SpaceX launches oceanography satellite
Capitalism in space: SpaceX today successfully launched an oceanography satellite using its Falcon 9 rocket from the company’s California launch site at Vandenberg Air Force Base..
The first stage, making its first flight, successfully landed back on land near the launch site.
This was also SpaceX’s 21st successful launch in 2020, tying their record from 2018 for the most launches in a single year by a private company, ever. That record should be broken tomorrow, with their next Starlink launch.
The leaders in the 2020 launch race:
30 China
21 SpaceX
12 Russia
5 ULA
5 Rocket Lab
The U.S. now leads China 34 to 30 in the national rankings.
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Capitalism in space: SpaceX today successfully launched an oceanography satellite using its Falcon 9 rocket from the company’s California launch site at Vandenberg Air Force Base..
The first stage, making its first flight, successfully landed back on land near the launch site.
This was also SpaceX’s 21st successful launch in 2020, tying their record from 2018 for the most launches in a single year by a private company, ever. That record should be broken tomorrow, with their next Starlink launch.
The leaders in the 2020 launch race:
30 China
21 SpaceX
12 Russia
5 ULA
5 Rocket Lab
The U.S. now leads China 34 to 30 in the national rankings.
I cannot thank the numerous people who so generously donated or subscribed to Behind the Black during this fund drive. The response was remarkable, and reflected the steady growth and popularity of the work I have been doing here for the past ten-plus years.
Thank you again!
Though the find-raising campaign is officially over, and I am no longer plastering the main page with requests for help, if you like what you have read you can still contribute, by giving either a one-time contribution or a regular subscription, as outlined in the tip jar below. Your support will allow me to continue covering science and culture as I have for the past twenty years, independent and free from any outside influence.
Regular readers can support Behind The Black with a contribution via paypal:
If Paypal doesn't work for you, you can support Behind The Black directly by sending your donation by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman, to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
Slight correction: it landed at LZ4, not on a drone ship.
R.P. Nettelhorst: My mistake. I was out and about today, and only reported this when I got home. Should have watched the replay of the live stream. Post is now corrected. Thank you!
Anyone know where you can access uncommented tracking camera video of the launch and landing? The people on NSF kept cutting away to talk amongst themselves, and could not seem to track the booster as it landed for more than two seconds.
I have noticed something weird. Elon Musk and his SpaceX crew, in the last ten years, have:
–completely upended the space launch paradigm, changed the way everyone is thinking of launch.
–built and FLOWN a full flow Lox/Methane Engine
–built and FLOWN Dragon 1 cargo vehicles and now Dragon 2 Crew capsules
–and the list goes on
And yet, they have not won the Collier Trophy
Blue Origin has won a Collier Trophy.
Why is this?
Bob have you heard is spacex only doing flights out of Vandenberg where the first stage can be recovered. Spacex moved both its droneships to the east coast of Florida. Seems there is a movement away from Vandenberg but I don’t believe Spacex has another location for polar launches.
Rodney: people who break rice bowls and gore oxen don’t usually get thanked for it.
Blue Origin, despite being relatively new, is part of the “old space” industry.
Sayomara: I had not heard that, but SpaceX HAS another location now for polar launches, Cape Canaveral. They have done one such launch already.
I believe the reason that both drone ships are on the East Coast is that there is a Falcon Heavy Launch coming up (#4) next Februrary. The payload requires that the FH recover their side boosters on drone ships–not on land and hence the requirements for two ships–and they will expend the core. I think this is all driven by the requirement of getting a lot of payload to geosynchronous.
V-Man: With respect to broken rice bowls and gored oxen, will we ever get out of living in this Junior High School Cafeteria/Mean Girls Hell World?
I’ll stick this in here—
https://www.reddit.com/r/Starlink/comments/jybmgn/we_are_the_starlink_team_ask_us_anything/
and….
Starlink Dish TEARDOWN! – Part 1
Mike on Space
November 22, 2020
https://youtu.be/QudtSo5tpLk
33:41