#rapid unscheduled disassembly

[odinsblog]

Everything about the Starship was the result of a series of decisions designed to make spaceflight cheaper. The methane fuel. The steel structure. The method of construction. Even the rocket’s enormous size. All of it was a gamble to create a system that is fully reusable, bringing the cost of getting to orbit down to a small fraction of what it is today and making space almost infinitely more accessible.

However, one decision in the process didn’t just result in the destruction of the rocket, it generated a cascade of failures, one that’s likely to set the program back by a least a year, erasing the chance of NASA’s scheduled return to the Moon in the process. That decision is 100% on Elon Musk.

HERE’S THE TL;DR VERSION

The no-clamps slow throttle-up meant Starship stayed on the pad for a long time, throwing up concrete, rock, and sand in all directions, damaging the pad, nearby facilities, and Starship itself.

By the time it left the pad, that debris had already destroyed three of Starship’s engines and likely damaged valves and systems that would lead to additional engine failures as well as an incorrect fuel mixture.

Starship was slow to reach every point in the flight plan, suggesting that other engines were not able to throttle up to compensate for the lost engines.

At what should have been stage separation, either software errors or more smashed hardware kept the main booster firing long after it should have shut down.

The result was an uncontrolled spin that required Starship to be destroyed.

WHY THIS IS 100% ELON MUSK’S FAULT

Starship is the work of hundreds of talented engineers and thousands of employees who put their best into making this thing go. The design is extremely daring, and something of a wonder. The engines are amazing, even if they have demonstrated that reliability is currently lacking. The whole system of construction promises to revolutionize the space industry.

But there are two parts that were left out of Starship that absolutely doomed this flight and the decision not to include them falls right with the guy at the end of the first row at “Star Command.”

Those parts were not parts for the rocket. They were parts for the launch pad.

For some reason, Musk became convinced early on that he did not want the launch tower to have:

A flame-diverter or flame trench to redirect the blast from the booster’s engines

A water deluge system to dump a massive amount of water around the launch tower during liftoff

The launch facilities at Kennedy have both of these. Even the launch pads used for the much smaller Falcon 9 have both a flame trench and a water deluge. They help to protect not just the launch pad, and the surrounding area, they also help to reduce the noise. Which sounds trivial, but that noise is energy. That’s what broke up the concrete under the Starship Stage Zero, not the fire. That’s what sent car-sized chunks flying in all directions.

A flame diverter and a water deluge would have greatly reduced, or even eliminated, the damage to the area around the pad. They would have prevented the blow back of debris that damaged Starship before it even left the ground. It might have headed off the whole cascade of events that resulted in that button being pressed 4 minutes into the flight.

We don’t have to guess about whose decision it was not to implement these systems, because Musk already said he decided to skip these systems over the recommendations of his engineers. Musk even had a preview of what was going to happen, as past test flights of the upper stage also resulted in significant spalling of concrete structures and damage to at least one of the ships. He just made them try different kinds of concrete.

The parts for a water deluge were actually on site, ready to install, but Musk decided to forego that installation—likely so he could enjoy the pun of launching his super-joint on 4/20. Which was something Musk had joked about doing months ago.

Hopefully he enjoyed the joke, because the EPA and FAA are going to be thinking long and hard before they authorize another flight from Boca Chica. All those engineers, and all those workers, and all their good work, is held hostage to Musk’s whims.

Also a victim of Musk’s decision to leave these vital pieces off the table? The Artemis Program at NASA. Musk has already been awarded the contract to create the first lunar lander for the new program, but that lander is absolutely dependent on Starship. It’s a sure bet that Musk won’t have his part of the program ready on schedule. It’s going to be some time before we even so another test flight.

In the meantime, SpaceX can repair the damage, build a flame diverter, install that deluge system, clean up the software, and ditch the whole “pitch over” means of stage separation for something simpler—like using the second stage engines to push the stages apart with an unignited shot of methane.

See you in 2024, Starship.

Maybe.

