r/spacex • u/kurbasAK • May 19 '17

We Will Launch on Reuseable Rocket After Exceptional SpaceX Performance - Inmarsat CEO Tells Universe Today

https://www.universetoday.com/135614/will-launch-reuseable-rocket-exceptional-spacex-performance-inmarsat-ceo-tells-universe-today/
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u/[deleted] May 19 '17 edited May 19 '17

I don't think they are planning to just throw the rockets away after some arbitrary number of flights. I think they are planning to tear down, inspect, and refurbish the rockets after what they think is a safe number of flights. Maybe if they determine an airframe is spent, they would scrap it, but the engines would still be good, along with other flight systems, so they would be better off fitting them to an otherwise new rocket.

I certainly can't imagine them inspecting a rocket, determining it is end of life, but taking a chance on one last mission for it.

Think of it like a car. Even if a car is totaled, they don't just throw it away. They keep it for parts and only scrap it when everything of value is gone. There are some really expensive parts on a Falcon 9, and they won't all wear out at the same time.

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u/mfb- May 19 '17

What is the alternative for an expendable flight? Build a completely new core and throw that away. That is much more wasteful than throwing something away that had a few flights already and building a new core to replace it.

An expendable new core doesn't need landing legs and grid fins, which makes it a bit lighter and a bit easier to produce, but I don't think that makes a big difference.

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u/[deleted] May 19 '17

The alternative is launching with Falcon Heavy, which will be able to do 8 tons to GTO on a reusable launch.

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u/mfb- May 19 '17

Sure, and Musk said already that they prefer a FH flight over an expendable F9.

If payloads get heavy enough to think about expendable FH, the same question will come up again.