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This made me think of disparaging comments from ESA about SpaceX: 'Asked about how the Ariane 5 compares to lower-cost alternatives on the market today, such a
by growlist 7y ago
This made me think of disparaging comments from ESA about SpaceX:
'Asked about how the Ariane 5 compares to lower-cost alternatives on the market today, such as SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket, Stefano Bianchi, Head of ESA Launchers Development Department, responded with a question of his own. “Are you buying a Mercedes because it is cheap?”
Ranzo, sitting nearby, chimed in and referenced the India-based maker of the world’s least expensive car. As he put it, “We don’t sell a Tata.”'
- AstralStorm 7y agoBut whoever makes that Fiat Ducato or equivalent for space will make big bank. Different markets warrant different solutions, including custom.
- growlist 7y agoAgreed, but lower cost access to space could also change the game itself. If launch costs are 1/10 or 1/100 what they are now, your bespoke $100m absolutely-cannot-fail-at-all-costs satellite can similarly be blown away by satellites that can be built without the super-expensive verification required to make them infallible. Just build them cheap and good enough and if/when they fail, throw up another.