Space Nerds! South African man fills water tower with cow farts and launches it

[RknRusty]

Thursday night, the SpaceX test hopper successfully flew... Wednesday's un-tethered test hop had been aborted due to higher than expected pressure in the single Raptor engine's combustion chamber, leading many news providers to report a failure. A surrounding grass-fire added to many YouTubers'  assumption of an explosive failure. But Thursday night, a lone Space Tuber, Tim Dodd(The Everyday Astronaut) caught the re-test on camera.

The Stainless Steel Hopper lifted to its planned 20 Meter altitude, gimbaled its thrust to guide it off of, and back onto the pad, and set down... perfectly.

Also on Thursday, after a 1 day weather-delay, a dirty old slightly used Falcon 9 rocket successfully launched its CRS-18 Cargo capsule, also a pre-owned vehicle, to dock with the ISS, and returned its 1st stage safely back to the Cape.

So, thanks to Scott Manley and Tim Dodd for telling us the rest of the story.
Rusty

[Tom Foster]

Thursday night, the SpaceX test hopper successfully flew... Wednesday's un-tethered test hop had been aborted due to higher than expected pressure in the single Raptor engine's combustion chamber, leading many news providers to report a failure. A surrounding grass-fire added to many YouTubers'  assumption of an explosive failure. But Thursday night, a lone Space Tuber, Tim Dodd(The Everyday Astronaut) caught the re-test on camera.

The Stainless Steel Hopper lifted to its planned 20 Meter altitude, gimbaled its thrust to guide it off of, and back onto the pad, and set down... perfectly.

Also on Thursday, after a 1 day weather-delay, a dirty old slightly used Falcon 9 rocket successfully launched its CRS-18 Cargo capsule, also a pre-owned vehicle, to dock with the ISS, and returned its 1st stage safely back to the Cape.

So, thanks to Scott Manley and Tim Dodd for telling us the rest of the story.
Rusty

South Africa?? That was BocaChica Beach, South Padre Island, TEXAS!

[Brett Buck]

South Africa?? That was BocaChica Beach, South Padre Island, TEXAS!

     Musk is from South Africa.

    Brett

[Dave Hull]

So the way Broken 'n Rusty portrayed the whole operation in his original post, he makes it sound like Andy Griffith has started the "Salvage 1" company up all over again. Reusing the worn out rockets and repurposed grain hoppers. Stuff that comes naturally to any junk man worth the title. Well, ok, it's all good. But somehow, this time, NASA is not his nemesis, but a paying sponsor? Who'dathunkit?

But can't we leave some of the space junk on the moon at least until the Japanese orbiter can take some hi-res photos so that we can eliminate the niche "jobs" that the moon deniers have created for themselves? That way those guys can get back to some real work? Building something. Heaven knows, we got a lot of potholes to fill on the roads down here on the mothership. And they can wave caution flags every day until they understand the difference between weight and mass, and inertia and damping.

Guess mebbe the salvage guys are drooling over perhaps the most precisely ground steel ball ever produced that is integral to the lunar seismic spacecraft. But that's another story....

The Divot

[RknRusty]

So the way Broken 'n Rusty portrayed the whole operation in his original post, he makes it sound like Andy Griffith has started the "Salvage 1" company up all over again. Reusing the worn out rockets and repurposed grain hoppers. Stuff that comes naturally to any junk man worth the title....

Just trying to be a little humorous, Dave. I actually do find the whole SpaceX adventure fascinating and thrilling, and hope it's inspiring visionaries everywhere to try more impossible ideas.

Broken 'n Rusty

[Brett Buck]

But can't we leave some of the space junk on the moon at least until the Japanese orbiter can take some hi-res photos so that we can eliminate the niche "jobs" that the moon deniers have created for themselves? That way those guys can get back to some real work?

  Yes, exactly! It's about time we turned some of these great minds to more down-to-earth concerns! For example, the issue of the second gunman has vexed humanity for almost 60 years.

     Brett

[Dave Hull]

No!  Repeat after me, Brett---No!

We cannot add to the GNP and the general well-being of America if we let the conspiratorialists hop from one topic to another. We need the potholes filled. Filled with asphalt. Smoothly. And sealed so it lasts thru the rainy season. Not filled with baloney...and without celebrities causing people to take their eyes off the job while your workforce books it down the street and around the corner.

If they get good with asphalt after some practice, our flying circle needs a lot of crack repair, too. The asphalt is continuously outgassing and shrinking, and with no repeated loads on it (like cars and trucks driving over it) it does not keep compressing and spreading which would minimize the huge gaps between adjacent courses. We are still looking for a Nobler that fell into one crack last fall. The current thinking is that it is now back in China.

