@NASASpaceflight remote production support for @BocaChicaGal yesterday, final gut check on proper camera framing for the (scrubbed) 150m SN6 hop
https://twitter.com/kspaceacademy/status/1300450157671190536
< The solution to when Boca Chica's production cadence completely outweighs launch mount construction.

⬇️ Third image below..

——
Re a fan SS/SH render

Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 8/29/20, 6:41 PM
Booster design has shifted to four legs with a wider stance (to avoid engine plume impingement in vacuum), rather than six
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1299839516065234944
…
Marcus House:  Thanks for the reply on that. Is there currently a Super Heavy thrust structure being built? I can only imagine the design that needs to go into making something that can support the huge thrust of 30+ Raptors.
Elon Musk:  Yes. This is the hardest part of the booster design.

[Sigmetnow]

Michael Sheetz (@thesheetztweetz) 8/31/20, 4:45 PM
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk is speaking at the virtual #HumansToMars conference (he's dialing in from Germany).
Thread:
https://twitter.com/thesheetztweetz/status/1300535305506828288
~ Musk: "Given enough time SpaceX will get to Mars," but it's not just about getting there, it's about when and how.
"We've got to build upon a Mars base and then we've got to build a city and get to the point where it's self-sustaining."
~ Musk, on sending people to Mars: "I want to emphasize that this is a very hard and dangerous difficult thing, not for the faint of heart .. It's gonna be tough going and be pretty glorious if it works out."
~ Musk, on Starship: "We're making good progress. The thing that really impedes progress on Starship is the production system ... A year ago was nothing there and now we've got quite a lot of production capability. So we're rapidly making more and more ships."
~ Musk: SpaceX is trying to simplify the configuration of Starship's Super Heavy booster, so the engine configuration might end up being 28 instead of 31 engines.
"Still a lot of engines"
~ Musk: Starship over time will be able to launch over 100 tons of cargo.
~ Musk: The first orbital Starship flights "might not work" since the company is in "uncharted territory."
~ What do you hope the headlines back on Earth say when SpaceX lands people on Mars for the first time?
Musk: "I haven't thought about that ... Humans landed on Mars."
~ Musk: SpaceX has not done much work on Starship's cabin/interior "because we've got to first make the thing work and do hundreds of missions with satellites before we put people on board."
~ Musk goes into a long explanation of the potential capabilities of the SpaceX Raptor rocket engine (which will power Starship), saying that the company thinks Raptor could achieve a thrust-to-weight ratio of 200.

Chris B - NSF (@NASASpaceflight) 8/31/20, 5:30 PM
Elon's told the virtual #HumansToMars conference that "Prototype (Super Heavy) Booster 1" will begin construction this week.
Looking at 28 engines [on SH] now and perhaps stretched tanks (to 2000t) [on SS] for full scale.
Still wants to get [SS] dry mass under 100t over time.
https://twitter.com/nasaspaceflight/status/1300546440603799552
< 2000t???
~ Elon was talking about how they could stretch tanks to hold more propellant (1200t -> 2000t)

Chris B - NSF:  Raptor: Subcooled propellants, 3.5-3.6:1 O:F ratio, almost 1100 bar upstream when chamber was at 330 bar.
Will launch hundreds of satellite missions before putting humans on board Starship.
ECLSS no problem for Moon. Needs a different system for Mars

———————-
Informational interlude:

ECLSS:  The International Space Station Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) is a life support system that provides or controls atmospheric pressure, fire detection and suppression, oxygen levels, waste management and water supply. The highest priority for the ECLSS is the ISS atmosphere, but the system also collects, processes, and stores waste and water produced and used by the crew—a process that recycles fluid from the sink, shower, toilet, and condensation from the air. The Elektron system aboard Zvezda and a similar system in Destiny generate oxygen aboard the station. The crew has a backup option in the form of bottled oxygen and Solid Fuel Oxygen Generation (SFOG) canisters. Carbon dioxide is removed from the air by the Russian Vozdukh system in Zvezda, one Carbon Dioxide Removal Assembly (CDRA) located in the U.S. Lab module, and one CDRA in the U.S. Node 3 module. Other by-products of human metabolism, such as methane from flatulence and ammonia from sweat, are removed by activated charcoal filters or by the Trace Contaminant Control System (TCCS).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISS_ECLSS
———————

Yes, this tweet again :

<  Any update on this year’s Starship event? Still aiming for September?
Elon Musk  2:56 AM · Aug 28, 2020
Neuralink this month & Tesla next month, SpaceX probably October. We will have made a lot of progress by then. Might have a prototype booster hop done by then.

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1299239536535375872
 
SpaceX Super Heavy booster assembly to start
By Eric Ralph August 31, 2020
CEO Elon Musk says that SpaceX is on track to begin fabricating Starship’s first Super Heavy booster prototype later “this week” and even revealed plans to hop that booster in the very near future.
https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-super-heavy-booster-assembly-timeline/

[Sigmetnow]

—- Next scheduled launch: tomorrow

Sept. 3: Falcon 9 • Starlink 11
Launch time: 1246 GMT (8:46 a.m. EDT)
Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the 12th batch of approximately 60 satellites for SpaceX’s Starlink broadband network, a mission designated Starlink 11. Delayed from Aug. 29 and Sept. 1.

https://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/

—- Fairing halves from SAOCOMM 1B launch

Ken Kremer (@ken_kremer)m9/1/20, 10:59 AM
Both fairing halves - looking intact- were scooped out of the Atlantic Ocean waters following #SAOCOM1B launch and returned @PortCanaveral in darkness early this morning. craned off #GoMsChief & driven away on transport trucks 930am to #Spacex hangers -my pics here/more upcoming
https://twitter.com/ken_kremer/status/1300810511433576448
⬇️ Photo below. Click to embiggen and see the fairing’s internal tiles.

Stephen Marr (@spacecoast_stve) 9/1/20, 11:19 AM
It looks to me as if both fairing halves from SAOCOM 1B were successfully scooped! No damage visible after being lifted off GO Ms Chief that I can see. AND there's still time to make it out to the Starlink catch zone to assist sister ship, GO Ms Tree!
https://twitter.com/spacecoast_stve/status/1300815597467566080
< Are the charred marks in the first photo from the logo's paint burning.?
<<  That’d be my guess.
⬇️ Photo below.

