That is breathtaking. Elon Musk has his detractors and deserves some, but what a coup and what a way to fire the imaginations of kids (and adults!) to get into the sciences. +1E(a bunch). One newscast pointed out that this was done by a lot of 20-something engineers and scientists and noted that the torch has been passed to them from the other 20-something engineers and scientists who fired our imaginations in the original space-race. Fantastic!

Thanks for the vid @nsaspook Good stuff

 

One newscast pointed out that this was done by a lot of 20-something engineers and scientists...

Yup. Who'd have thought something so impressive could have been conceived and built in their moms' and dads' basements?

 

 

On the beach view.

Landing sonic booms.

 

Since the majority of the weight of the rocket is the fuel, it's actually pretty light coming back down and since they are using the same engines that could lift and accelerate the rocket and it's share of the payload with full fuel, they have power to spare so it only takes a pretty short burn and relatively little fuel. I've looked before trying to find out how much of the total fuel load has to be reserved for recovery, but haven't been able to track down the number.

The penalty that they are paying for the reusability is having to have rockets that are bigger than they would otherwise need to be in order to carry the extra fuel (and the extra weight of the extra cubage associate with it). I don't know how much more powerful the rocket engines needed to be.

I just watched the landing from the distant cameras and it really shows how rapidly it decelerates. As near as I can tell, the total burn time for the landing burn was about 12 seconds.

 

I just watched the landing from the distant cameras and it really shows how rapidly it decelerates. As near as I can tell, the total burn time for the landing burn was about 12 seconds.

What a pleasure it was to see rockets land like God and Robert A. Heinlein intended!

 

In 500 years.. "We found the car"

 

I have heard the car is going in Mar's orbit and Earth-Mars orbit. Where's it going?

How far out?

 

How far out...

That's what I thought.

 

Beyond Mars orbit into the Asteroid belt. Just about to the orbit of Ceres.

 

No Kidding?

Edit: Is it already on that path?

 

Last picture from the Tesla before the batteries died. About half way to the orbit of the moon.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Be6VZEzgAEk/

 

A car thru space. Only in America.

 

A car thru space. Only in America.

And considering a dummy payload was required for the test, what could be a better monument to human ingenuity (aside from, say, a skyscraper or a heavy industrial facility)?

 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news...heavy-launch-captured-imaginations/317326002/

Bezos' private rocketry company is designing and manufacturing 270- and 313-foot variants of the company's planned New Glenn rockets, which will launch no sooner than 2020.

Coming soon: two-day free shipping throughout the solar system with Prime membership...

 

Last picture from the Tesla before the batteries died. About half way to the orbit of the moon.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Be6VZEzgAEk/

You just know that THAT picture is gonna be computer wallpaper and print posters!

 

No Kidding?

Edit: Is it already on that path?

It's on that path, but it's location on that path is pretty much the red circle.

It'll take about six months to intersect Mars' orbit.

 

That's pretty neat. I would have preferred a corvette, 327, and a full tank of gas.

 

That's pretty neat. I would have preferred a corvette, 327, and a full tank of gas.

I'd rather have that car's path intersect my driveway.

 

I'd rather have that car's path intersect my driveway.

Not at 7 miles per second, you wouldn't.