As far as Broken 'n Rusty's fascination with the progress in space hardware, I share it although I don't really study it. I think the key is that the expectation flowed down to NASA was that they should never make a mistake, and never allow astronauts to be exposed to "excessive risks." But how can that ever be defined, or justified afterwards? In this media-driven world, where once someone else gets funded, you now have 10 other super-vocal groups hounding you because they didn't get to eat your piece of the pie. Or in some cases, your piece of the pie too.. But if you outsource space launch, and they aren't afraid to try flying a used booster back onto a pad....

A good analog of Musk in the airframe/UAV business is General Atomics. Find out what is needed. Design from scratch a system that makes sense. It does not have to be technology already proven to the nth degree. Results count. Stop talking about it and get it done.

Divot McSlow

[Brett Buck]

No!  Repeat after me, Brett---No!

We cannot add to the GNP and the general well-being of America if we let the conspiratorialists hop from one topic to another. We need the potholes filled. Filled with asphalt. Smoothly. And sealed so it lasts thru the rainy season.

  And you are going to trust moon landing hoaxers to be able to successfully accomplish this task? They'll all end up end up arguing over whether asphalt paving was given to us by the Venusians or leprechauns and their job is to *literally* cover something up

   Worse yet, this task is very, very close to masonary work - as in FREEMASONS and thus The Illuminati. Which makes it as obvious a conspiracy as could be imagined. Really, you need to think this stuff through...

    Or - you might be *part of it*, sent here to redirect us from The Truth.

   Brett

[Dave Hull]

Hmmm, you're right. Although it was a logical plan, it didn't account for illogical interpretations by the participants. I can fix it though, and still boost the GNP. Here's how: we buy them plastic buckets. Have to be plastic so that they don't put them on their heads to avoid "rays." Then, we line them up along the breakwaters and seawalls and have them start bailing out the ocean, to minimize the damage from climate change. Make a human chain. Dump the buckets in the Salton Sea, thereby eliminating an environmental catastrophe due to the diminishing surface water which is becoming hyper-salinated and contaminated by farm runoff. At first I worried that we might have staffing issues with this project, but I am slowly coming to realize that the conspiratorialists invented the gig economy. We aren't going to run out of help....

But can we at least find someone that is good at asphalt work to fix our circles? I mean, I'd like to get the Nobler back, but if we can't see it at the bottom of the crack any more, then let's just pave over it and be done.

The Divot

[Brett Buck]

Hmmm, you're right. Although it was a logical plan, it didn't account for illogical interpretations by the participants. I can fix it though, and still boost the GNP. Here's how: we buy them plastic buckets. Have to be plastic so that they don't put them on their heads to avoid "rays." Then, we line them up along the breakwaters and seawalls and have them start bailing out the ocean, to minimize the damage from climate change. Make a human chain. Dump the buckets in the Salton Sea, thereby eliminating an environmental catastrophe due to the diminishing surface water which is becoming hyper-salinated and contaminated by farm runoff.

   And create additional places for USOs to hide while they spy on us and try to breed reptilain/human hybrids? You'd like that, wouldn't you? Nice try, but we are on to you now - you are one of Them. The more you deny it, the more obvious it becomes!


    Brett

[RknRusty]

Okay, next time I try to post some good news about a successful exciting event, I'll keep it dry and plain... just the facts, ma'am.
Rockin' Rusty -Space exploration enthusiast

[Brett Buck]

Okay, next time I try to post some good news about a successful exciting event, I'll keep it dry and plain... just the facts, ma'am.
Rockin' Rusty -Space exploration enthusiast

   Don't let a bunch of old farts dampen your enthusiasm. I think you abstracted it about a step too far, and lost your point, but there's nothing wrong with being fascinated by it.
 
    Brett

[Chris McMillin]

I'm bothered by the reptilians but terrified by the Nephalim giants. You guys are scarin' me.
Nice reference to Salvage I, been a long time since I thought of that... so long I thought it was Ernest Borgnine.
Chris...

[RknRusty]

   Don't let a bunch of old farts dampen your enthusiasm. I think you abstracted it about a step too far, and lost your point, but there's nothing wrong with being fascinated by it.
 
    Brett

Thanks, Bret.
I'd like to post things of interest I see, but just need to consider my audience.
Rusty

[GERALD WIMMER]

Thanks Rusty for the posts  me , Otto and Max enjoy your style and content!

Regards Gerald