Julia (@julia_bergeron) 9/1/20, 12:39 PM
GO Mischief has offloaded her haul and is back on the open waters to meet up with the rest of the Starlink recovery fleet at the northern landing zone. They have plenty of time with the launch scheduled NET 9/3.

https://twitter.com/julia_bergeron/status/1300835570457948161
Crowded port marine tracking map at the link


—- Starship

Chris B - NSF (@NASASpaceflight) 9/1/20, 9:53 PM
A sign of future intent as a huge amount of steel that will make up future Starships and possibly allocated to the prototype Super Heavy was on show at Boca Chica.
Video and Pictures from Mary (@BocaChicaGal). Edited by Nicholas Gautschi (@NGautschi).
➡️youtu.be/LvWVNkKqvQ4

https://twitter.com/nasaspaceflight/status/1300974995833794560
⬇️ Screencap below.

Chris B - NSF (@NASASpaceflight) 8/31/20, 5:54 PM
Announcing you'll begin construction on a Super Heavy prototype before the building it will be assembled in has completed construction.
Welcome to SpaceX Boca Chica! 
Mary (@BocaChicaGal) photo. 

https://twitter.com/nasaspaceflight/status/1300552576518287360
⬇️ Photo of High Bay under construction below.

—-
Elon Musk offers update on SpaceX’s Starship mega-rocket
September 1, 2020 Stephen Clark
https://spaceflightnow.com/2020/09/01/elon-musk-offers-update-on-spacexs-starship-mega-rocket/

[Sigmetnow]

—— Successful Starlink deployment with booster landing this morning.  Awaiting word on fairing halves.
⬇️ Screencap of deployment below, from SpaceX.com webcast. (Watch replay there.)

SpaceX launches 12th Starlink mission, says users getting 100 Mbps downloads
Company also says it has successfully tested Inter-Satellite links.

Tice also revealed the first official public information about internal tests, saying that SpaceX employees have been using Starlink terminals, collecting latency statistics, and performing standard speed tests of the system.

"Initial results have been good," she said. These tests reveal "super-low latency," and download speeds greater than 100 megabits per second. This, she noted, would provide enough bandwidth to play the fastest online games and stream multiple HD movies at once.

Talking to one another
These comments are in contrast to some recent Starlink speed tests posted anonymously online, which showed download speeds ranging from 11Mbps to 60Mbps. However it seems plausible that SpaceX is continuing to refine the software of its network, and improve coverage as it adds more satellites. "Our network is very much a work in progress, and over time we will continue to add features to unlock the full potential of that network," Tice said.

SpaceX shared this information publicly for the first time as it is seeking to unlock access to the Federal Communications Commission's Rural Digital Opportunity Fund, which is set to pay up to $16 billion to Internet service providers over 10 years. To qualify, the company would need to deliver speeds of at least 25Mbps, with latencies below 100 milliseconds.

During the webcast, Tice also said SpaceX has successfully tested Inter-Satellite links for the first time on Starklink satellites.

"Recently, the Starlink team completed a test of two satellites in orbit that are equipped with our Inter-Satellite links, which we call space lasers," she said. "With these space lasers the Starlink satellites were able to transfer 100s of gigabytes of data. Once these space lasers are fully deployed Starlink will be one of the fastest options available to transfer data around the world."

This technology may prove useful not only to deliver lower latencies and a continuity of service but also entice the US military to invest in Starlink for warfighter communications. …

https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/09/spacex-launches-12th-starlink-mission-says-users-getting-100-mbps-downloads/

⬇️ Lack of wind at the Cape this morning led to reflective photos like the one below from Stephen Marr.
https://twitter.com/spacecoast_stve/status/1301508117004513281


—- Possible Starship SN6 hop today!

——  Vandenberg
SpaceX has a California launch date for the first time in 16 months
https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-first-california-launch-date-16-months/amp/

NASA's Launch Services Program (@NASA_LSP) 9/1/20, 12:05 PM
Launch Alert
 We are targeting Nov. 10 for the launch of the newest ocean-observer, Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich, aboard a @SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California  Learn more: go.nasa.gov/2XKU02I
Learn more:

New International Ocean Satellite Completes Testing
https://www.nasa.gov/feature/jpl/new-international-ocean-satellite-completes-testing   

https://twitter.com/nasa_lsp/status/1300827174602256384

[crandles]

siren = 10 min to SN6 hop

[crandles]

sn6 hop completed. Leaning a bit on landing.

[Sigmetnow]

Screencaps from NSF Live webcast of the successful SN6 hop!
You can see the pitch required for the translational movement by the off-center engine — resulting in a touchdown at an angle.

They are still chatting and replaying the hop:  https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=AKA-r2lt8uc

[Sigmetnow]

The Hop is just after 1 hour 4 minutes in:

 

[Sigmetnow]

Here’s NSF’s video compilation of the SN6 hop: wide angle, close angle, slow-motion — with ambient audio only.  (Those car alarms! )  Landing legs are visible in the close angle.
⬇️ Screencap below.

Starship SN6 150m Hop

Edit:  new link

[Sigmetnow]

—- Starship SN6 hop

SpaceX (@SpaceX) 9/3/20, 11:08 PM
Second 150m flight test of Starship 

https://twitter.com/spacex/status/1301718836563947522
1 min edited vid at the link, from SpaceX drone and on-board cameras.

Maybe it’s just more visible this time, but the Starship seems to almost hover near the ground for several seconds as it bleeds off speed for touchdown. 
They really must do more frequent hops just to blow away all that dust!
Also, a noticeable lack of flying debris at takeoff this time.

[Sigmetnow]

—- Starlink
SpaceX targets another Starlink launch Thursday to continue record pace
California company appears likely to launch at least two dozen rockets in 2020.
Eric Berger - 9/2/2020, 8:26 PM

SpaceX launched three missions in August—two carrying its own Starlink satellite payloads, and the SAOCOM 1B mission for Argentina. Now, beginning as early as Thursday morning, SpaceX may go for three more launches this month to continue building out its Starlink satellite-Internet constellation.

A Falcon 9 rocket is scheduled to lift off at 8:46am EDT (12:46 UTC) Thursday from Kennedy Space Center while carrying a payload of 60 Starlink satellites into low-Earth orbit. This will be the 12th launch of a large batch of Starlink satellites, although the first 60 satellites launched in May 2019 were, to some extent, a test bed for future iterations. After this mission, the company will have placed more than 700 of its satellites into orbit to provide broadband service. …

https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/09/spacex-targets-another-starlink-launch-thursday-to-continue-record-pace/


—- OCISLY is returning to port with her booster from the last launch
Of Course I Still Love You droneship and Falcon 9 B1060.2 are due in to Port Canaveral Sunday morning
Marine tracking map:  https://twitter.com/spacexfleet/status/1302240612406697985

—- But the Fairings have returned in pieces 

Richard Angle (@RDAnglePhoto) 9/4/20, 5:21 PM
Earlier this afternoon, both fairing catchers returned to Port Canaveral with what remained of the fairings from the most recent #Starlink mission. #SpaceX may have not been able to recover these intact but most likely got valuable data for future attempts. #SpaceXFleet
https://twitter.com/rdanglephoto/status/1301993801419051009

Ken Kremer (@ken_kremer) 9/4/20, 3:02 PM
Both fairing halves arrived broken to bits on #SpaceXFleet ships moments ago - starting 2 pm and about 5 min apart, not in a line.  #gomstree then #GoMsChief @PortCanaveral . from #Spacex stunning 12th #Starlink launch yesterday sep 3 . Still an A for effort!! No one else tries!

