4 ms·

Can anyone explain the random bright flashes at the apex of its velocity?

• enderfusion 3y ago
  Tiny pieces of the heatshield debonding from the craft and interacting with the plasma.
  • danesparza 3y ago
    "...and interacting with the plasma" That sounds like an exciting day at work. ;-)
    • rbanffy 3y ago
      Rapid unscheduled dismantling happening at the molecular level. In this case, it wasn't really unscheduled.
  • elasker 3y ago
    Compare the heat shield in the pic here (before launch): https://x.com/VardaSpace/status/1671621386065027072?s=20 https://x.com/VardaSpace/status/1671621386065027072?s=20 To here (after reentry): https://x.com/VardaSpace/status/1760726397889466792?s=20 https://x.com/VardaSpace/status/1760726397889466792?s=20