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No. The shuttle boosters were expended every single launch. The Falcon 9 booster comes back and lands. Ironically, the Falcon 9 second stage is expended every s
by SEJeff 6y ago
No. The shuttle boosters were expended every single launch. The Falcon 9 booster comes back and lands. Ironically, the Falcon 9 second stage is expended every single launch, but that will not be the case with Super Heavy / Starship that is in development.
- NikolaeVarius 6y agoNo they were not. Only the external tank was expended. The SRBs were refurbished and the orbiter was reused/refurbished.
- ceejayoz 6y agoTrue. Something that's often overlooked here is how extensive the required refurbishment is. The "reusable" shuttle boosters and orbiter engines took substantial time (https://www.nasa.gov/centers/johnson/pdf/584723main_Wings-ch3b-pgs74-93.pdf https://www.nasa.gov/centers/johnson/pdf/584723main_Wings-ch... says 4-5 months), money, and labor to get ready for the next launch. SpaceX is still making noise about trying out a same-day reflight sometime soon; it's clearly a much less involved process.
- valuearb 6y agoNope, only some parts of SRBs were reused to make new SRBs. That 200 MPH collision and saltwater damaged them too much.