Trevor Mahlmann (@TrevorMahlmann) 9/4/20, 2:37 PM
GO Ms. Chief's scoop net revealing the broken fairing half from the 12th Starlink mission was raised briefly but has been laid back down on the deck #SpaceXFleet

—-
Julia (@julia_bergeron) 9/5/20, 8:38 AM
The thing about broken fairings is we usually don't hear what caused the mission to fail. Looking at the NOAA bouy data for 41002 it seems there could have been some instability with winds near the LZ. But, it could have simply been hardware failure. 1/2 #SpaceXFleet
https://twitter.com/julia_bergeron/status/1302224602123431936
~ Bouy 41001 to the northeast shows a similar pattern but without the spike ahead of launch. Without weather balloon data we don't know upper level wind conditions. They did collect the remains so I'm sure SpaceX will learn from the loss regardless of the cause.
#SpaceXFleet

[Wind speed graphs at the link]

⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️ Photos below.

[Sigmetnow]

—- Flight Club’s Booster landing data animations with the Falcon’s fuel, position, speed, etc.

Flight Club (@flightclubio)9/2/20, 9:08 PM
Done!
Look how little fuel is left in Stage 1 after MECO 
https://twitter.com/flightclubio/status/1301326148102627328
[Animation at the link.]

< Pretty impressive! I can’t believe with that much fuel First Stage executed all the re-entry burn and landing! I wonder how much fuel will have when it returned and landed in LZ-1 Cape Canaveral.
Flight Club:  Roughly double - the boostback burn requires about as much as the entry and landing burns combined
< Yes - Starlinks are the heaviest lifts I believe that’s why you’ll never see them RTLS on a Starlink... but it’d be interesting to see if there’s any fuel enough to attempt...

⬇️ Photo below: That view inside the liquid oxygen tank seen briefly at booster touchdown on some webcasts.

Flight Club (@flightclubio) 9/4/20, 12:10 PM
Fun Fact: I've seen 0 of the 93 Falcon 9 launches, but I've seen 2 of the 3 Falcon Heavy launches
The Arabsat-6A launch has a special place in my heart because I was on the NASA Causeway for the double booster landing!
My screaming ruined everyones videos.
I regret nothing.

https://twitter.com/flightclubio/status/1301915643847954438
At the link:  His animation of Falcon Heavy data, focusing on S1 droneship landing.

[Sigmetnow]

—- Starship

Flight Club (@flightclubio) 9/3/20, 1:50 PM
I didn't know there was a crowd watching that SN-6 hop, but hearing them suddenly start cheering when the smoke cleared was such a fist-pump, tears-in-the-eyes, david-beats-goliath, underdog-wins, climax-of-a-movie moment

https://twitter.com/flightclubio/status/1301578372791721985

Chris B - NSF (@NASASpaceflight) 9/4/20, 8:02 PM
Following Starship SN6's successful hop, Test Tank SN7.1 is next up, ahead of a "test to pop". Meanwhile, SN9 is taking shape with the sleeving of its Thrust Dome.
Video and Photos by Mary (@BocaChicaGal). Edited by Nicholas Gautschi (@NGautschi).

SpaceX Boca Chica - Starship SN9 preparations. SN7.1 readies for test - YouTube
➡️https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0HwmLysNmE

https://twitter.com/nasaspaceflight/status/1302034275525681152
 
—-  Now manufacturing:  Raptor Vacuum engines for space
Another step closer to orbital flight.
The engines look much the same (and they mostly are).  The enlarged bell is the major difference.

SpaceX (@SpaceX) 9/4/20, 8:17 PM
The first Raptor Vacuum engine (RVac) for Starship has shipped from SpaceX’s rocket factory in Hawthorne, California to our development facility in McGregor, Texas
⬇️ Photo below.

Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 9/4/20, 10:20 PM
Worth noting that thrust is only slightly higher with the big bell nozzle version. Larger bell is primarily for efficiency in vacuum. Aiming for 380+ sec Isp for RVac long-term. Initially likely to be ~372.

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1302069036621033472

===========
Rocket Science interlude:  Isp

Specific Impulse
Isp = m/sec / m/sec^2 = sec
Why are we interested in specific impulse? First, it gives us a quick way to determine the thrust of a rocket, if we know the weight flow rate through the nozzle. Second, it is an indication of engine efficiency. Two different rocket engines have different values of specific impulse. The engine with the higher value of specific impulse is more efficient because it produces more thrust for the same amount of propellant. Third, it simplifies our mathematical analysis of rocket thermodynamics. The units of specific impulse are the same whether we use English units or metric units. Fourth, it gives us an easy way to "size" an engine during preliminary analysis. The result of our thermodynamic analysis is a certain value of specific impulse. The rocket weight will define the required value of thrust. Dividing the thrust required by the specific impulse will tell us how much weight flow of propellants our engine must produce. This information determines the physical size of the engine.

https://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/k-12/airplane/specimp.html
===========

< Both are the same methane/liquid oxygen raptor engines (mostly). The difference is the larger bell on the right is tuned / sized to work in a vacuum. The 'smaller' one on the left is for atmospheric flight

Elon Musk:  Raptor reached 230 mT-F (over half a million pounds of thrust) at peak pressure with some damage, so this version of the engine can probably sustain ~210 tons. Should have a 250+ ton engine in about 6 to 9 months. Target for booster is 7500 tons (16.5 million pounds) of thrust.

< How is raptor vacuum testing going？
Elon Musk:  Testing with shorter RVac skirt went well. Full length skirt test coming soon.

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1299423127605256194

< Elon, are those hinges required for thrust vectoring at the very top? Will those be used for mounting on the test stand?
⬇️ [Zoomed photo below.]

Elon Musk: This is a test engine. Flight articles are fixed with no gimbal.

