6 ms·

This is all the more impressive when you realise all the design, build, programming, filming, editing and even the music is done by one guy. I highly recommend

by spuz 6y ago

This is all the more impressive when you realise all the design, build, programming, filming, editing and even the music is done by one guy. I highly recommend subscribing to his YouTube channel to keep up with his current project: https://youtu.be/eh8ic1-5wFo https://youtu.be/eh8ic1-5wFo

airstrike 6y ago
Truly amazing. > Also, do I even have to say it? Of course those boosters are gonna land! The propulsive landing test program is isolated from the Falcon Heavy program right now, but the two will merge as the success rate for both programs increases.
- rrss 6y ago
  It seems like it would be really hard to land the boosters with no throttle.
  - jcims 6y ago
    There's been a few clues that we won't forever be without throttle. IIRC it looked like he was tinkering with a hybrid propellant system. Could also create a flame diverter if he's stuck with solid propellant.
    - rrss 6y ago
      I just watched a couple of his videos, and it sounds like he got pretty close to landing with solid propellant ('echo'), but ultimately decided that it was too finicky and ended that project to move onto a liquid biprop rocket.
      - epaulson 6y ago
        Are liquid engines still in the realm of hobbyists? The estes engines he's using are pretty widely used and understood to be fairly safe, is there something equivalent for liquid rockets?
        sandworm101 6y ago
        >> understood to be fairly safe, is there something equivalent for liquid rockets? No. Lighter fluid can be a reasonable fuel, but the oxidizer is the issue. Either you use liquid oxygen (very cold, explosive, generally dangerous) or something nasty like nitric acid or MMH that will eat your flesh for lunch. Given the altitudes involved, I would suggest that small jet/turbine engines meant for model aircraft would be more useful. They wouldn't need oxidizer.
        namibj 6y ago
        LOX isn't explosive. And LN2 is quite popular/widely used, and of arguably little danger. What I'm not sure about is whether it's safe to get (small amounts of) LOX spilled on your hand (LN2 is safe, my hands still work and the teacher didn't complain in like 2012 (between 2008 and 2015, but I can't guarantee anything tighter)). Yes, LOX is cold. So what? Just look at, say, [0] for information on what materials you can use for the LOX parts. Just use a simple pressurized tank configuration. Small amounts (sub-kg) of LOX only really restrict you from certain surfaces, such as asphalt, due to the risk of LOX spilling into the ground and turning it explosive. Otherwise it's arguably safer than everything except maybe 30% peroxide/aluminium in a hybrid rocket. [0]: https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19760010127.pdf https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/197600...
        jcims 6y ago
        Nitrous oxide is a viable and easily handled oxidizer for hobby engines.
        namibj 6y ago
        The common steel canisters seem to weight 30g, full (including carton packaging), with 8g payload. The vacuum ISP of a N2O monopropellant is given on Wikipedia as up to 180s, but the cartridge weight drops that to 48s. One could be chilled with dry ice to a vapor pressure of 2bar, but it's still far from easy to handle when weight is a substantial issue and you want to dynamically control flow, I'd figure.
osrec 6y ago
I also suggest you watch his live streams where he works on the electronics/avionics. It really helped me get back into electronics (albeit in a domain other than space). Very interesting, inspiring and he makes it seem so easy. Aside: for some reason, the guy reminds of Kevin Macalister from Home Alone, when he's putting together his plans to catch the burglars!
throwablePie 6y ago
From his about page: "I studied music production in college, and after seeing the ambition of SpaceX, and the excitement in the new space industry, I was hooked. I wanted to work in aerospace... " At first, I wondered what SpaceX role would suit him best and why SpaceX hadn't hired him. Then it occurred to me that humanity might be better off with passionate polymaths such as him working outside as opposed to inside the establishment. After all, Elon Musk started his aerospace career outside the establishment. And SpaceX is now establishment? Polymaths have been quite productive in crypto and other low-startup-cost environments. But, apparently, not so much in autonomous vehicles, etc. This could be a function of the learnings required for physical world projects, to wit: quaternions, telematics, aerodynamics, etc. So, would we/he be better off inside or outside the Borg? Thoughts?
- anotheryou 6y ago
  In some vid he says he had the chance to go to spacex, but than wanted to continue what he's doing.
- albntomat0 6y ago
  What he's done is super impressive and cool, but has he acquired the necessary base knowledge to work on an avionics, propulsion, etc team at SpaceX? I'm not in any of those fields, but I'd have to imagine there's a large amount of background knowledge that someone with an aero or mechanical engineering degree has, that he hasn't picked up with model rockets.
  - NikolaeVarius 6y ago
    Majority of engineers with a degree are useless right after graduation. Its a ton of random math that (most) of which you don't use again since you use modeling software. Source: Did Aero Someone doing this as a Amateur can damn well pick up whatever they need to.
    - bsaul 6y ago
      Even at space X level of innovation ? I was under that impression that maths could still be useful when working at the very bleeding edge of an engineering field.
cushychicken 6y ago
There's another guy who's been blowing up the /r/electronics subreddit for making his own pick'n'place machine. It makes me wonder if their endgame is productizing their projects, or trying to "make it" as YouTubers, or they are just having fun and documenting the process of their fun-having.
- dTal 6y ago
  He's already productized it, mainly the flight computer: https://bps.space/shop https://bps.space/shop
- amelius 6y ago
  Do you have a link for that pickandplace machine?
  - cushychicken 6y ago
    Not offhand, but if you search for reddit user /r/sphawes or YouTube page "Stephen the Robot", you should be able to find it.
  - leonroy 6y ago
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtZcnIEi710 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtZcnIEi710
- mNovak 6y ago
  It's not a bad a early career move, especially if you're still in college--much better than a paper resume. Peter Stripol is my favorite of these types of channels. Guy built (and flew!) an airplane out of styrofoam.

