April 3, 2023 Quick space links
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay, now back from a well-deserved vacation.
- During “extreme structural load testing” of the Centaur upper stage of ULA’s Vulcan rocket, CEO Tory Bruno reported “an anomaly”
No one was hurt, and according to Bruno this incident is “very unlikely” to impact the Vulcan-Centaur being prepared for launch in May. Though more details are not available, I suspect this was a test-to-failure, and the failure occurred slightly earlier than expected, but not so early as to be a concern.
- The SpaceX ocean fleet ships pass near Florida
One drone was coming home with a Falcon 9 first stage, while another drone plus the ship that picks up the fairings were heading to sea for an upcoming launch.
- Several images from Rocket Lab of the most recently recovered Electron 1st stage
From the tweet: “Once again the stage took reentry in its stride and the Rutherford engines are in great shape. Next step is to analyze and requalify components to inform our future recovery efforts.”
Rocket Lab officials has indicated that they are beginning to think they can simply reuse stages after splashdown in the ocean, rather than capture them by helicopter in the air. The data from this stage will help them make this decision.
Readers!
My annual February birthday fund-raising drive for Behind the Black is now over. Thank you to everyone who donated or subscribed. While not a record-setter, the donations were more than sufficient and slightly above average.
As I have said many times before, I can’t express what it means to me to get such support, especially as no one is required to pay anything to read my work. Thank you all again!
For those readers who like my work here at Behind the Black and haven't contributed so far, please consider donating or subscribing. My analysis of space, politics, and culture, taken from the perspective of an historian, is almost always on the money and ahead of the game. For example, in 2020 I correctly predicted that the COVID panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Every one of those 2020 conclusions has turned out right.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:
4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
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You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.
Courtesy of BtB’s stringer Jay, now back from a well-deserved vacation.
- During “extreme structural load testing” of the Centaur upper stage of ULA’s Vulcan rocket, CEO Tory Bruno reported “an anomaly”
No one was hurt, and according to Bruno this incident is “very unlikely” to impact the Vulcan-Centaur being prepared for launch in May. Though more details are not available, I suspect this was a test-to-failure, and the failure occurred slightly earlier than expected, but not so early as to be a concern.
- The SpaceX ocean fleet ships pass near Florida
One drone was coming home with a Falcon 9 first stage, while another drone plus the ship that picks up the fairings were heading to sea for an upcoming launch.
- Several images from Rocket Lab of the most recently recovered Electron 1st stage
From the tweet: “Once again the stage took reentry in its stride and the Rutherford engines are in great shape. Next step is to analyze and requalify components to inform our future recovery efforts.”
Rocket Lab officials has indicated that they are beginning to think they can simply reuse stages after splashdown in the ocean, rather than capture them by helicopter in the air. The data from this stage will help them make this decision.
Readers!
My annual February birthday fund-raising drive for Behind the Black is now over. Thank you to everyone who donated or subscribed. While not a record-setter, the donations were more than sufficient and slightly above average.
As I have said many times before, I can’t express what it means to me to get such support, especially as no one is required to pay anything to read my work. Thank you all again!
For those readers who like my work here at Behind the Black and haven't contributed so far, please consider donating or subscribing. My analysis of space, politics, and culture, taken from the perspective of an historian, is almost always on the money and ahead of the game. For example, in 2020 I correctly predicted that the COVID panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Every one of those 2020 conclusions has turned out right.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:
4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.
During “extreme structural load testing” of the Centaur upper stage of ULA’s Vulcan rocket, CEO Tory Bruno reported “an anomaly”.
Translation: 2024