<< Odds of it surviving its first test?  Pretty confident it'll work perfectly or is the first run of a new nozzle design pretty risky with a low chance of success?
Elon Musk: Above 50% likely to make it

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1302096802687188993

[Sigmetnow]

—— Starship
Boca Chica beaches have been closed due to COVID, but are now reopening.

“The county judge said the county has been meeting with SpaceX officials to work out an agreement that would allow Boca Chica beach to be open during the day. It would be closed at night so SpaceX can continue its testing at its launch site near the beach.”
Cameron County beaches to reopen on Tuesday
https://www.brownsvilleherald.com/2020/09/04/cameron-county-beaches-reopen-tuesday/

Sirens going off in the middle of the night to warn the locals to leave their house due to imminent testing?  Yikes.
And SpaceX would definitely want to do hops during daylight.  A three- or four-day alternating open-beach vs. day-testing schedule might work better.

H/t SPadre https://twitter.com/spacepadreisle/status/1302278362233286662

—-

RGVAerialPhotography (@RGVaerialphotos) 9/5/20, 11:23 AM
Orbital Launch Mount Update. 09/02   (2200ft msl) #Spacex #bocachica …

https://twitter.com/rgvaerialphotos/status/1302266059689521153
⬇️ Aerial photo below.

—-

Mary (@BocaChicaGal) 9/5/20, 8:59 PM
A peek at Starship SN6 on the landing pad at SpaceX Boca Chica. SN6 successfully completed a 150m hop on September 3rd.
youtu.be/LZwArnGtq7E   …

https://twitter.com/bocachicagal/status/1302410956136501250
⬇️⬇️ 2 photos below.  That white/silver fabric covering looks about the same as the black material seen flying off SN5 during its takeoff.

Nathaniel Gritzman (@cynical_centre) 9/5/20, 9:37 PM
Squish! Vs uncompressed landing leg (blue box). Looks like even some of the hull got a tiny bit compressed. This is what comes of a single off centre thrust vector and lateral movement on landing something that weighs 100+ tons.
https://twitter.com/cynical_centre/status/1302420568730300416
⬇️ Photo below.
< It's amazing how much control @SpaceX can get with just one off-center engine. You can bet that if they didn't have so much experience and data from landing Falcons, those toothpick legs wouldn't stand a chance.
> Yes, the next full scale prototype, SN8, will have all cables covered and improved legs. The exposed cables are only for ease of access and do not need to be covered for these flights

——

Jack Beyer (@thejackbeyer) 9/7/20, 4:45 AM
SN6 had its legs retracted/removed before being placed on a transporter- it'll soon be moved back to the build site. Work on Starship Pad B, SN7.1, and the High Bay continues. Video + Photos by Mary (@BocaChicaGal) for @NASASpaceflight. Edited by me.

SpaceX Boca Chica - SN6 Lifted, Legs Removed, and Prepared for Transport - Work on SN7.1 Continues - YouTube
➡️youtu.be/u-3DRpakVB0   

https://twitter.com/thejackbeyer/status/1302890610278297600

—-
“Round up article.
Starship SN6 success, will soon depart the launch site. SN7.1 will then head out for a Burst Test.
Followed by: SN5 re-hop. SN8, SN9, and SN10 Flights. Super Heavy!”

Following Starship SN6’s hop, SN7.1 prepares to pop

SN7.1 is a larger test tank and made from 304L-series stainless steel (or at least a variant of that alloy).
While not deemed to be the “final” alloy SpaceX is hoping to utilize on Starships and Super Heavy’s in the longer-term future, all previous Starships have been made from the 301-series alloy, whereas SN7, SN7.1, and all near-term future Starships are made from 304L.
As such, SN7.1 will provide vital data into how much pressure the tankage can withstand before failing – data that will be fed into SN8’s test program.

SN8:
Starship SN8 will mark the next phase of testing as the first prototype to fly with three Raptor engines, a nose cone, and aero surfaces.
With SN5 making way for SN8’s final stacking operations inside the Mid Bay, this new Starship is now waiting in line for testing.
At present, SN8’s testing will have to wait until SpaceX has concluded the burst test objectives with SN7.1 and even the potential of a second hop with SN5. …

https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2020/09/starship-sn6s-hop-sn7-1-prepares-pop/

—
Visually comparing the three 150m hops.
SpaceX Boca Chica - Starship Prototype 150m Hop Comparison


—-

Mary (@BocaChicaGal) 9/7/20, 10:11 AM
Starship SN6 has arrived back at the production site at SpaceX Boca Chica. …

https://twitter.com/bocachicagal/status/1302972659714666503
Photo and some fun comments at the link.


—- China
Oh, is China trying a SpaceX-style booster landing?  No!

LaunchStuff (@LaunchStuff) 9/7/20, 7:35 AM
Some impressive footage from today's Long March 4B first stage return.
ℹ：weibo.com/3279752321/Jjy… 

https://twitter.com/launchstuff/status/1302933386990891008
Video terror at the link.
Note: the orange plume of hypergolic fuel is amazingly toxic.

[Sigmetnow]

—— Falcon 9
Twitterfolk asked, and they received!  Audio on — much to hear!  Love the four clunks of the landing legs deploying.

SpaceX (@SpaceX) 9/9/20, 10:57 AM
Onboard camera view of Falcon 9’s SAOCOM 1B launch and first stage land landing

https://twitter.com/spacex/status/1303709186094587906

SAOCOM 1B | Launch and Landing



—- Next ULA and Starlink launches

Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) 9/8/20, 2:31 PM
SpaceX appears to be targeting no earlier than Sept. 17 for the next Starlink mission, per marine hazard notices.
                 https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=51762.0

https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/status/1303400624172593152


Nathan Barker (@NASA_Nerd) 9/9/20, 9:30 AM
It appears that ULA is [targeting] September 18th to launch Delta IV Heavy with NROL-44, with a launch window from 12:30 am EDT to 3:12 am EDT according to today's US Coast Gaurd Notice to Mariners report. However, SpaceX does have the 17th and 18th reserved for Falcon 9 attempts.
https://twitter.com/nasa_nerd/status/130368714237645209

Thomas Gerrard (@aliumlux) 9/9/20, 9:40 AM
National Reconnaissance Office missions have priority over commercial launches, regardless of the launchers/providers. That said, interestingly, Starlink missions have also been classified as priority missions over traditional commercial missions because of interest from military

—- Starship SN7 tank testing

Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight)9/8/20, 3:29 PM
Starship SN7.1 testing is scheduled from 9pm to 6am local time starting on Sept. 10.
cameroncounty.us/spacex/
https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/status/1303415092071903233
~ This prototype is just a test tank that will eventually be pressurized until it fails. However, a cryogenic proof test (not until failure) is likely to occur on the first day.

Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) 9/8/20, 5:14 PM
More closures for SN7.1 have been posted. Looks like there will be multiple days of testing.
https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/status/1303441564400844803
[text image shows Sept 14, 15, 16;  9pm to 6 am CT each day.]

—- Bulding Starships

Jack Beyer (@thejackbeyer) 9/8/20, 8:52 PM
SN10's forward dome was sleeved with a 4 ring stack (interesting...), large pieces of the High Bay's roof were lifted into place, and SN7.1 was readied for its test campaign.
Video + Photos by Mary (@BocaChicaGal) for @NASASpaceflight. Edited by me.

SpaceX Boca Chica - SN10 Forward Dome Sleeved - SN7.1 Test Preps - YouTube
➡️https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkqKD_FZzd4

Chris B - NSF (@NASASpaceflight) 9/9/20, 8:01 AM
An amazing photo - and footage of them "chatting" in the video, heh - from Mary (@BocaChicaGal) of Starship SN5, SN6, and SN8 enjoying a get-together at the Mid Bay.
With SN9 and SN10 also being assembled, the Boca Chica cadence is visually impressive.
https://twitter.com/nasaspaceflight/status/1303664925592690689

⬇️ Photo below.

[Sigmetnow]

—- SpaceX’s 13th Starlink launch set hours before next ULA Delta IV Heavy attempt
By Eric Ralph September 9, 2020

SpaceX and ULA’s next launch attempts have coincidentally wound up scheduled within hours of each other for the second time this month.

The date for SpaceX’s thirteenth Starlink – and 12th Starlink v1.0 – launch appeared to solidify earlier this week, pointing towards a T-0 of 2:17 pm EDT (UTC-4) on Thursday, September 17th. Almost simultaneously, after suffering a rare abort after engine ignition, the United Launch Alliance (ULA) has scheduled the fifth-to-last Delta IV Heavy rocket’s third launch attempt no earlier than (NET) 12:30 am EDT on September 18th.

In the 11 days since ULA’s second Delta IV Heavy launch abort, SpaceX has successfully completed two orbital Falcon 9 launches, placing the Argentinian SAOCOM 1B Earth observation spacecraft and 60 new Starlink satellites in orbit. Now, as ULA works to repair Delta IV Heavy for its third NROL-44 launch attempt, SpaceX is gearing up for its third launch – Starlink-12. … 

https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-13th-starlink-launch-ula-delta-iv-heavy/

—-  Starship

Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 9/12/20, 1:37 PM
SN8 Starship with flaps & nosecone should be done in about a week. Then static fire, checkouts, static fire, fly to 60,000 ft & back.
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1304836575075819520
Elon Musk: One way or another, excitement guaranteed! Support of greater Boca, Padre, Brownsville community is very much appreciated.

Chris B - NSF: Nice! So SN5 and SN6 achieved all the required data points during just a hop each - now able to retire them?
Going to SN8 already is an amazing vindication for the way Starship prototypes have been tested (pops, etc). Test. Fail. Fix. Test. Fly etc.
< I'm sorry you switched to a paid model on your YouTube channel.
<< Mary is toasting herself in the Texas heat and shooting videos for us while your lazy ass is complaining about few ads, smh!    That ad revenue is also crucial for acquiring and maintaining the resources required to get those vids.

Starship fins have arrived  ⬇️ First Photo below.

RGVAerialPhotography (@RGVaerialphotos) 9/12/20, 4:43 PM
Just completed Flyover #13!  Spotted a new delivery of fins on my flyover just 1hr ago!
Support our flyovers here:  patreon.com/RGVaerial
#spacex #bocachica 

https://twitter.com/rgvaerialphotos/status/1304883437359296516

Mary (@BocaChicaGal) 9/12/20, 12:48 PM
 Statship SN6 is out of the mid bay and standing side by side with SN5. It's such a cool view.
@NASASpaceflight ...
https://twitter.com/bocachicagal/status/1304824227225272326
⬇️ [Second photo below.]
SPadre: It would be cool to have one of these at the entrance to South Padre Island, a little "Welcome to SpaceX Starship Park" ?? It would be a lot of fun and a huge tourist attraction for people coming to launches. Would love to help make that happen @elonmusk
Elon Musk:  @SpacePadreIsle Can someone do a boat service from South Padre to Boca?
SPadre: Yeah def possible. Need to talk to FWS etc. Mine only holds 4 though, or three photogs and all their silly cameras
⬇️ [Third photo below.  That’s the top of his little boat ICIRTI — used for drone landings. ]

—- SpaceX files for 20km hop with FCC NET October 11
Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) 1401-EX-ST-2020 FCC Experimental License

Purpose of Operation
Please explain the purpose of operation:
Experimental [medium] altitude hops and recovery tests of the Starship Prototype suborbital test vehicle from Boca Chica TX.
…
Requested Period of Operation
Operation Start Date: 10/11/2020
Operation End Date: 04/11/2021

https://fcc.report/ELS/Space-Exploration-Technologies-Corp-SpaceX/1401-EX-ST-2020

——- Cool event
Eric Berger: "The Explorer's Club announced a cool event for next Monday, 7pm ET, when Richard Garriott will interview Paul Wooster (SpaceX's principal Mars engineer) about making life multi-planetary. It will be live-streamed on the organization's web site.”
Explorers.org
https://mobile.twitter.com/sciguyspace/status/1304491764133359626

========
—- SLS
Charlie Bolden says the quiet part out loud: SLS rocket will go away
“At some point, commercial entities are going to catch up.”
Eric Berger - 9/11/2020

If you're wondering what commercial space proponents really think about the SLS rocket due to its cost and expendability, it's this, which comes from a senior official at a new space company:
"If Santa Claus arrived, and said, 'I have good news. It now works and you can launch tomorrow. Everything's done. You're going to have a launch tomorrow.' ... It still isn't getting us to the Moon. Even if they achieve everything they aim for, it still does not get people to the Moon. It certainly does not get a base on the Moon and absolutely doesn't get humans to Mars."

When Congress conceived of the Space Launch System rocket in 2010 and directed NASA to build it, they were making two bets. First, they bet the new space companies such as SpaceX would fail. This was a reasonable bet back then, as SpaceX had lost most of the rockets it had tried to launch into space. Second, they bet that traditional companies like Boeing would be better at building big rockets.

