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IIRC, the reason they rejected the land propulsive landing was that NASA insisted on more testing to certify it and SpaceX didn't want to bear the costs of thos
by bryanlarsen 2y ago
IIRC, the reason they rejected the land propulsive landing was that NASA insisted on more testing to certify it and SpaceX didn't want to bear the costs of those tests.
Given the parachute failures they had during initial qualifications and the subsequent delays and retesting costs there's a good chance they regret that decision.
- lupusreal 2y agoSupposedly they retain the propulsive landing capability and could try to use it in an emergency if the chutes failed catastrophically. The thrusters needed for it have always been there because they are the same thrusters used for the launch escape system.
- grawp 2y agoIt's not 'supposedly'. It's a feature they officially gained just a few crewed flights back. It's a mean of last resort and has to be manually committed to during descend. I assume it may have to cut any remaining or semideployed parachutes.
- lupusreal 2y agoI could be wrong but I don't think its been tested.