The F9R (F-niner) will be the re-usable version of the Falcon 9 v1.1 expendable booste.
Height: 227 feet with the 5 meter fairing
First stage: 9 restartable Merlin 1D engines at 147,000 lbf each
Engine arrangement: 1 central surrounded by 8 in an octagon (octaweb)
Second stage: 1 restartable M1Dvac (Merlin 1D vacuum)
After the first stage separates from the second stage it will turn about, return to near the launch site, deploy a 60 foot wide array of 4 legs and land. It will then be inspected and prepped for another flight. This could reduce launch costs by 90%.
Latest pic is of the carbon fiber folding legs. Elon Musk tweets
Height: 227 feet with the 5 meter fairing
First stage: 9 restartable Merlin 1D engines at 147,000 lbf each
Engine arrangement: 1 central surrounded by 8 in an octagon (octaweb)
Second stage: 1 restartable M1Dvac (Merlin 1D vacuum)
After the first stage separates from the second stage it will turn about, return to near the launch site, deploy a 60 foot wide array of 4 legs and land. It will then be inspected and prepped for another flight. This could reduce launch costs by 90%.
Latest pic is of the carbon fiber folding legs. Elon Musk tweets
Elon Musk; @elonmusk
F9R (pronounced F-niner) shows a little leg. Design is a nested, telescoping piston w A frame. pic.twitter.com/H49TSS2CYl
Giacomo Balli; @BigBall
@elonmusk is it hydraulic?
Elon Musk; @elonmusk
@BigBalli High pressure helium. Needs to be ultra light. All 4 legs together (~60 ft span) weigh less than Model S.
F9R (pronounced F-niner) shows a little leg. Design is a nested, telescoping piston w A frame. pic.twitter.com/H49TSS2CYl
Giacomo Balli; @BigBall
@elonmusk is it hydraulic?
Elon Musk; @elonmusk
@BigBalli High pressure helium. Needs to be ultra light. All 4 legs together (~60 ft span) weigh less than Model S.