The Congressional lawmakers who created SLS—it began with Florida Senator Bill Nelson and Texas Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, and they were soon joined by Alabama Senator Richard Shelby—lost both of those bets. So now, NASA is building a large, expendable rocket that has cost taxpayers tens of billions of dollars. Congress remains as committed as ever, both in budgets and public statements of support. However, the more that new rockets fly, the more difficult this support will be to maintain.

Ironically, NASA and the SLS prime contractor Boeing are no longer competing with the Falcon Heavy. SpaceX beat them 2.5 years ago. Rather, NASA is competing with SpaceX's next rocket, the Super Heavy booster that will loft Starship into orbit. SpaceX has not even built a single segment of its Super Heavy rocket—which is larger than SLS, more powerful, vastly cheaper, and reusable—but it's possible that the vehicle makes an orbital launch before the decade-old SLS in 2021. …

https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/09/former-nasa-administrator-says-sls-rocket-will-go-away/

[Sigmetnow]

SpaceX Starship test tank set for destructive finale after ‘cryo proof’

On September 10th, SpaceX put SN7.1 through its paces, performing a cryogenic proof test with liquid nitrogen (LN2) while the tank was still installed on the simple steel frame used to support it during production and transport. That simple decision offers a brief glimpse at the extensive planning that allows SpaceX to optimize for speed and efficiency while still conducting successful tests. While SpaceX could have technically installed SN7.1 directly onto a brand new launch mount custom-built for the exact kind of testing expected, the company instead left the tank on its build stand – much cheaper and far easier to replace than the former.

Technically, moving directly to the launch mount would have slightly simplified the test process, but a tank rupture during a routine cryogenic proof test could have extensively damaged or destroyed the mount, requiring weeks of work to build a full replacement. After SN7.1 successfully completed a cryogenic pressure test on September 10th, SpaceX simply lifted it off its work stand and installed it on a custom-built launch mount. …

https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-starship-test-tank-sn7-1-destructive-finale/amp/


====== Comparing SpaceX:  Total Mass to Orbit

Jonathan McDowell (@planet4589) 9/13/20, 4:56 PM
New at https://planet4589.org/space/stats/stats1.html : payload tonnage vs time broken down by launch provider. Data in metric tons.
https://twitter.com/planet4589/status/1305249056004993030
⬇️ First image below.
< irrespective of orbit?
Jonathan McDowell:  Yes, mass at separation from [launch vehicle].
I made this pretty quickly and haven't been too careful about data checking, but I think it should be roughly right
Jonathan McDowell:  The [Tesla Roadster] car is included
< One could argue that the payload of the Crew Dragon delivered to ISS was two humans and a bunch of supplies, so the capsule mass does not count
Jonathan McDowell:  I cover this in my glossary https://planet4589.org/space/gloss/ - I am using payload in sense 1, not sense 2.
[Meaning, the weight of the Dragon is included in his graph.]

—-

Pranay Pathole (@PPathole) 9/13/20, 2:18 PM
 For Q1(2020) SpaceX launched total of: ~61000kg of payload
Followed by ~60000kg in Q2
⬇️ Second image below.
Elon Musk: That’s the number that really matters
Elon Musk: Cumulative mass to orbit per year (corrected for GTO & other high energy orbits) is the best comparative metric imo

https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1305223038082801664

[vox_mundi]

[Sigmetnow]

——- Cool event
Eric Berger: "The Explorer's Club announced a cool event for next Monday, 7pm ET, when Richard Garriott will interview Paul Wooster (SpaceX's principal Mars engineer) about making life multi-planetary. It will be live-streamed on the organization's web site.”
Explorers.org   ...

The Explorers Club Facebook page posted that the event had been cancelled just 15 minutes before it was to start:
“We apologize but due to unforeseen circumstances, we have to cancel tonight's lecture - "SpaceX - Making Life Multiplanetary". We hope to have the event rescheduled in the future, and will update everyone via email and on our social media channels as information becomes available.”
https://www.facebook.com/691604090855340/posts/3899581100057607/
(If you are searching on Facebook, they are The Explorers Club with the logo which looks like a white, red and blue Christmas ornament.  “33k like this.”)
< Do you have to be a member to watch these talks?
> TEC: No. It's just available on here whenever a live stream takes place.

I did not see any notice on their website about the cancellation.  However, the calendar of events there does say that events in blue (which this was) are open to the public.


—-  Moon Landers
Bridenstine hints Artemis 3 could land near Apollo site

Bridenstine treated a landing away from the south pole as, for now, a hypothetical scenario. “If we made a determination that the south pole might be out of reach for Artemis 3, which I’m not saying it is or isn’t,” then a landing near an Apollo site might be an option, he said. “Those decisions haven’t been made at this time.”
…
While NASA envisions ultimately building up an “Artemis Base Camp,” or sustained presence in one location, agency officials said at the meeting there’s no decision yet on whether the second human landing mission, Artemis 4, would go to the same location as Artemis 3. “We’re really going to need to see what are capabilities are from the landers, and what locations we can actually get to,” Bleacher said. He added there’s also “no clarity” on how long after Artemis 3 the Artemis 4 mission would take place.

https://spacenews.com/bridenstine-hints-artemis-3-could-land-near-apollo-site/

Perhaps they are also having second thoughts about SLS’s Near Rectilinear Halo Orbit, due to the more capable commercial heavy lift rockets set to make more orbits available for human landers in the next few years?

[Sigmetnow]

—-  Next launch
Sept. 17: Falcon 9 • Starlink 12
Launch time: 1817 GMT (2:17 p.m. EDT)
Launch site: LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center, Florida
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will launch the 13th batch of approximately 60 satellites for SpaceX’s Starlink broadband network, a mission designated Starlink 12.
https://spaceflightnow.com/launch-schedule/

Gavin - SpaceXFleet.com (@SpaceXFleet) 9/15/20, 6:21 PM
Support ship GO Quest is the first to arrive at the Starlink LZ - 633 km downrange.
Just Read the Instructions droneship, Ms. Tree and Ms. Chief should arrive tomorrow morning.
Starlink launch NET Sep 17th, 2:17pm ET!
https://twitter.com/spacexfleet/status/1305995056113836032

Gavin - SpaceXFleet.com (@SpaceXFleet) 9/16/20, 12:47 PM
Just Read the Instructions droneship has arrived at the Starlink mission landing zone, 633 km downrange!
https://twitter.com/spacexfleet/status/1306273490765516800

⬇️ Image below.

