Brian Gaff wrote:

Does this take into account the efficiency changes during ascent, and I
wonder who would reuse an engine probably dumped in the Atlantic? I mean
solids are one thing, but...

It's already been demonstrated by Boeing. It's not a problem.

I'm aiming for the Bahama plateau, the Great Bahama Bank. The engine
won't even get wet, and the slashdown should be very soft. Plus the
nozzle is facing upwards, surrounded by airbags and flotation devices.

Not sure about using the bits of the vehicle as payload, Surely you would
eventually have enough spare rcs etc, in orbit to start a space spares shop!

There is never enough redundancy in space. We're talking about very
large structures, which would eventually be parted out as numerous very
small craft. You want to colonize space, right? The limiting factor is
water for fuel, but water that is recycled never really goes away, so
eventually enough water will be accumulated to allow missions to Ceres.

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