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This is accurate. More good examples of this passive-safety landing procedure in action were in the Heavy demo flight and the CRS-16 mission. The Heavy demo cen
by clutchingstraws 7y ago
This is accurate. More good examples of this passive-safety landing procedure in action were in the Heavy demo flight and the CRS-16 mission. The Heavy demo center core failed to relight two of the three engines needed for landing, and plunged right into the water off the side of the landing barge (https://youtu.be/A0FZIwabctw?t=72 https://youtu.be/A0FZIwabctw?t=72). CRS-16's booster had a hydraulic failure of the grid fins but still had engine and RCS control, so it was able to make a soft water splashdown at the last second (dramatic video from the booster's perspective is here: https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1070399755526656000 https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1070399755526656000).
- Denvercoder9 7y agoIf I remember correctly this procedure was implemented after SES-9, which came in too hot and broke straight through the deck of the droneship.
- greglindahl 7y agoI'm pretty sure it pre-dates the first landing, it's an important safety feature when aiming the booster at land.
- clutchingstraws 7y agoI didn't know that. Thanks for the detail. Better to lose a booster than both lose a booster and cripple a droneship. On that topic, I've always been impressed at how tough those droneships are. They've taken a lot of punishment but they've never lost one at sea yet. I'd love to have been a fly on the wall of the first meeting between reps from SpaceX and McDonough Marine. "So, you folks make big rockets. I'm guessing you're going to need these barges to transport them around to avoid roads. And there's likely some insurance implications here." "In that order: yes, technically yes, and definitely yes."