Comments on: Rocket Lab successfully launches but fails to catch first stage

By: pzatchok

pzatchok — Mon, 07 Nov 2022 00:07:03 +0000

I never did like the idea of inflight catches.

By: sippin_bourbon

sippin_bourbon — Sat, 05 Nov 2022 02:30:28 +0000

I wonder how.much return had to be done on the engine.
What, if any, damage to the tanks or the rocket body was inflicted on impact with the water.

Either way, a successful launch.
Rocket lab has nine straight months of launches, with a tenth scheduled.

By: Concerned

Concerned — Sat, 05 Nov 2022 00:42:32 +0000

SpaceX discovered the same thing with their fairings. Musk tweeted something like, “nothing wrong with a little swim”.

By: Robert Zimmerman

Robert Zimmerman — Fri, 04 Nov 2022 20:38:12 +0000

In reply to Andi. Andi: Thank you again for your help. Fixed.

By: David Ross

David Ross — Fri, 04 Nov 2022 19:40:41 +0000

If a rocket can be reused after a splashdown then they never needed the helicopter. Doesn’t the Electron use carbon-fiber for a chassis? That won’t corrode. All they need is something to seal the engine from prolonged exposure to seawater and it looks like they’re mostly there already.

By: Andi

Andi — Fri, 04 Nov 2022 18:20:12 +0000

Minor edit in first sentence: “to successfully launch”

Too bad about the failure to catch. Hope they can get some useful data from the recovered stage.