SpaceX's Big New Rocket May Crash on 1st Flight, Elon Musk Says

Space.com ^ | July 20, 2017 07:30am ET | Mike Wall,

[BenLurkin]

There's a "real good chance" the vehicle won't make it to orbit during the liftoff, Musk said Wednesday (July 19) at the 2017 International Space Station Research and Development (ISSR&D) conference in Washington, D.C. That launch is expected to take place later this year from Florida's Space Coast.

"I hope it makes it far enough away from the pad that it does not cause pad damage. I would consider even that a win, to be honest," Musk told NASA ISS program manager Kirk Shireman, who interviewed the SpaceX CEO onstage at the meeting. "Major pucker factor, really; that's, like, the only way to describe it."

The two-stage Falcon Heavy is based on SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket, which has been ferrying payloads to space since 2010. The Heavy's first stage consists of two Falcon 9 first stages strapped to a central "core," which is itself a modified Falcon 9 booster.

Like the Falcon 9, the Heavy is designed to be reusable.

[House Atreides]

Elon Musk is approaching the end of his numerous scams. No Mars trips for you eager folks now!

[LegendHasIt]

Well why not postpone and work on it until you have a higher expectation of success, rather than endangering people?

[BenLurkin]

Exactly

[minnesota_bound]

He should be on that first flight.

[null and void]

Setting low expectations.

If it achieves only 50% of its goals when the expectation is set at 10%, that will be perceived as a YUGE success.

Negotiating 101, folks, negotiating 101.

[aynrandfreak]

Maybe he has higher confidence, but he’s hyping it up.

[Moonman62]

Musk is greatly lowering costs and crushing the competition in the commercial launch market.

[Moonman62]

Well why not postpone and work on it until you have a higher expectation of success, rather than endangering people?

...

It’s a test flight and nobody is being endangered.

[LegendHasIt]

Unless it falls on them downrange. Or has a larger blast radius than expected.

I didn’t mean passengers on it.

[Moonman62]

Downrange and any possible blast radius is cleared before launch.

[Moonman62]

Nobody is going to be on the first flight.

[TruthInThoughtWordAndDeed]

It doesn’t make any difference anyway. It’s just Bread and Circuses.

[DrPretorius]

It is absolutely mind-boggling to consider the implications of Musk’s statements. This guy has raped this country of billions of dollars of federal subsidies for his asinine schemes and has been touted as some sort of technical genius, yet all he can deliver is failure. The space program has been in existence since the 1950s. There has been over fifty years of technological development. There is simply no excuse for such a lack of performance. It’s like designing a ship that sinks upon its launching. The government of this country that has thrown so much money at this fool is irredeemably corrupt and utterly bankrupt.

[BenLurkin]

“It’s like designing a ship that sinks upon its launching.”

It’s happened....
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasa_(ship)

[Moonman62]

SpaceX is dominating the commercial launch market.

http://www.popularmechanics.com/space/rockets/a27290/one-chart-spacex-dominate-rocket-launches/

[Vendome]

“...I would consider even that a win, to be honest,”

Like you ever were....

[Vince Ferrer]

KIRK: ...Scotty, progress report?
SCOTT: I'm almost done, sir. You'll be fully automated by the time we dock.
KIRK: Your timing is excellent, Mister Scott. You've fixed the barn door after the horse has come home. How much refit time till we can take her out of here?
SCOTT: Eight weeks, sir. But you don't have eight weeks so I'll do it for ya in two.
KIRK: Mister Scott. Have you always multiplied your repair estimates by a factor of four?
SCOTT: Certainly, sir. How else can I keep my reputation as a miracle worker?
KIRK (on intercom): Your reputation is secure, Scotty.

[American Infidel]

I imagine these rockets are not being powered by electric batteries. What is the “carbon footprint” for each of these launches? It must be pretty small since I keep hearing from all of the lefties that Elon Musk is driven by his desire to reduce the environmental impact of human activity on mother earth, hence the creation of Tesla. I guess they conveniently forgot about Space-X, or they are simply given him a pass because he “cares”. Perhaps they see Tesla is the equivalent of a ‘carbon offset’ to Space-X.

[higgmeister]

Your link is missing the close parenthesis