What SpaceX Just Revealed is a Massive Breakthrough

There is no rest for the space community this week with a barrage of exciting updates. Not only is SpaceX gearing up for Starship Flight test 5 with vehicles now officially ready to go. What SpaceX Just Revealed is a Massive Breakthrough. Raptor 3 Numbers are in, and the mass reduction is bigger than what I would have ever expected. Along with that, amazing events from Falcon 9, and we just have to catch you up on Starliner too, because wow, that story gets more complex and bizarre by the day.

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[lanzer]

SpaceX design gets more simplified, Boeing situation gets more complicated. "Stark contrast" doesn't begin to describe these two companies.

[bobjohnson]

The 40% loss of mass plus increased power of the new raptor is bad ass

[The_Isaiahnator]

The Raptor 3 really is as much a work of art as it is an engineering marvel. I can't stop looking at it.

[mearsm]

With 33 engines in the booster and 6 in starship thats about 75 tonnes saved over version 1 - Massive saving!

[jcoxdj]

It’s crazy how much simpler the raptor 3 is

[NineInchTyrone]

The totality of the engineering involved in Space X operations is mind boggling

[chrisintoronto]

Starliner looks like antique tech compared to Dragon

[MonsterSound.Bradley]

"...with the robotic arm." Pls call it the Canada-Arm. It's all we've got at the CSA since Chris Hadfield. 🍁😎👍

[hankkingsley]

If the first test of catch fails... it's going to be spectacular. Same if it does not fail. Win win for spectators

[seanb]

The Ice Sheen on the Test Firing Raptor 3.... My Gawd, that is astonishingly breathtakingly beautiful.
Like watching the Turbos on an F1 race car incandescing as they scream up.

[recoilrob]

That monster crane is a piece of work!! So much of the equipment at Starbase is equally impressive as the spacecraft. Just look at the hauler that moves the ships around....it's amazing.

[TaranAadarsh]

I remember, when Starliner docked with crew, my only statement was that I wouldn't consider it a success until both Suni and Butch came back down. Boy did my fears come true...

[enox]

Just eject Starliner as space trash and let it burn up in the atmosphere.

[FluffyBlueCow]

I wonder if SpaceX interviews start with.. "Do you have a fear of heights?"

[rogerfroud]

The "Beehive" funnel arrangement may be to ensure that there is a smooth flow of propellant regardless of how the booster swings and changes attitude. A rapid change in cross section straight into the downcomer means that the flow has to rapidly accelerate at the start of the tube. This will allow for a more gradual change in velocity, keeping the pressure gradients much lower.

[jooei]

If SpaceX were around during the 80’s we would be in the world of the serie ”For All Mankind”.

[ziyad_aljassasi]

I can't wait for the booster catch 😅

[richardloewen]

Re the "extensive" program of heat tile replacement--the month-long process for Ship 30, and the hopefully shorter one for ship 31:

That is amazingly SHORT timeframe, in comparison to the nearly YEAR-long timeframe of completely changing a shuttle's heat tiles. Well done, SpaceX!

[PetesGuide]

@MarcusHouse just a gentle reminder at 20:38 that Cygnus is berthed not docked. Saying docking here might confuse less-expert viewers who just heard there are only two docking ports and both are occupied.

[discombubulate]

jesus boeing. i bet musk was like, "oh we can just send up a dragon to go get them" and nasa was like, "hold on a second, we need to run the numbers, check the levels and potential procrastination time with team of engineers then print out and fax the entire result documentation to the room next door for a 2 month study that includes field mice and protractors, could cost millions." and boeing is like, "we thought we wouldn't need the software anymore so we removed it for safety reasons.".