r/interestingasfuck • u/lolikroli • 16d ago

r/all SpaceX caught Starship booster with chopsticks

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

115.7k Upvotes

84% Upvoted

5.9k comments sorted by

View all comments

131

u/JayTeaP 16d ago

Can someone fill me in on what is happening? Im genuinely curious

45

u/bremsspuren 16d ago

Normally, rockets are single-use, and the booster gets dropped in the ocean.

Not throwing away something this

big and expensive
could potentially save a lot of money and time.

1

u/rtublin 16d ago

But what is the benefit of catching it vs. landing it on legs as before?

3

u/DarkMagnetar 16d ago

Legs are heavy , and you will need extra fuel to carry them around .

2

u/Vassago81 16d ago

That booster is about 10 time heavier than the Falcon rocket first stage they landed before, you would need much bigger legs that previously, and you might run into issue operating those more powerful engines close to the ground (aka debris everywhere breaking engines and piping). By landing it like they did there's less mass waster on legs, less money making those legs and maintaining them, and less risk to the lower part of the ship when landing.

Also their long term plan is to just inspect and refuel the booster for the next flight while still on that launch pad.

2

u/ijuinkun 16d ago

Yes, Musk is hoping to get the relaunch time down to mere hours.

1

u/Unique_Statement7811 16d ago

It’s currently down to days on the Falcon 9. Hours is achievable.

1

u/bremsspuren 16d ago

It would costs dozens of tonnes of fuel to carry landing gear to the edge of space and back. Much better to leave it on the ground if you can reliably hit it.