by spuz 6y ago

airstrike 6y ago

Truly amazing. > Also, do I even have to say it? Of course those boosters are gonna land! The propulsive landing test program is isolated from the Falcon Heavy program right now, but the two will merge as the success rate for both programs increases.

rrss 6y ago
It seems like it would be really hard to land the boosters with no throttle.
- jcims 6y ago
  There's been a few clues that we won't forever be without throttle. IIRC it looked like he was tinkering with a hybrid propellant system. Could also create a flame diverter if he's stuck with solid propellant.
  - rrss 6y ago
    I just watched a couple of his videos, and it sounds like he got pretty close to landing with solid propellant ('echo'), but ultimately decided that it was too finicky and ended that project to move onto a liquid biprop rocket.
    - epaulson 6y ago
      Are liquid engines still in the realm of hobbyists? The estes engines he's using are pretty widely used and understood to be fairly safe, is there something equivalent for liquid rockets?
      - sandworm101 6y ago
        >> understood to be fairly safe, is there something equivalent for liquid rockets? No. Lighter fluid can be a reasonable fuel, but the oxidizer is the issue. Either you use liquid oxygen (very cold, explosive, generally dangerous) or something nasty like nitric acid or MMH that will eat your flesh for lunch. Given the altitudes involved, I would suggest that small jet/turbine engines meant for model aircraft would be more useful. They wouldn't need oxidizer.
        namibj 6y ago
        LOX isn't explosive. And LN2 is quite popular/widely used, and of arguably little danger. What I'm not sure about is whether it's safe to get (small amounts of) LOX spilled on your hand (LN2 is safe, my hands still work and the teacher didn't complain in like 2012 (between 2008 and 2015, but I can't guarantee anything tighter)). Yes, LOX is cold. So what? Just look at, say, [0] for information on what materials you can use for the LOX parts. Just use a simple pressurized tank configuration. Small amounts (sub-kg) of LOX only really restrict you from certain surfaces, such as asphalt, due to the risk of LOX spilling into the ground and turning it explosive. Otherwise it's arguably safer than everything except maybe 30% peroxide/aluminium in a hybrid rocket. [0]: https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19760010127.pdf https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/197600...
        jcims 6y ago
        Nitrous oxide is a viable and easily handled oxidizer for hobby engines.
        namibj 6y ago
        The common steel canisters seem to weight 30g, full (including carton packaging), with 8g payload. The vacuum ISP of a N2O monopropellant is given on Wikipedia as up to 180s, but the cartridge weight drops that to 48s. One could be chilled with dry ice to a vapor pressure of 2bar, but it's still far from easy to handle when weight is a substantial issue and you want to dynamically control flow, I'd figure.

osrec 6y ago

I also suggest you watch his live streams where he works on the electronics/avionics. It really helped me get back into electronics (albeit in a domain other than space). Very interesting, inspiring and he makes it seem so easy. Aside: for some reason, the guy reminds of Kevin Macalister from Home Alone, when he's putting together his plans to catch the burglars!

throwablePie 6y ago

From his about page: "I studied music production in college, and after seeing the ambition of SpaceX, and the excitement in the new space industry, I was hooked. I wanted to work in aerospace... " At first, I wondered what SpaceX role would suit him best and why SpaceX hadn't hired him. Then it occurred to me that humanity might be better off with passionate polymaths such as him working outside as opposed to inside the establishment. After all, Elon Musk started his aerospace career outside the establishment. And SpaceX is now establishment? Polymaths have been quite productive in crypto and other low-startup-cost environments. But, apparently, not so much in autonomous vehicles, etc. This could be a function of the learnings required for physical world projects, to wit: quaternions, telematics, aerodynamics, etc. So, would we/he be better off inside or outside the Borg? Thoughts?

anotheryou 6y ago
In some vid he says he had the chance to go to spacex, but than wanted to continue what he's doing.
albntomat0 6y ago
What he's done is super impressive and cool, but has he acquired the necessary base knowledge to work on an avionics, propulsion, etc team at SpaceX? I'm not in any of those fields, but I'd have to imagine there's a large amount of background knowledge that someone with an aero or mechanical engineering degree has, that he hasn't picked up with model rockets.
- NikolaeVarius 6y ago
  Majority of engineers with a degree are useless right after graduation. Its a ton of random math that (most) of which you don't use again since you use modeling software. Source: Did Aero Someone doing this as a Amateur can damn well pick up whatever they need to.
  - bsaul 6y ago
    Even at space X level of innovation ? I was under that impression that maths could still be useful when working at the very bleeding edge of an engineering field.

cushychicken 6y ago

There's another guy who's been blowing up the /r/electronics subreddit for making his own pick'n'place machine. It makes me wonder if their endgame is productizing their projects, or trying to "make it" as YouTubers, or they are just having fun and documenting the process of their fun-having.

dTal 6y ago
He's already productized it, mainly the flight computer: https://bps.space/shop https://bps.space/shop
amelius 6y ago
Do you have a link for that pickandplace machine?
- cushychicken 6y ago
  Not offhand, but if you search for reddit user /r/sphawes or YouTube page "Stephen the Robot", you should be able to find it.
- leonroy 6y ago
  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtZcnIEi710 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GtZcnIEi710
mNovak 6y ago
It's not a bad a early career move, especially if you're still in college--much better than a paper resume. Peter Stripol is my favorite of these types of channels. Guy built (and flew!) an airplane out of styrofoam.