Spinlaunch releases video of its 7th test launch
Capitalism in space: Spinlaunch on April 18th released a video providing what it calls “an inside look” at the company’s procedures during its 7th test launch on March 22, 2022.
I have embedded the video below. Note that on this test launch, the projectile was lifted to only about 30,000 feet, which does not qualify it as a suborbital space flight. Still, the video also indicates that their test projectile not only survived the launch’s extremely high accelerations, reaching a speed of 1,200 miles per hour in mere seconds, but once it hit the ground it was in good enough shape to reuse.
The video also reveals one other interesting fact. Their mission control consisted of only two people, significantly less than the mission control staffs used by the commercial rocket companies, which are themselves significantly less that the mission control teams that NASA has used.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Capitalism in space: Spinlaunch on April 18th released a video providing what it calls “an inside look” at the company’s procedures during its 7th test launch on March 22, 2022.
I have embedded the video below. Note that on this test launch, the projectile was lifted to only about 30,000 feet, which does not qualify it as a suborbital space flight. Still, the video also indicates that their test projectile not only survived the launch’s extremely high accelerations, reaching a speed of 1,200 miles per hour in mere seconds, but once it hit the ground it was in good enough shape to reuse.
The video also reveals one other interesting fact. Their mission control consisted of only two people, significantly less than the mission control staffs used by the commercial rocket companies, which are themselves significantly less that the mission control teams that NASA has used.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The print edition can be purchased at Amazon or from any other book seller. If you want an autographed copy the price is $60 for the hardback and $45 for the paperback, plus $8 shipping for each. Go here for purchasing details. The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Two people really is all that is needed at this point.
It looks like spin control, and some very basic telemetry. As they gain more complexity, I would expect see more, as the 2nd stage is to have a rocket. Communications will need to be more robust with real payloads. Communications beyond the launch site, such as range control/FAA airspace control integration, etc. Those are not really needed too much at this stage, but I can see them growing, if they can make this work.
Still trying to figure out the counterbalance issue. I am not sure, but looking at this and other vids, I am wondering if they do not release a liquid counterweight at the same time. It looks like a vent 180 degrees from the release point. Just a guess though.
I love that company. What a great concept!
For those interested in the math…
https://www.wired.com/story/hurling-satellites-into-space/
Sure the gs are high, but still, its good on so many levels.
And 2 people controlling the whole thing is great!
And the production values of the clip are great!
I like the music too!
Plus the hole in the ground where the rocket hit PLUS they will reuse the rocket they dug out!
I better get a Pepsi (diet) and cool off from this excitement. Finally some real innovative launch system.
Here is a video from a while back with more details on the concept and excellent footage of their facility and renderings of what the eventual version might look like. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAczd3mt3X0
I wonder if it might be more viable to spin up several “master” projectiles with strong magnets or some other transfer mechanism, and fire them past the “slave” payload in quick succession. That way all you’re spinning up and subjecting to the long duration high g’s is a big magnet, basically, and then the payload carrier takes 4 or 5 lesser jolts in quick succession.
There was a lot of debris that came off that thing as it exited the spin launcher. I wonder what all that stuff was. Maybe they are using some kind of sabot in their system but I’m just not sure.
Sabot: A device that allows a projectile of a smaller caliber to be fired from a weapon of a larger caliber by filling the weapon’s bore and keeping the projectile centered. The sabot normally separates and falls away from the projectile a short distance from the muzzle.
1,200 mph is about 1,760 fps which is high power pistol velocity. Well under Mach two. To say I don’t believe it scales is an understatement. I can’t remember the exponent for tether scaling. I can remember that it is quite high when velocity gets high compared to material strength.
I think all that debris was the cover on the top of the spin launcher. Don’t they evacuate the spin chamber? There has to be something between the chamber and the outside atmosphere..
Instead of a counterweight maybe two projectiles
Like John Hare says, this thing doesn’t feel too scaleable. I think a much more likely approach is the good ole Jules Verne space cannon idea. Project HARP still holds the altitude record at something like 130 km reached in 1966, using basically two 16 in barrels somewhat like on the USS Missouri welded in series. The latest incarnation is currently out at Yuma —see https://greenlaunch.space/
Scott Lowther of http://www.up-ship.com takes a rather dim view. Now, I wonder if disk shaped pye wacket deals might be more doable-there are spinning disk submunitions.