—- (NROL-44 is delayed again)

Thomas Burghardt (@TGMetsFan98) 9/15/20, 5:29 PM
Delta IV Heavy and NROL-44 are now scheduled to launch no earlier than Saturday, September 26.
Tory Bruno:  Decided to replace all 3 regulators to be safe. Launch NET the 26th.

https://twitter.com/tgmetsfan98/status/1305982082359984131


—-  Starlink marine testing
SpaceX wants to test its Starlink satellite internet network with boats it uses to land rockets
Michael Sheetz

SpaceX plans to expand testing further of the Starlink satellite internet network it is building, with the company wanting to begin demonstrations using its oceangoing fleet of vessels.

Elon Musk’s space company on Tuesday asked the Federal Communications Commission if it can add 10 Starlink user terminals to its boats. User terminals are the small devices on the ground that connect to the company’s satellite internet network.

“In order to expand its assessment of the end-to-end capabilities of its satellite system, SpaceX seeks authority to test these user terminals on seagoing platforms for a period of up to two years.

Specifically, SpaceX proposes to deploy a total of ten earth stations across up to ten vessels, including two autonomous spaceport droneships used to land rocket boosters at sea,” the company wrote in the FCC filing.

SpaceX operates several ships, most of which focus on recovering its capsules, rocket boosters and rocket nosecones after missions.
….
The company told the FCC in July that SpaceX is building 120 satellites per month, as well as thousands of the small terminals that consumers will use to connect to the network. Additionally, SpaceX has said that Starlink is already seeing “extraordinary demand” from potential customers, with “nearly 700,000 individuals” across the U.S. indicating they are interested in the company’s coming service.

SpaceX plans to begin a public beta test of Starlink once the private beta test concludes. The company aims to offer Starlink as a commercial service before the end of this year in the northern U.S. and southern Canada, with plans for “near-global coverage of the populated world in 2021.”

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/09/16/spacex-asks-to-test-starlink-internet-with-its-fleet-of-boats.html

Michael Sheetz (@thesheetztweetz) 9/16/20, 11:28 AM
SpaceX asked the FCC yesterday if it can add 10 Starlink user terminals to its fleet of ships to further test "the end-to-end capabilities of its satellite system," including on the droneships the company uses to land its Falcon rocket boosters at sea.
~ Here is the key part of SpaceX's FCC filing, requesting approval to test Starlink user terminals "across up to ten vessels" over the next 2 years: 

https://twitter.com/thesheetztweetz/status/1306255203918925824
➡️ Text image at the link.

[Sigmetnow]

Space Travel Reality Show Set To Send Contestant To ISS In Works From Space Hero Company & Propagate
September 17, 2020

EXCLUSIVE: Following the success of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon mission, which marked the return of the U.S.’ capability for manned flights and the first private company to get people into orbit, a reality series wants to send a civilian into space.

Space Hero Inc., a U.S.-based production company founded by Thomas Reemer and Deborah Sass and led by former News Corp Europe chief Marty Pompadur, has secured a seat on a 2023 mission to the International Space Station. It will go to a contestant chosen through an unscripted show titled Space Hero. Produced by Ben Silverman and Howard Owens’ Propagate, the series will launch a global search for everyday people from any background who share a deep love for space exploration. They will be vying for the biggest prize ever awarded on TV.

The selected group of contestants will undergo extensive training and face challenges testing their physical, mental and emotional strength, qualities that are essential for an astronaut in space. I hear the idea is for the culmination of the competition to be in a an episode broadcast live around the world where viewers from different countries can vote for the contestant they want to see going to space. The show will then chronicle the winner’s takeoff; their stay at the ISS for 10 days alongside professional astronauts traveling at 17,000 mph, orbiting the Earth 16 times a day; and end with their return to Earth. The Space Hero company is currently in discussions with NASA for a potential partnership on STEM initiatives onboard the ISS.

The trip of the Space Hero winner will be on a SpaceX Dragon rocket. [sic ] Space Hero, billed as the first space media company, is working with Axiom Space, manufacturer of the world’s first privately funded commercial space station — a module for the ISS where the private astronauts can stay — and full-service human spaceflight mission provider.

Led by Mike Suffredini who served as NASA’s International Space Station program manager for 10 years, Axiom handles all aspects of the Space Hero private astronaut mission, from brokering the trip to the ISS — currently earmarked for early 2023 — and securing the rocket seat to training the aspiring astronauts and insurance coverage. …

https://deadline.com/2020/09/space-hero-astronaut-reality-series-international-space-station-reality-tv-1234575932/amp/

[Sigmetnow]

Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight)9/17/20, 1:40 PM
SpaceX is standing down from the Starlink launch. Next attempt no earlier than 9/18.

https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/status/1306649263703601152 

Reason as yet unknown.  However, the remnants of Tropical Storm Sally will be over the booster recovery area tomorrow, making a mission problematic then. And Ms. Tree was already diverted to Morehead City, North Carolina.

Gavin - SpaceXFleet.com (@SpaceXFleet) 9/17/20, 1:35 PM
Ms. Tree captured diverting to the Port of Morehead City yesterday. The ship is still there now.

https://twitter.com/spacexfleet/status/1306648050153201664
Photo at the link.

[Sigmetnow]

SpaceX (@SpaceX) 9/17/20, 2:04 PM
Standing down from today's Starlink launch due to recovery issue; vehicle and payload remain healthy. Next launch opportunity is tomorrow, September 18 at 1:57 p.m. EDT, but we are keeping an eye on weather

https://twitter.com/spacex/status/1306655390713536513

—-
Fairing reuse. Booster reuse. (Booster B1058 previously launched the Demo-2 mission, and ANASIS-II!)  Cutting back on static fire tests.

But: “SpaceX shows no signs of ending the practice of performing full booster static fires in McGregor, Texas as part of acceptance testing, still leaving it a step beyond traditional rocket manufacturers, which only static fire individual engines.”

(Update: scrubbed) SpaceX’s next Starlink launch to break rocket fairing reuse record
https://www.teslarati.com/spacex-next-starlink-launch-fairing-reuse-record/amp/

[Sigmetnow]

Today’s launch has been scrubbed

SpaceX (@SpaceX)9/17/20, 9:42 PM
Standing down from tomorrow’s launch of Starlink due to severe weather in the recovery area, which is likely to persist for a couple days. Will announce a new target launch date once confirmed

https://twitter.com/spacex/status/1306770607560962049

SpaceX (@SpaceX) 9/17/20, 2:04 PM
Standing down from today's Starlink launch due to recovery issue; vehicle and payload remain healthy. Next launch opportunity is tomorrow, September 18 at 1:57 p.m. EDT, but we are keeping an eye on weather
https://twitter.com/spacex/status/1306655390713536513

Everyday Astronaut: Is this one of the first scrubs due to recovery issues?! That's pretty awesome that recovery has become more of a consideration for mission success. Wow!
Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 9/17/20, 10:13 PM
Current was too strong for droneship to hold station. Thrusters to be upgraded for future missions.
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1306778373314826240

Everyday Astronaut:  I thought “Just Read The Instructions” just got upgraded with some MASSIVE thrusters in May? Does it need upgrades beyond that? I suppose the incoming hurricanes don’t help and no thruster would be big enough 
< What kind of thrusters does it use?
<< cameron (@brooklindevil): idk the exact model, but this is 1 of 4. roughly 4x power increase per thruster.

