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>>could not even test their Buran spacecraft before launching it to see it crash. Wait, what? Buran did launch for a test flight, in a fully remote-controlled
by gambiting 3y ago
>>could not even test their Buran spacecraft before launching it to see it crash.
Wait, what? Buran did launch for a test flight, in a fully remote-controlled flight(something that the US Shuttle couldn't do at the time), and landed successfully. It never crashed.
- kevin_thibedeau 3y agoBuran never went through an equivalent of the shuttle approach and landing tests because the An-225 wasn't ready. It was never certain it would fly back successfully on reentry.
- mcpackieh 3y agoWhen is anything ever certain? The first shuttle flights flew with only two people who had ejection seats, clearly NASA wasn't certain of success. I've been watching MIT 16.885J recently, it's a lecture series from 2005 about the space shuttle with lectures given about numerous shuttle subsystems by people who actually worked on them, administrators and lead engineers. Several of them have expressed reservations about the systems in the shuttles. Fear that the hydraulic system was a ticking timebomb that should be replaced with electromechanic systems, recounting an early fear that the Colombia breakup had been caused by a landing gear explosion, etc. These guys weren't certain of much, everybody knew it was a risky project. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL35721A60B7B57386 https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL35721A60B7B57386
- iJohnDoe 3y agoThe Brian shuttle orbited the Earth twice in 206 minutes of flight, travelling 83,707 kilometres (52,013 mi) in 3 hours and 25 minutes (0.14 flight days). On its return, it performed an automated landing on the shuttle runway at Baikonur Cosmodrome. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buran_programme https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buran_programme
- arethuza 3y agoOh how I wish there had be a "Brian the space shuttle" :-)