3 ms·
The orbiter was reusable, the boosters were refurbishable, and the external tank basically crashed into the ocean.
by 0x64 6y ago
The orbiter was reusable, the boosters were refurbishable, and the external tank basically crashed into the ocean.
- thedrbrian 6y agoAlways thought it was a shame they didn’t push the main tank into orbit. Just think of an ISS made from a few of them rather than what we have now or the Ares from Red Mars.
- jandrese 6y agoThere were some orbital concepts that basically inflated a living space inside of an orange tank and stuck a few solar panels and radiators on the side. Shuttle trips were just too expensive to make it practical and with the ISS it would have been redundant.
- NikolaeVarius 6y agoAlternative designs could have worked, but the Shuttle used the OMS after main engine cutoff, so keeping the tank would have eaten a ton of delta-vee