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SpaceX Starship & Super Heavy booster [Raptor Vacuum breathes fire]

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  • Boca Chica

    More of the new SN1 rings, and Vertical Assembly Building (VAB) construction.

    The fins are being redesigned.

    Dr. Mordrid
    ----------------------------
    An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

    I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

    Comment


    • 30X is their custom alloy also for use in the Tesla Cybertruck, and possibly other Cyber... vehicles - on Earth and otherwise.

      Indeng @yourfavgas
      Replying to @elonmusk
      (When) are you switching to custom alloy instead of 301 for starship?
      |
      Elon Musk ✔ @elonmusk
      Probably 6 months or so. 301 is certainly fine for orbit, but SpaceX 30X will be better.
      3:20 AM - Feb 10, 2020

      https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1226782860746555392
      Dr. Mordrid
      ----------------------------
      An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

      I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

      Comment


      • OK, my bullshit alarm has officially gone off... Numbered Stainless Steel alloys are ANSI and ASTM Standards. Each alloy has been exhaustively tested and their properties are so well-known they may as well be written on Stone Tablets (since about 1955 at least). Saying you are going to use a "custom" alloy is kind of a cop out... it means you don't want to purchase certified metals (which are a little more expensive)... this is very creative marketing to the detriment of the factual truth.
        Hey, Donny! We got us a German who wants to die for his country... Oblige him. - Lt. Aldo Raine

        Comment


        • SpaceX has their own foundry, & metallurgists, which have created at least 2 new single-crystal superalloys used in Raptor's hot oxygen turbopumps (everything else cooked), and combustion chamber.

          EM on 30X;

          "Reason Cybertruck is so planar is that you can’t stamp ultra-hard 30X steel, because it breaks the stamping press."

          "Even bending it requires a deep score on inside of bend, which is how the prototype was made"

          "We’re creating this alloy at Tesla. Not a problem to create a lot of it, but we’ll need to come up with new body manufacturing methods, as it can’t be made using standard methods."

          "Good question. It’s a new variant of 300 series stainless steel, but it also gets cold-worked many times, depending on kilotonnage of press."

          Some 30X parts are being made here in MI.
          Dr. Mordrid
          ----------------------------
          An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

          I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

          Comment


          • "Reason Cybertruck is so planar is that you can’t stamp ultra-hard 30X steel, because it breaks the stamping press."
            That, is Bullshit.

            You don't stamp hardened sheetstock... it needs to be annealed first (and most of it is annealed and passivated before leaving the mill). Stainless Steel alloys work harden very quickly, whether machined or formed (Feeds and speeds while machining it are always critical). You have be aggressive when working it otherwise it will harden as you cut it. The trouble with stamping Stainless Steel is, after forming, it isn't always possible to anneal it again, depending on the alloy... Annealing Stainless can also be expensive (most of the time it needs to be in an Argon atmosphere to avoid burning off alloying metals).

            Regarding Superalloys... There are Stainless Steels which are Iron-based, and there are Superalloys which are Nickel-based... Superalloys have Stainless properties (some are more "stainless" than others... some Stainless Steels are mildly magnetic due to higher iron content, Superalloys are definitely not magnetic). Stainless Steel is not a Superalloy. The most common Superalloys are Hastelloy, Inconel, Incoloy, etc... (which are trade names for a very large family of Nickel Molybdenum-based alloys), it's various grades/ formulations are used in everything from Production Cookware to Rocket Engines. It would not surprise me in the slightest to see a custom Superalloy formulation used in a turbopump (especially with pure Oxygen), but I doubt seriously that the SpaceX formulation is truly "New". Single Crystal Alloys have been around for over 50 years... What has improved over time is the consistency of the heats and a better understanding of the ageing process (both of which were not technology-limited, rather they were constrained by lack of data over time). Computer-controlled ageing is where the largest Strength/Longevity gains have been realized.

            When I worked for Pratt & Whitney PSD, Hastelloys, and occasionally Titanium Alloys would be used for "cold parts", Inconel alloys in "hot parts" (compressors and combustors) were the norm; all of them were awful materials to work. Everything that applied with Stainless Steel applied almost double for Hastelloy. Hard on cutters and hell on equipment (high tool pressure). If you got a sliver of it in your skin, we had a special station setup next to the eyewash station with lighted magnifier and tweezers so you could find the metal and dig it out. Not fun. Many times it was a "team effort" (and spectator sport) to get one out.
            Last edited by MultimediaMan; 11 February 2020, 12:44.
            Hey, Donny! We got us a German who wants to die for his country... Oblige him. - Lt. Aldo Raine

            Comment


            • No SS alloy improvements since then? Hmmmm....

              The new High Bay structure for stacking Starships is almost complete. They'll build the cargo bay/habitat section, propellant tanks, and the thrust module and assemble them in there.

              Starship SN-01 should be going to the pad for tests & a static fire by early March - soon after stacking in the new High Bay. If all goes well, a flight test a few weeks later.

              Starship SN-02 is hot on its heels, with components being built, rings & domes stacked, with vehicle stacking after SN-01 vacates the High Bay.

              They want to scale production to 2 Starships a week in order to populate the operational fleet.

              Yes, a fleet.

