Trying to psych myself up to call a journalist back for an interview about the (latest) SpaceX rocket explosion environmental disaster...
Interview done :)
Well, super rude email from an elon bro in my work email inbox, so I guess that interview must be published somewhere
Oh here it is! Yup, I totally stand by the quote the author picked for me. https://www.thestar.com/news/world/united-states/spacex-s-starship-rocket-exploded-again-elon-musk-called-it-entertainment-but-should-we-be/article_89e9d122-d513-11ef-bd3b-db191f8a4e87.html
@sundogplanets Wonder how “entertaining” it will be when one of his explosions kills a crew riding one of his rockets or some innocents on the ground. From what we know of space endeavors, it’s only a matter of time before it happens. #musk #spacex
That's not how this works.
These explosions that are happening right now are expected. That is the stage of development of this program. If they were at the stage where they would put a human or even production cargo on the rocket, it would be a very different matter. But that's not what's happening right now.
These are test launches that are expected to go wrong. That's why we test, so that eventually the state of the art can progress to the point where it's a serious vehicle.
But yes, this program is still at the stage where explosions are expected, so we can laugh about them even as we use the experience to improve human knowledge.
@volkris @pdiff1 @sundogplanets Go East by Northeast of Cape Canaveral for 500 nautical miles. Notice anything different about that and say the South by Southeast trajectory taken by Musk from Boca Chica Texas?
There’s a reason testing in the early days of the US space program took place there.
If it is indeed “testing” go where testing is safe. I don’t I build a firing range in my backyard for pretty good reasons.
There’s proper places to go to do testing. Boca Chica and the Gulf of Mexico ain’t it.
@pop_justy The relevant interest holders, corporate, local, state, national, and international, all weighed in and analyzed the situation and said that the Gulf of Mexico is a perfectly fine place to do this testing with sufficient safety factors in place.
Notice anything different? Yeah it's a different place. But you notice anything similar? Both locations have passed the test as safe places to conduct this operation.
You personally might have a different opinion, good for you, but it's not up to you and your opinion.
After consultation with the relevant experts, and a ton, a ton of analysis, both locations are good ones for this work.
@volkris @pdiff1 @sundogplanets The primary thing with any certification is particular assurances from the grantee about work conducted.
That’s the reason after the whole episode that the FAA put in a ground order. Some aspect of that arrangement isn’t being followed. Again the issue isn’t Musk just randomly sending up whatever, it’s the agreement he has with those entities you just mentioned.
What he is planning to do and how he conducts it does not seem at this point as aligning with that which he agreed to do. I don’t care if he wants to do these things, just that what he wants to do can be done better and safer elsewhere.
That is the matter to which I speak here. If he’s going to have as part of his testing long range destruction and potential debris on a long range basis, there’s a better place to do that from. If all he’s going to is blow up his own launch pad and have things rain down on the beach by his pad, yeah he’s got the checks in place.
That’s what I’m getting at. His filings with those entities you indicate doesn’t have within it “potential for explosion and debris over international partners”. Because if it did the air traffic would be cleared for such. He is clearly operating outside of the assurances he’s given. There’s a better place for that is what I’m indicating.
@pop_justy No, you're missing that the ground order was part of the arrangement that is being followed.
We are watching the arrangement being followed right in front of us.
It's not like they launched outside of the arranged corridor or anything like that.
YES The filings with those entities do have within it potential for explosion and debris over international partners. That literally is part of the arrangement they made because everyone involved knows this is a experimental program with a serious likelihood of explosion.
That's why they created the area for the explosion to take place.
It is all there within the filings.
@volkris @pdiff1 @sundogplanets
That's baloney. The starship program is years and years behind schedule and hasn't even begun to address the more complex aspects, like refueling in space. We have handed over the US space program to an undisciplined bunch of yahoos with predictable results. It's a clown car circus, a slow motion disaster and it is still just early days. Imagine all the things that need to happen before this thing goes to the moon and back? And they are still blowing up rockets.
@mastodonmigration What?
They absolutely have begun to address the more complex aspects. We're watching them address it right now.
Sounds like you haven't been following along because we see it with our own eyes.
@volkris @pdiff1 @sundogplanets
Not going to debate you here. Nice thing about technology and engineering is that in the end facts matter. Guess we will all find out in due time.
@mastodonmigration but that's my point: fact is we are seeing them address those issues.
There's really not room for debate when we can pull up everything from governmental filings through independent recordings--and there are SO many YouTubers producing videos taken from the development site--showing the fact that they are progressing in their development on these matters.
In the end, facts matter, and we can see for ourselves today, fact is they are moving forward.
@volkris Yeah, I grew up in the 60s & 70s an hour south of the Cape. I know exactly how these things work. Watched Saturn V launches from my backyard. Fact is humans will die on his rockets just like they have in all manned space flight programs. Unfortunately it is more likely in his case because of his utter disregard for norms, his “move fast and break things” mentality, and his profit/power driven motivations. He has to answer to no one but himself.