Suppose, the return of the first stage of the rocket is beneficial.
How much does it cost to prepare this stage for a new launch?
The cost of training can be the same as creating a new stage?

Space-X have "done their sums" and say it is cost-efficient, but I doubt that they will ever publish the actual cost. However they will publish the cost per launch, probably as dollars per kg to defined orbit, otherwise they won't be able to attract client payloads. The same costing is published by both ESA (for the Ariane launchers), NASA and all the other contenders for "payload to orbit" market.

Space-X say that the rocket motors (along with the other bits of the first stage that are to be re-used) are inspected and repaired between each launch - and given the bad press that would follow a launch failure due to a failure such as you describe one would expect that to be a very thorough inspection.

Heading off to the Moon, Mars etc. are almost certainly governmental rather than free enterprises (just now) due to the risks and costs involved.

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Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

Our Edoardo Amaldi, the follower of the Fermi tradition in Italian physics, has put a condition for the founding of both CERN and ESRO,now ESA. No military research. CERN and ESA will not cooperate with a military space station. But I am not against the Russian people, my father had to go to Russia as a soldier during last war and when he came back in 1943 and refused to join the Fascist army he spoke to me about the qualities of the Russian people in harsh times.
Tullio

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In my opinion, the airborne cosmodrome is promising, when instead of the first stage an airplane is used. It is much more profitable.

There is already at least one team developing the ground to space part of such a system - Scaled Composites (Virgin), with their "White Knight" family of aircraft. Currently only useful for "space hops", but as the carrier and the carried vehicle develop there is no doubt that such systems will improve in their capability to a point where the concept will become a useful reality.

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Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

What is the service life of the return stage?

Space-X say the target for the Falcon-9 (first stage) is ten launches to orbit before scrapping. As far as I'm aware they've reused a couple of launch stages, so a long way to go.

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Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

As far as I'm aware the Antov plus space plane never did a launch to space, but did quite a few "ferry and glide down" whereas White Knight has actually done a number of ferry up and powered launch followed by climb to altitude. And of course the Antinov has, sadly, been retired from launcher duties. While White Knight continues its role as a launch carrier, with its next manned launch due in the next few months.

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Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

In my opinion, the airborne cosmodrome is promising, when instead of the first stage an airplane is used. It is much more profitable.

There is already at least one team developing the ground to space part of such a system - Scaled Composites (Virgin), with their "White Knight" family of aircraft. Currently only useful for "space hops", but as the carrier and the carried vehicle develop there is no doubt that such systems will improve in their capability to a point where the concept will become a useful reality.

Some of the space companies only intend on the tourist trade. They don't even plan on a once around, just an up and down.

Virgin is offering the X-15 experience. Blue Origin the Alan Sheppard experience. Blue Origin has at least said they want to build bigger, which would take them out of the tourist category.

Space-X is a space flight company, not a tourist company. Their Crew Dragon is not that far from being proven enough for NASA rated human flight. Their Falcon 9, block 5 needs a few more flights before it qualifies. Mated they will have first stage return, and crew escape capability. When they get their BFR built and qualified, mated to a red dragon capsule it will be capable of inter planetary human flight. This may happen before NASA's Orion capsule and SLS rocket.
Also in the space flight company category are United Launch Alliance, Orbital ATK, and Boeing. UAL* and Boeing will be doing crew capable vehicles. Orbital ATK is looking only at communication, weather and spy launches.
There are many others around the globe as well, mostly looking to satellite launches or even sounding rockets.



*UAL was the launch company for the space shuttle although it was a NASA design and many company built vehicle. IIRC UAL also launched many of our inter-planetary and inter-stellar probes.

My father did not speak much about his Russian experience. He was probably shamed about what the Germans did. But he told me that once he saved the life of a girl that was starving by feeding her with Italian army food. The girl's father thanked him with a written note I have seen. It started with the words"'cher capitaine".
Tullio

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The Dragon spacecraft of SpaceX should have returned to Earth by August 3 but I cannot find any news on the NASA site. I hope it landed well in he Pacific and was found by ship.
Tullio

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https://twitter.com/SpaceX/status/1025909485313781760

Dragon returned home yesterday after its second month-long stay at the @Space_Station. It’s now headed to port for a cargo handover to @NASA.

https://www.spacex.com/news is the best place to get info on what's going on from their end. ;-)

Cheers.

SpaceX has launched a Falcon9 rocket from the Vandenberg Air Force Station on the West Coast carrying an Argentine Telecommunication Satellite. The first stage has landed on the launch site.
Tullio

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SpaceX has launched a Falcon9 rocket from the Vandenberg Air Force Station on the West Coast carrying an Argentine Telecommunication Satellite. The first stage has landed on the launch site.
Tullio

Tullio,

Thanks for the note.

And that is spectacular stuff from SpaceX.

Also, a spectacular positive example compared to the (corrupt?) politically quagmired 'pork' seen from "ULA" and the various NASA "contracts".

Way to go?

Here's hoping so for the SpaceX BFR... :-)

Keep searchin',
Martin

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See new freedom: Mageia Linux
Take a look for yourself: Linux Format
The Future is what We all make IT (GPLv3)

SpaceX Falcon9 has launched from Cape Canaveral on its 16th mission to the ISS. It carries the GEDI laser to monitor the atmosphere and Earth vegetation.
Tullio
I am not sure about the first stage landing but they said before the launch that it was a secondary objective. The Dragon capsule is on its way to the ISS. It should reach it on Saturday morning.
Dragon can return with used equipment, junk and experimental results.
It seems that the stage1 has landed in water instead of land but they are recovering it

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To leave the Earth gravitational pull you have to reach the escape velocity of 11 km/s, and that is difficult to reach by a plane.

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SpaceX Falcon9 has launched from Cape Canaveral on its 16th mission to the ISS. It carries the GEDI laser to monitor the atmosphere and Earth vegetation.
Tullio
I am not sure about the first stage landing but they said before the launch that it was a secondary objective. The Dragon capsule is on its way to the ISS. It should reach it on Saturday morning.
Dragon can return with used equipment, junk and experimental results.
It seems that the stage1 has landed in water instead of land but they are recovering it

Likely more mass in the dragon this launch and they didn't have enough spare fuel to bring it back to the cape.

To leave the Earth gravitational pull you have to reach the escape velocity of 11 km/s, and that is difficult to reach by a plane.

the X-15 was into space, but not orbit. it does take a bit of impulse to make it into orbit.

You need air to fly.
It's all about to get a higher pressure on the downside of the wing than the upper side.
All you need is some thrust from an engine that push the plane through the air and wings that you tilt a little bit.
But since the density of the air get's lower the higher you fly there always be a limit how high you can fly.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gg0TXNXgz-w
They mention curvature of the wings in the video but that is not really needed.

When Robert Goddard launched his first rockets the New York Times wrote that they could not work because as you go higher there is no air.
Tullio

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When Robert Goddard launched his first rockets the New York Times wrote that they could not work because as you go higher there is no air.
Tullio

Hehe:)
But rockets doesn't use the same technique as planes.
They don't fly but have a thrust enough to overcome the gravity of earth.
And they don't need air (oxygen) to lift because the rocket bring that along with the other fuel.

Wings need a certain amount of air under them for lift and maneuvering while the engines need oxygen to operate, the higher up that you go the less of both that you get. ;-)

Cheers.