Back from a short break to talk SpaceX

Landing failure video

Although it's old news by now, if you didn't catch the SpaceX YouTube video "How Not to Land an Orbital Rocket Booster", head on over and check it out at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvim4rsNHkQ.  Who doesn't want to see things blow up?

But seriously, it shows some confidence to create a blooper reel of your failures.  Of course, these weren't really mission failures, as the booster recovery was never the primary mission goal.  Still, it was capability that SpaceX wanted to be able to demonstrate, and crucial to it's long term rocket reusability goal.

For the record, SpaceX has completed 39 of its 41 missions and has now landed every one of its last 12 attempts - both at land and at sea.  So, with the failures in the video being pretty much a thing in the past, its a bit easier to show the failures.

SpaceX has never been a company that glosses over their failures – probably because rockets that explode are pretty visible failures. Now, Elon Musk’s company has taken this transparency to a whole new level: A blooper reel.

Falcon Heavy

The long awaited first launch of the Falcon Heavy is drawing nearer.  The three Falcon boosters have completed their testing at the SpaceX engine development center in McGregor, Texas.  They are likely on their way to the Florida by now (if they're not there already).

A hold-down firing with all 27 Merlin engines is planned at pad 39A in the days before the test launch.

The plan is for to attempt to recover all three rocket cores.  The two side boosters will be able to return to landing zone, while the third will travel father and will need to land at sea on the drone ship "Of course I still Love you".

Elon Musk was tamping down expectations for the mission in July stating that it may not even make it out of orbit.  The reason: “It was actually shockingly difficult to go from a single-core to a triple-core vehicle,” Musk said.  Fingers crossed that the launch exceeds expectations.  Either way, as SpaceX has proven in the past, they will learn a great deal and will make it seem routine more quickly that seems possible.

Then, around the Moon and off to Mars.