3 ms·
> Then why wasn't Falcon 9 steel to start out with? The Falcon 9 has between no and minimal high heat requirements. The 2nd stage does not attempt to survive
by Diederich 6y ago
> Then why wasn't Falcon 9 steel to start out with?
The Falcon 9 has between no and minimal high heat requirements.
The 2nd stage does not attempt to survive re-entry.
The 1st stage enters at (if memory serves) around 1.5km/s compared to nearly 8km/s (or beyond for interplanetary returns) that Starship will need to handle.
Also the Falcon 9 didn't have the lofty re-usable and manufacturing goals that Starship has.
I'm not anything like an expert on this matter, so I can't say with certainty, but I think aluminum is a better choice given these slightly different constraints.
It's also possible that steel would have been a better choice for Falcon 9 even give the more limited requirements. Understanding is always an incomplete quantity.