              Elon Musk ✔ @elonmusk
              Replying to @SciGuySpace
              Hardest problem by far is building the production system of something this big. 2nd hardest is achieving full & rapid reuse with payload to orbit of ~2%.
              ||
              These problems are fundamentally intertwined. Building many rockets allows for successive approximation. Progress in any given technology is simply # of iterations * progress between iterations
              |
              Viv @flcnhvy
              Replying to @elonmusk @SciGuySpace
              Given the number of Falcon 9 iterations since 2011, including a huge number of little tweaks w/ each new vehicle, how many iterations do you expect to need to achieve similar or much better reliability as F9 w/ Starship?
              |
              Elon Musk ✓ @elonmusk
              F9 iteration slowed down as payloads became too important to risk. Little change is expected going forward with F9/FH or Dragon. Starship production & thus iterative improvement will be much faster than Falcon. Driving hard for fully reusable orbital flight this year!

              Last edited by Dr Mordrid; 21 February 2020, 01:48.
              Dr. Mordrid
              ----------------------------
              An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

              I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

              Comment


              • Starship SN-01 stacking, tests, outfitting (LabPadre stream screenshot)

                Cargo module sections are still indoors.

                Stacking


                LabPadre livestream
                Attached Files
                Dr. Mordrid
                ----------------------------
                An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

                I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

                Comment


                • SN-01's propulsion module is at the pad for cryotreating & tests. A few weeks after a good static fire, the 20km test flight.

                  Getting the crane & load spreader ready to place it on the test pad.

                  The cargo module/nose cone is being stacked.

                  SPadre @SpacePadreIsle
                  She pulled a fast one on everyone with a stealth mode rollout this morning but there she is, proud and tall, waiting to secure her place in space history! #SpaceX #Starship #BocaChica https://t.co/6kuosPj0Al

                  IMG_20200225_101623.jpg

                  https://twitter.com/SpacePadreIsle/s...21426818027521
                  Dr. Mordrid
                  ----------------------------
                  An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

                  I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

                  Comment


                  • Fronius = Fronius International of Germany. High end welding.

                    Elon Musk ✔ @elonmusk
                    Starship SN1 tank preparing for Raptor attachment & static fire
                    >
                    SN2 tank integration starts this week with much less circumferential pucker. Thanks Fronius!
                    >
                    We had the wrong settings! To make the welds super flat & strong, we’re building a heavy duty, custom planisher, but just having the right settings is a major improvement.

                    Dr. Mordrid
                    ----------------------------
                    An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

                    I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

                    Comment


                    • RIP Starship SN-01

                      Fail early, fail often, and iterate quickly.

                      Looked like the lower LOX dome let go during liquid nitrogen testing, "launching" the rest.

                      SN-02 parts are waiting in the wings to be stacked with weld upgrades per an earlier post, and the SN-03 thrust structure is being built.

                      Nose Cone 2 is being stacked.

                      Dr. Mordrid
                      ----------------------------
                      An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

                      I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

                      Comment


                      • Evelyn Janeidy Arevalo @JaneidyEve
                        Replying to @elonmusk
                        So, what did y'all learn from this event?
                        |
                        Elon Musk ✔ @elonmusk
                        There’s a puck at the base that takes the engine thrust load. Don’t shuck the puck!
                        |
                        |
                        Viv @flcnhvy
                        Replying to @elonmusk @JaneidyEve
                        What’s roughly the new target for static fire of SN2?
                        |
                        Elon Musk ✔ @elonmusk
                        We’re stripping SN2 to bare minimum to test the thrust puck to dome weld under pressure, first with water, then at cryo. Hopefully, ready to test in a few days.



                        Dr. Mordrid
                        ----------------------------
                        An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

                        I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

                        Comment


                        • SN-02 dome/thrust structure test tank is nearly ready - the big blue Roll-Away transporter arrived March 4.

                          Also, SN-03 build and a new nose cone, perhaps for the 20km test.

                          Dial down the audio - machinery warning beeps

                          Dr. Mordrid
                          ----------------------------
                          An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

                          I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

                          Comment


                          • SN-02 test tank on the pad at 07:40

                            Dr. Mordrid
                            ----------------------------
                            An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

                            I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

                            Comment


                            • SN-02 tank/puck liquid nitrogen test completed, looks like no ka-boom!!

                              Waiting for results.
                              Dr. Mordrid
                              ----------------------------
                              An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

                              I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

                              Comment


                              • More tests

                                Boca Chica is focussing on getting the structure right and developing "the machine that builds the machine" for mass production. KSC 'Pad Rats' moved from LC-39A to BC to build the Super Heavy/Starship orbital launch platform, tower + vertical integration crane and other pad infrastructure.

                                SN2 tank and puck (thrust strucure) test report for last nights.liquid nitrogen pressure tests.

                                Everyday Astronaut
                                @Erdayastronaut
                                · 3h
                                How’d the new welds hold up and look under cryo pressure @elonmusk ? You confident enough with this to go full stack again?
                                ||
                                Elon Musk ✔ @elonmusk
                                SN2 (with thrust puck) passed cryo pressure & engine thrust load tests late last night
                                ||
                                Michael Baylor @nextspaceflight
                                Replying to @elonmusk @Erdayastronaut
                                What's the path forward now? Static fire with SN3 and hop with SN4?
                                ||
                                Elon Musk ✔ @elonmusk
                                Static fire & short flights with SN3, longer flights with SN4, but spooling up the whole Starship/Raptor production line is really what matters


                                Dr. Mordrid
                                ----------------------------
                                An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

                                I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

                                Comment

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