# SpaceX Starship / Super Heavy Discussion Thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 30, 2019, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021 "2019-09-30T00:58:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2023, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/142 "2023-01-24T23:06:59Z")
Maybe I should be, but I’m really not worried about the first stage. Modeling is so good nowadays that I think all these system interaction issues just aren’t the hard problems that they were in the 60s. Both Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy flew perfectly on their maiden flights despite people having the exact same worries (and neither has had these issues since then). Falcon Heavy in particular was IMO a far harder problem than Super Heavy. While 27\<33, the fact that it’s three vehicles flying in close formation makes it the more difficult problem. Super Heavy is pretty simple in comparison. Sure, a near-pad RUD is particularly bad here, but I think the probability is pretty low. I also suspect that damage from a fire wouldn’t be as bad as that from kerosene (being a light gas vs. a sticky liquid). ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2023, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/143 "2023-02-01T02:54:58Z")
SpaceX has added information about an ‘expendable’ mode for Starship which can put 250 tons in LEO. That’s roughly half the mass of the entire ISS in one launch. Why expend a Starship? Well, imagine you want to build one out as a space station. You could load it with 200 tons of equipment, 50 tons of fuel for station keeping, and leave it in orbit. Or some super-heavy payload might require it, I guess. It may not ever get used that way, but it’s an amazing capability. 33 engine test fire is likely only a week or two away. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2023, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/144 "2023-02-01T03:22:21Z")
Musk has mentioned it a few times before. I don’t think it’s any more complicated than it being a more appropriate comparison against SLS or the Saturn V. 150 t doesn’t sound like much of an improvement over those. 250 t expendable gives a better sense of the size difference. I do wonder if that’s fully expendable or not. I.e, are we talking about expending the booster, or just the Starship. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2023, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/145 "2023-02-01T05:57:33Z")
Yeah, I was wondering the same thing. It would be interesting to see how much performance loss there is from landing the booster vs Starship. I would think the booster would be more. It has to RTLS. There’s no drone ship to land it on to save some fuel. Starship’s Belly flop will also help slow it down. But I don’t know the numbers. ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2023, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/146 "2023-04-14T21:54:21Z")
> The FAA grants SpaceX license to launch Starship. “After a comprehensive license evaluation process, the FAA determined SpaceX met all safety, environmental, policy, payload, airspace integration and financial responsibility requirements.” [https://t.co/rfKbvs1YzA](https://t.co/rfKbvs1YzA) > > — Christian Davenport (@wapodavenport) [April 14, 2023](https://twitter.com/wapodavenport/status/1646994723414966272?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) [![](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FttNJCVWwAI4n6p?format=jpg&name=large) ](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FttNJCVWwAI4n6p?format=jpg&name=large) SpaceX has said they are targeting Monday for their first test. Let’s go! EDIT: Monday 12pm UTC ---
**Author:** ![Darryl\_Lict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@Darryl\_Lict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darryl_Lict)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2023, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/147 "2023-04-15T02:05:26Z")
Hurrah! This is so exciting! ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2023, 8:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/148 "2023-04-18T08:17:08Z")
The launch has been delayed until 4/20. We are supposed to believe that wasn’t on purpose. > **[Highlights From SpaceX’s Scrubbed Starship Rocket Launch Attempt](https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/04/17/science/spacex-starship-launch)** > > The nearly 400-foot moon and Mars rocket remains on the launchpad in South Texas as engineers prepare for a test flight part of the way around the Earth on April 20. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2023, 8:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/149 "2023-04-18T08:31:41Z")
As unlikely as it seems, I don’t think there was more than minor fudging–and probably none at all–to hit the 4/20 date. They had no control over the FAA authorization release, which was years in the making. I can’t see them intentionally sabotaging a valve and then lying about it to delay. And it really does take \>48 hrs for a recycle, due to the massive amount of propellant (it takes dozens of tanker trucks to refill). About the only wiggle room is a delay from 4/19 to 4/20, but even the weather forecast is looking better for Thursday… ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2023, 9:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/150 "2023-04-18T09:03:56Z")
A cool shot from the inside of the interstage (the area between the two stages, showing the upper dome of the first stage and the engines of the second stage): [![](https://i.imgur.com/0pivIfK.jpg) ](https://i.imgur.com/0pivIfK.jpg) It might not look it, but that “room” is about 30 feet across. ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2023, 9:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/151 "2023-04-18T09:11:59Z")
Argh, Thursday means I’m going to miss it! ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2023, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/152 "2023-04-18T15:32:22Z")
Heck, and yesterday I drove 15 minutes out of my way around the Gulf, not through it, to avoid the launch that didn’t happen. I kept looking for a smoke trail up to orbit. But, kinda like a not-yet-elected Pope, I watched in vain. Here’s hoping Thu is a success. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2023, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/153 "2023-04-19T11:45:15Z")
Just to clarify, in case someone new to the Dope is reading this: LSLGuy flies a plane — he doesn’t drive a duckmobile. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2023, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/154 "2023-04-19T12:45:13Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > LSLGuy flies a plane — he doesn’t drive a duckmobile. [![](https://www.scramble.nl/images/news/2022/march/A320N-Azul.jpg) ](https://www.scramble.nl/images/news/2022/march/A320N-Azul.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2023, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/155 "2023-04-19T16:02:00Z")
That’s just ducky. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2023, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/156 "2023-04-20T13:38:55Z")
Blew up about 3 minutes or so after take off… ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2023, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/157 "2023-04-20T13:39:23Z")
Progress! ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2023, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/158 "2023-04-20T13:44:07Z")
Launch looked ok, but shortly before stage separation it started to spin, and spin, and spin, Then boom. As someone said “It went a bit too Kerbal” Brian ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2023, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/159 "2023-04-20T13:57:10Z")
> [@N9IWP](#): > > It went a bit too Kerbal Poor Jeb. Anyway, as RUDs go, at least it was well downrange and they demonstrated good performance out of SuperHeavy. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2023, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/160 "2023-04-20T14:05:38Z")
There’s a video replay available **[here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVLp8nKcOCg).** If you just want to see the launch, T minus 30 seconds starts at 44:22. The flip that leads to the tumble starts at 47:41 and the vehicle failure is at 48:50. ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2023, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spacex-starship-super-heavy-discussion-thread/841021/161 "2023-04-20T14:05:40Z")
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