Falcon..so how do you crack an engine nozzle?

Seems odd to me that it was only noticed so late. They have repaired it but
how? Also, what does this launch actually do. Does it reach orbital
velocity, or is it just chuck a reentry module up and watch it come down
type flight.
Brian

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Brian Gaff -
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On 8/12/2010 7:37 PM, Brian Gaff wrote:
Seems odd to me that it was only noticed so late. They have repaired it but
how? Also, what does this launch actually do. Does it reach orbital
velocity, or is it just chuck a reentry module up and watch it come down
type flight.
Brian


Orbital. Three orbits and then bring the Dragon back safely (really,
that's the biggest challenge).

On 8/12/2010 7:37 PM, Brian Gaff wrote:
Seems odd to me that it was only noticed so late. They have repaired it but
how? Also, what does this launch actually do. Does it reach orbital
velocity, or is it just chuck a reentry module up and watch it come down
type flight.
Brian


According to SpaceFlightNow:

"SpaceX spokesperson Kirstin Brost has provided more information on the
cause of the engine nozzle cracks that triggered the Falcon 9 launch
delay from Tuesday.

"SpaceX has discovered the root cause of the two small cracks in the aft
end of the 2nd stage engine nozzle extension," the statement said. "A
GN2 vent line caused fluttering of the the thinnest portion of the
nozzle extension, creating the cracks. SpaceX engineers repaired the
extension by trimming off the end where the cracks are located and
corrected the root cause by diffusing the vent." "

In article . com,
says...
According to SpaceFlightNow:

"SpaceX spokesperson Kirstin Brost has provided more information on the
cause of the engine nozzle cracks that triggered the Falcon 9 launch
delay from Tuesday.

"SpaceX has discovered the root cause of the two small cracks in the aft
end of the 2nd stage engine nozzle extension," the statement said. "A
GN2 vent line caused fluttering of the the thinnest portion of the
nozzle extension, creating the cracks. SpaceX engineers repaired the
extension by trimming off the end where the cracks are located and
corrected the root cause by diffusing the vent." "

Interesting. Good thing they caught this before flight. Hopefully the
1st stage will be successfully recovered on this flight so that SpaceX
can inspect it for any other anomolies. Expendables are kind of a
p.i.t.a. in this respect. If you don't (can't) recover the parts after
they're flown, you can never catch near failures of the hardware that
aren't revealed by the air to ground telemetry.

Jeff
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