When the internet is outlawed, only outlaws will have the internet.
Yes, a free internet can be dangerous in the wrong hands -- but of all people, a gun rights advocate should understand why that's not grounds for banning/controlling/censoring it.
Reusability, while a good idea, isn't too important for CRS—because reusable or not, NASA wants a new capsule for each mission.
CRS may well be Orbital's only ambition in the cargo delivery sphere (normally they launch satellites), while we know for a fact that SpaceX has... other plans.
Wait, 7 of 12 catastrophic failures? I'm not sure that's right. I don't think they've even done that many launches, in fact.
Here's what I know:
0. Falcon 1: Failure. (Never flew; launch aborted & it imploded later on when a tank was drained)
1. Falcon 1: Failure. (First stage engine failure)
2. Falcon 1: Failure. (Second stage oscillation & engine failure)
3. Falcon 1: Failure. (Stage seperation issues)
4. Falcon 1: Success. (Deployed RatSat)
5. Falcon 1: Success. (Deployed RazakSat)
6. Falcon 9: Success. (Deployed dummy payload)
7. Falcon 9: Success. (COTS 1; Deployed & recovered Dragon)
8. Falcon 9: Success. (COTS 2; Dragon to ISS and back)
9. Falcon 9: Partial Failure. (CRS-1; Failed to deploy secondary payload)
10. Falcon 9: Too early to say. (CRS-2; Falcon 9 performed flawlessly, but Dragon is having issues.)
So yes, SpaceX has had some problems, but the failure rate only approaches 7/12 if you count every little mishap as a "catastrophic failure". The only total failures were with the Falcon 1, when the company was still figuring things out. Yes, CRS-1 had an engine failure and couldn't deploy its secondary payload, but the Dragon itself still got to the ISS in good shape. And as for the current flight, it could still go several ways:
Success (if the Dragon arrives Sunday and it's declared successful despite the hiccups and schedule delay)
Partial Failure (if the Dragon arrives late and it's consequently not considered a full success)
Failure (if the Dragon dies and doesn't survive re-entry or, heaven forbid, collides with the ISS)
Abort (if the Dragon re-enters and splashes down intact)
Okay I've gone on yakking way too long, I know.
tl;dr – SpaceX has had some issues in the past, most of which got ironed out with the Falcon 1. F9/Dragon has had some hiccups, but so far every primary mission has been successful—and the current one hasn't failed yet.
Oh come on, that's not really fair—I'm pretty sure the whole PayPal mess happened after Musk sold his portion of the company. Also, the guy uses plain English a lot more than technical jargon.
Interesting... this actually sounds possible. Although, Elon Musk himself said you wouldn't want to go to Mars in a Dragon. The astronauts would have to spend over a year in a small capsule, and Musk figured if someone did that they'd likely come back insane, if at all.
Slashdot Mirror
When the internet is outlawed, only outlaws will have the internet.
Yes, a free internet can be dangerous in the wrong hands -- but of all people, a gun rights advocate should understand why that's not grounds for banning/controlling/censoring it.
But does it run Linux?
Oh wait, yes it does. Never mind then.
It almost doen't matter who. We need to send Washington a message.
Reusability, while a good idea, isn't too important for CRS—because reusable or not, NASA wants a new capsule for each mission.
CRS may well be Orbital's only ambition in the cargo delivery sphere (normally they launch satellites), while we know for a fact that SpaceX has... other plans.
I think it's a throwaway. Looks like it burns up on re-entry.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cygnus_(spacecraft)
Here's what I know:
0. Falcon 1: Failure. (Never flew; launch aborted & it imploded later on when a tank was drained)
1. Falcon 1: Failure. (First stage engine failure)
2. Falcon 1: Failure. (Second stage oscillation & engine failure)
3. Falcon 1: Failure. (Stage seperation issues)
4. Falcon 1: Success. (Deployed RatSat)
5. Falcon 1: Success. (Deployed RazakSat)
6. Falcon 9: Success. (Deployed dummy payload)
7. Falcon 9: Success. (COTS 1; Deployed & recovered Dragon)
8. Falcon 9: Success. (COTS 2; Dragon to ISS and back)
9. Falcon 9: Partial Failure. (CRS-1; Failed to deploy secondary payload)
10. Falcon 9: Too early to say. (CRS-2; Falcon 9 performed flawlessly, but Dragon is having issues.)
So yes, SpaceX has had some problems, but the failure rate only approaches 7/12 if you count every little mishap as a "catastrophic failure". The only total failures were with the Falcon 1, when the company was still figuring things out. Yes, CRS-1 had an engine failure and couldn't deploy its secondary payload, but the Dragon itself still got to the ISS in good shape. And as for the current flight, it could still go several ways:
Success (if the Dragon arrives Sunday and it's declared successful despite the hiccups and schedule delay)
Partial Failure (if the Dragon arrives late and it's consequently not considered a full success)
Failure (if the Dragon dies and doesn't survive re-entry or, heaven forbid, collides with the ISS)
Abort (if the Dragon re-enters and splashes down intact)
Okay I've gone on yakking way too long, I know.
tl;dr – SpaceX has had some issues in the past, most of which got ironed out with the Falcon 1. F9/Dragon has had some hiccups, but so far every primary mission has been successful—and the current one hasn't failed yet.
Oh come on, that's not really fair—I'm pretty sure the whole PayPal mess happened after Musk sold his portion of the company. Also, the guy uses plain English a lot more than technical jargon.
Interesting... this actually sounds possible. Although, Elon Musk himself said you wouldn't want to go to Mars in a Dragon. The astronauts would have to spend over a year in a small capsule, and Musk figured if someone did that they'd likely come back insane, if at all.
So instead: this is hopefully a sign that, in the world of computing, monopolistic practices will give way to healthy competition.
There we are, tentative but hopeful!