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Only the Chinese get to drop rockets on their towns. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJRZ-eyncVk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJRZ-eyncVk The Red Plume you

Only the Chinese get to drop rockets on their towns. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJRZ-eyncVk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJRZ-eyncVk The Red Plume you see is Hypergolic fuels - the aforementioned "bad stuff". Highly toxic and carcinogenic.

masklinn 8y ago
Hypergolic doesn't mean "bad stuff", "highly toxic" or "carcinogenic" though, it just means "ignites on its own" (it's usually though not necessarily a combination of a fuel and an oxidiser[0]) Then again, hypergolic components are generally extremely toxic or ridiculously corrosive or both. [0] generally because e.g. Chlorine Trifluoride is such a strong oxidiser it's famously[1] hypergolic with stuff not usually considered "fuel" like cloth, people, water, sand or asbestos [1] http://blogs.sciencemag.org/pipeline/archives/2008/02/26/sand_wont_save_you_this_time http://blogs.sciencemag.org/pipeline/archives/2008/02/26/san...
- Solarsail 8y ago
  The word hypergolic doesn't mean that, but in spaceflight the term refers to a fairly specific group of compounds; Dinitrogen tetroxide and unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine or monomethylhydrazine (UDMH / MMH).
  - gcb0 8y ago
    mmh+nto is the only thing still being used in the west outside of missiles. even spacex use it for module maneuver. I think. not even sure why I know that. but china probably use the lesser hypergolic combinations for actuall lift off.
    - masklinn 8y ago
      > but china probably use the lesser hypergolic combinations for actuall lift off. Yep, Long March 2, 3 and 4 use YF-20 engines (and its derivatives) which are UDMH-powered. They're switching to LOX/Kerosene for LM5.
T-A 8y ago
It's been worse... https://www.airspacemag.com/history-of-flight/disaster-at-xichang-2873673/?all https://www.airspacemag.com/history-of-flight/disaster-at-xi...
- dredds 8y ago
  Possibly next-gen small fission reactors will have them looking for close-to-deep-ocean far-from-large-population launch sites again. https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/demonstration-proves-nuclear-fission-system-can-provide-space-exploration-power https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/demonstration-proves-nucl...

masklinn 8y ago

Hypergolic doesn't mean "bad stuff", "highly toxic" or "carcinogenic" though, it just means "ignites on its own" (it's usually though not necessarily a combination of a fuel and an oxidiser[0]) Then again, hypergolic components are generally extremely toxic or ridiculously corrosive or both. [0] generally because e.g. Chlorine Trifluoride is such a strong oxidiser it's famously[1] hypergolic with stuff not usually considered "fuel" like cloth, people, water, sand or asbestos [1] http://blogs.sciencemag.org/pipeline/archives/2008/02/26/sand_wont_save_you_this_time http://blogs.sciencemag.org/pipeline/archives/2008/02/26/san...

Solarsail 8y ago
The word hypergolic doesn't mean that, but in spaceflight the term refers to a fairly specific group of compounds; Dinitrogen tetroxide and unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine or monomethylhydrazine (UDMH / MMH).
- gcb0 8y ago
  mmh+nto is the only thing still being used in the west outside of missiles. even spacex use it for module maneuver. I think. not even sure why I know that. but china probably use the lesser hypergolic combinations for actuall lift off.
  - masklinn 8y ago
    > but china probably use the lesser hypergolic combinations for actuall lift off. Yep, Long March 2, 3 and 4 use YF-20 engines (and its derivatives) which are UDMH-powered. They're switching to LOX/Kerosene for LM5.

T-A 8y ago

It's been worse... https://www.airspacemag.com/history-of-flight/disaster-at-xichang-2873673/?all https://www.airspacemag.com/history-of-flight/disaster-at-xi...

dredds 8y ago
Possibly next-gen small fission reactors will have them looking for close-to-deep-ocean far-from-large-population launch sites again. https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/demonstration-proves-nuclear-fission-system-can-provide-space-exploration-power https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/demonstration-proves-nucl...