expect SpaceX to reach Mars before LockMar and NASA reach the moon.

[www.theverge.com]

"In early November, engineers at Lockheed Martin working on Orion noticed that a power component inside the vehicle had failed, according to an internal email and an internal PowerPoint presentation seen by The Verge. The component is within one of the spacecraft’s eight power and data units, or PDUs. The PDUs are the “main power/data boxes,” for Orion according to the email, responsible for activating key systems that Orion needs during flight."



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/06/2020 04:41PM by cbelt3.

From your link:

"The component is difficult to reach: it’s located inside an adapter that connects Orion to its service module — a cylindrical trunk that provides support, propulsion, and power for the capsule during its trip through space. To get to the PDU, Lockheed Martin could remove the Orion crew capsule from its service module, but it’s a lengthy process that could take up to a year. As many as nine months would be needed to take the vehicle apart and put it back together again, in addition to three months for subsequent testing, according to the presentation."

Nine months to take it apart?

Isn't that adaptor designed to be jettisoned just before re-entry? Just blow it in-situ, recover the surviving parts and make another one. That's gotta be faster and cheaper than nine months of popping 10 rivets per day!

Cupertino engineering...

Sigh

And this is EXACTLY why NASA has lost its Mojo.

SpaceX would have just rolled up one of the 10 unfinished Dragon capsules, and build another one in a month.

This is why SpaceX will reach Mars before LockMar reaches ORBIT again... OK, slight exaggeration, but Starship prototype SN8 is on the pad for it's 15km "hop and maybe even land again" test, with SN9 waiting in the parking lot, SN's 10, 11, and 12 in various states of completion, and SN's 15, and 16 with parts stacked up to create them.

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Paul F.
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A sword never kills anybody; it is a tool in the killer's hand. - Lucius Annaeus Seneca c. 5 BC - 65 AD
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Good is the enemy of Excellent. Talent is not necessary for Excellence.
Persistence is necessary for Excellence. And Persistence is a Decision.
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Eureka, CA

Quote
Paul F.
SpaceX would have just rolled up one of the 10 unfinished Dragon capsules, and build another one in a month.

This is why SpaceX will reach Mars before LockMar reaches ORBIT again... OK, slight exaggeration, but Starship prototype SN8 is on the pad for it's 15km "hop and maybe even land again" test, with SN9 waiting in the parking lot, SN's 10, 11, and 12 in various states of completion, and SN's 15, and 16 with parts stacked up to create them.

Yes, the SN development process is fascinating - and just showcases how the NASA system runs as if Dr Frankenstein were assembling a rocketship... Using pieces/parts from 50 states, PR and DC and hoping it all works in the end.