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SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy could launch for the first time as soon as Feb 6
- internetxplorer 9y agoThe first flight of the Falcon Heavy promises to be a public spectacle, with NASA selling out $195 viewing party tickets.
- Density 9y agoIt's guaranteed to be great either way!
- janlaureys 9y agoRemember that fb sattelite explosion ? If Falcon Heavy explodes (and I really hope it doesn't) the blast will be three times as big. I don't think I'm prepared.
- JumpCrisscross 9y ago> I don't think I'm prepared How do you think you need to prepare for a pressure pulse that would dissipate to a whisper a few miles from the pad?
- janlaureys 9y agoMentally
- verytrivial 9y ago(I'm already nervous re: JWST)
- Santosh83 9y agoI'm just a touch sad that NASA is selling tickets for an endeavour one would have ideally hoped they would have spearheaded.
- t0mbstone 9y agoSadly, the taxpayers don't seem to understand the value of having a publicly funded space program
- chasd00 9y agoWhat are the chances of it launching as scheduled? I've dreamed of seeing it but I only have a one day window to fly down and back because of some work obligations.
- jacquesm 9y agoWell, it has been postponed quite a few times so I figure with every postponement the chances of it working are going up, but I would not be surprised if they postpone it again. And I'd rather have them postpone it once more than take chances, if it works the first time that would be awesome.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- chasd00 9y agoTfa says the best viewing spots are sold out! I don't think I can justify the flight and missing work to view from 7 miles away. My wife will be relieved but man what a disappointment.
- Malice 9y agoRoughly zero. It should launch in the first half of 2018 but it won't launch on Feb 6th.
- drinchev 9y ago> Because of the experimental nature of the first flight, and perhaps as a way to burnish the spectacle, Musk decided the payload will be his personal Roadster sports car made by another one of his companies, Tesla Inc., that will be set to play David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” on repeat as it’s hurled into the deep beyond. How cool is that? I hope they have a camera on that car, so we can see it in the video stream.
- donkeyd 9y agoThey must have. No other car brand will ever have marketing material that compares to a Tesla being pictured while actually in space.
- JulianMorrison 9y agoThey will, but they'll buy the trip up from SpaceX.
- verytrivial 9y ago.. a copy of Hitchhiker's Guide in the glovebox, and a Don't Panic towel too if Musk's tweets are to be believed (and he does have a track record of meeting even flippant undertakings)
- ninjamayo 9y agoGround control to Major Tom or Elon... This is exciting, 3 reusable rockets flying back to Earth playing Space Oddity. I think the car needs a good playlist. Something from 2001 would work plus a bit of metal.
- keehun 9y agoWith that many people watching from the road, how does SpaceX guard against threats? I imagine there are just enough crazy people out there with motivation to get attention by taking shots at it with their rifles. Is it far enough away from the road to be safe from a sniper attack?
- bmcusick 9y agoSeven miles is WAY outside the range of any sniper rifle.
- JumpCrisscross 9y ago> Seven miles is WAY outside the range of any sniper rifle For context, a 14.5x114mm cartridge fires to about 1.5 miles; the more popular .308 Winchester cartridge only goes half a mile [1]. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sniper_rifle https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sniper_rifle
- dogma1138 9y agoThe longest confirmed kill is 3,540m with a .50 BMG. A 50 cal can go well beyond that the chances of hitting a man sized target are pretty slim that said it’s maximum range is 7000m hitting a space rocket sized target is quite possible at that range. With bigger caliber rifles like the ones used for avalanche control you probably can get to 7 miles and beyond but those are effectively cannons at that point. That said if you really want to fuck up a launch there are plenty of drones or RC planes that you could use to ram the rocket with or without an explosive payload. Which is why they launch from a military base with arguably quite good perimeter security that goes well beyond the range of its fence.
- dogma1138 9y agoBy launching from a military base.
- merricksb 9y agoDiscussed previously: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16246089 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16246089
- VikingCoder 9y agoCan someone compile meaningful stats comparing this rocket to other well-known rockets? Pounds of thrust or whatnot...?