⬇️ Photo below.

Overview of launch and the Starlink mission
SpaceX postpones twelfth launch of Starlink v1.0 satellites for weather
https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2020/09/spacex-twelfth-launch-starlink-v1-0/

[Sigmetnow]

Morgan Stanley predicts SpaceX could be valued at $175 billion with Starlink's revenue
https://www.tesmanian.com/blogs/tesmanian-blog/starlink-billion


——- 
NASA is giving SpaceX $1million while NASA tries to find the rest of the money it promised for development of the Dragon XL.

Michael Baylor (@nextspaceflight) 9/17/20, 9:33 PM
SpaceX has been awarded $1 million for "Gateway Logistics Services risk mitigation due to delayed authority to proceed."

NASA is still yet to find adequate funding for Dragon XL development.

Part 1: https://beta.sam.gov/awards/92342896%2BAWARD
 
Part 2: https://beta.sam.gov/awards/92343311%2BAWARD
 

https://twitter.com/nextspaceflight/status/1306768394742501376

[Sigmetnow]

—- Starship:  SN7.1 tank tested to destruction; SN8 gets wings

Chris B - NSF (@NASASpaceflight) 9/23/20, 6:02 AM
WITNESS! Test Tank SN7.1 has entered the gates of Valhalla!
Pushed to destruction, on purpose. Hopefully after reaching a good bar rating.
[Vid clip here: ] https://twitter.com/nasaspaceflight/status/1308708407713705984

Slow-motion replay. …
https://twitter.com/nasaspaceflight/status/1308715532653338624

[LIVE: Starship SN7.1 Press to Failure - YouTube  (2hr vid)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnWf_kdLlcU

——
SpaceX Boca Chica - First Super Heavy Booster Parts - SN8 Flaps Installed - YouTube
➡️https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JB6rNtcdd7c


======
“we have now right under contract three very distinct lunar landing systems that are widely different in their approach [laughs] and some of them will consider using gateway and others maybe not so much.”
— Jim Bridenstine

SpaceX’s Falcon 9, Dragon Design Lauded By NASA Administrator As Unique & Creative

Mr. Bridenstine highlighted these facts in a response to a question from Keith Cowing of NASA Watch asking about his definition of sustainability and NASA's timeframe for the Lunar Gateway, which is the agency's planned lunar space station. In response the Administrator stated:

"Yeah so again you know this is an important distinction between how we're doing this now and how we've done them in the past. In the past, NASA basically wrote the requirements and designed the capabilities and then we turned to contractors to  build what we had basically designed with the requirements. So what we're doing now is we're turning to industry and we're allowing them to very innovatively come up with creative solutions that are unique, and because we've done that we have now right under contract three very distinct  lunar landing systems that are widely different in their approach [laughs] and some of them will consider using gateway and others maybe not so much.

What we're trying to do is we're trying to learn the business model that is going to work and we've done that with commercial resupply and now commercial crew, and we think about the success that we've had with the Crew Dragon for example on a Falcon 9 rocket. You've heard me say some of these things before but it's important to note you know the idea that we would have a composite overwrap pressure vessel inside of a liquid oxygen tank is not something NASA would have done on its own. The idea that we would have super cooled liquid oxygen to get more specific impulse out of a rocket is not something NASA would have done on its own. The idea that we would have nine rocket engines on a rocket the size of a Falcon 9 is not something that NASA would probably have done on its own. The idea that you would have integrated the launch abort system into the normal propulsion system is not something maybe NASA would have done on its own." …

https://wccftech.com/spacex-dragon-falcon-9-nasa-administrator/

===== New Falcon 9 contract
Intelsat signed contracts worth a combined $390 million with SpaceX and Arianespace to launch 6 satellites on 4 missions beginning in 2022. The satellites are being built by Maxar $MAXR and Northrop Grumman $NOC and will help Intelsat meet the FCC's C-band clearing timelines.
SpaceX and European competitor Arianespace win $390 million worth of Intelsat launches
https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2020/09/17/spacex-and-arianespace-win-390-million-worth-of-intelsat-launches.html


=====
Elon tweeted a chuckle over the image below, from:
https://twitter.com/nasaspaceflight/status/1308198781251399680

[Sigmetnow]

Details emerge about Tom Cruise's future flight aboard SpaceX Crew Dragon

Cruise will ride alongside producer Doug Liman who will film the first movie in outer space. One of the passengers will be former NASA Astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria. He is heading back to orbit as Dragon-ship commander for Axiom’s space tour with Cruise. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket will propel Dragon to orbit towards the Space Station where they will stay for eight days to film in microgravity and enjoy beautiful views of Earth. The fourth passenger has not been revealed yet, it will probably be a Hollywood actress that will join them. They are scheduled to embark on a 10-day voyage to the Space Station in October 2021. These details were released in a graph about planned launches to ISS, created by Space Shuttle Almanac, pictured below.
…
The movie will be produced by Universal Pictures, the budget is estimated to be around $200 million. Liman is still in the process of writing the script. Christopher McQuarrie, who is the writer/director on the Mission: Impossible saga, will be story advisor and co-producer, according to Deadline reporters.

Axiom will be responsible for “training, mission planning, hardware development, life support, medical support, crew provisions, hardware and safety certifications, on-orbit operations, and overall mission management.” A movie filmed in outer space would revolutionize the film industry. Such a feat has never been done before, aside from astronauts recording themselves at the space station and during spacewalks. It will take a lot of rigorous training for Cruise and Liman to film in zero gravity. …

https://www.tesmanian.com/blogs/tesmanian-blog/tomcruise

Space Shuttle Almanac (@ShuttleAlmanac) 9/18/20, 10:45 PM
So its confirmed that @CommanderMLA is flying the @Axiom_Space @SpaceX #CrewDragon tourist mission with Director @DougLiman & Tom Cruise. One seat still to be filled. They are to launch in October, 2021. 

https://twitter.com/shuttlealmanac/status/1307148793633075200
Schedule image below. Click to embiggen.