👉🏿 https://m.dailykos.com/stories/2023/4/22/2165317/-A-Starship-Post-mortem-Why-the-giant-rocket-failed-and-why-it-s-Elon-Musk-s-fault

#elon musk #starship #spacex #cryptobros #space #techno grifters #rapid unscheduled disassembly

[itswilliamleonard]

day in the life of spaceflight director sana (she's chubby now it's canon you're welcome 👍)

#just cuter!!!!! #sana tsukumo #spaceflight director sana #hololive #planetary diplomacy #golden record #rapid unscheduled disassembly #comic #wlart #williamleonard

[fancysmudges]

Can’t believe SpaceX is funnier than me

#rapid unscheduled disassembly #vital vane #doodles #sketch #spacex

[chaberkowepole]

SO ELON MUSK SENT A ROCKET INTO SPACE, THE ROCKET EXPLODED AND THEY'RE CALLING THE EXPLOSION "RAPID UNSCHEDULED DISASSEMBLY" I CAN'T

#elongated muskrat #elon muskrat #Elon musk #spacex #Rocket #Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly #This should become a line for failed projects corporations still are trying desperately to turn into a win

[malexusxerso]

What I immediately thought of when I saw the SpaceX thing yesterday.

#meme #spacex #so many stupid and infuriating things with that #rapid unscheduled disassembly #made on my phone so meme is extra messy

[experimentaloatmeal]

The thing you have to understand about the phrase "rapid unscheduled disassembly" is that it isn't new. It's not even specific to SpaceX. Rocketeers have been saying it, and shortening it to RUD, for years—it's part of the culture. To us, the Starship launch was that phrase breaking containment.

#rapid unscheduled disassembly #science! #rocketry #space

[rank-sentimentalist]

Elon Musk's Grand Strategy

"rapid unscheduled disassembly"?

Twitter is doing THE EXACT SAME THING!

It must be some kind of Elon Musk strategy.

GENIUS!!!

#Elon Musk #SpaceX #Twitter #rapid unscheduled disassembly #rocket go boom

[ailurinae]

Some info on the history of the phrase "rapid unscheduled disassembly" - it is not a Musk or Space X invention

TL;DR: The term and/or close variants go back to at least the the late 60s, and quite possibly even earlier.

"catastrophic self-disassembly." - referenced in Ignition!, printed in 1972, about aircraft with exotic propellants

"rapid unplanned disassembly" - Cruising World magazine, 1991 about sails of all things

"rapid unintentional disassembly" - Gunner's Mate G 3 & 2, US Navy, 1970, about guns

"unscheduled disassembly" - The MAC Flyer, US Military Airlift Command, 1967 (page 25), about aircraft

All from the above Space Exploration Stack Exchange question. In addition to people commenting that they personally heard it 80s etc.

I am sure a thorough investigation could find a lot more.

#my posts #rapid unscheduled disassembly #language #Space X

[greenzaku]

#rapid unscheduled disassembly #spacex #elon musk #spacex starship #spacex super heavy #starship and super heavy

[muddypolitics]

(via Elon Musk Is Having A Real 'Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly' Kind Of Morning)

His rocket exploded and so have his advertising dollars.

#Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly #elon #another failure #antisemitic white supremacist #space x

[lady-harrowhark]

#SORRY #he's all i can think about when i hear 'rapid unscheduled disassembly' #the locked tomb #tlt shitposting #palamedes sextus #camilla hect #gideon nav #tlt memes #sex pal #tlt #gideon the ninth #nona the ninth spoilers #(?) #tlt social media #my tlt thoughts

[runitails]

To those who wonder where i've been: i don't like using tumblr on phone and mostly use it on my pc. Few days ago my pc decided to update drivers and die (fuck nvidia). So i have spent last few days getting my pc to 'usable' state. Screen still flickers so i'll be back when i fix remaining issues

#runi says stuff :O #i hate nvidia for lack of support for linux #if i could i would commit 'unscheduled rapid disassembly' of their drivers to make things work

[jesuisnilunnilautre]

being mentally ill is literally having a breakdown with out of touch playing on loop in ur head. it’s out of touch TUESDAY babeyyyy

#we are on week three of emotional collapse besties! #it’s funny because i feel like nothing around me is real :) #very mad that the lyrics are cosmically apt to my entire situation rn #like damn. what a way to respond to the allegations #‘hey universe i feel like youre being actively hostile towards me rn is this vibes or does everyone actually hate me’ #‘youre out of touch. i’m out of time.’ #habibi core #i am undergoing rapid unscheduled disassembly #i should make that the title to one of my poems #yes i know life is what you make of it and there’s always a step forward #i am just blindfolded and in the dark and also can’t feel my legs #so give me a second to freak out abt it first pls ty

[primarining]

"rapid unscheduled disassembly" is such a funny phrase and I think we should make more like it.

imminent brick-skull synthesis