Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
SpaceX Grasshopper Rocket Lands On Its Tail
For decades, sf fans have dreamed of having rocket ships that can land on their tails, like sf writers intended. Even though there may be unanticipated consequences.
(Artwork by Ed Emshwiller, 1953)
Elon Musk's SpaceX rockets are intended to be reusable - and yes, they are intended to land on their tails. Take a look at this video, which combines Johnny Cash Ring of Fire action with actual tail fire-enabled take-offs and landings.
(SpaceX Johnny Cash Ring of Fire mashup)
SpaceX is currently working on a reusable rocket prototype, one that could “land safely anywhere on earth like a helicopter” after sending a given craft hurtling beyond our atmosphere to its destination. And damned if the company isn’t already part of the way there: Musk brought with him a video — set to Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire” — of a successful test of one of its 10-storey-high Grasshopper rising from a launchpad, hovering in the air for a short time and then softly descending to the ground on a cushion of boosters and landing gears. The test apparently only occurred “about a day and a half ago.”
“Yeah, so it worked. You’re the first people to see that video — even including SpaceX — apart from the video editor who sent it to me half an hour before this,” said Musk. “So far I’ve not been very successful in that regard, but I think we’ve got a handle on it.”
Now, of course, the goal is to go “higher and further.” All in service, Musk says, of putting the prospect of establishing a human base on another planet — Mars is the dream — within our technological and economic reach.
“It’s really got nothing to do with competing with NASA. It’s more about what do we do to have an exciting and inspiring future in space,” he said. “People need to believe that it’s possible, and that it isn’t going to bankrupt them, (that) they’re not going to have to give up health care.”
From The Star via Next Big Future.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 3/8/2013)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 2 )
Related News Stories - (" Space Tech ")
Is China Mining Helium-3 On The Moon's Farside?
'...for months Grantline bores had dug into the cliff.' -
Solitary Black Hole Wanders In Space
'...the Hole is something like a vortex or a whirlpool?' - Frank K. Kelly, 1935.
Spaceplane From Virgin Atlantic
'ZARNAK, YOU'RE TO COMMAND A SCOUTING EXPEDITION --- FIND OUT WHAT THIS IS ALL ABOUT!'
Taikonauts Exercise In China's Tiangong Space Station
'Joe got out the gravity-simulator harnesses...' - Murray Leinster, 1953.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
LLM 'Cognitive Core' Now Evolving
'Their only check on the growth and development of Vulcan 3 lay in two clues: the amount of rock thrown up to the surface... and the amount of the raw materials and tools and parts which the computer requested.'
Has Elon Musk Given Up On Mars?
'There ain't no such thing as a free lunch.'
Bacteria Turns Plastic Into Pain Relief? That Gives Me An Idea.
'I guess there's nobody round this table who doesn't have a Crosswell [tapeworm] working for him in the small intestine.'
When Your Child's Best Friend Is An AI
'Figments of his mind in one sense, of course, for he had shaped them...'
China's Drone Mothership Can Carry 100 Drones
'So the parent drone carries a spotter that it launches...'
Drones Recharge In Mid-Air Like Jets Refuel!
'...nurse drones that would cruise around dumping large amounts of power into randomly selected pods.'
Australian Authors Reject AI Training Of Llama
'It's done with a flip of the third joint of the tentacle on the down beat.'
Is China Mining Helium-3 On The Moon's Farside?
'...for months Grantline bores had dug into the cliff.'
Maybe It's Too Soon To Require Autonomous Mode
'I hope all those other cars are on automatic,' he said anxiously.
Is Agentic AI The Wrong Kind Of Smartness?
'It’s smart enough to go wrong in very complicated ways, but not smart enough to help us find out what’s wrong.'
Heat Waver - The First Ever Combo Solar Collector And Wind Turbine
'...like a spray of tulips mounted fanwise.'
Tesla 'Fleet Response Agents' Bolster FSD Autonomy
'You hate the whole idea that some bored drone pusher in a remote driving centre has got your life... in his hands.'
Mori3 Autonomous Shapeshifting Robot
'My homeland is being threatened by the Replicators. Thus far all attempts to stop them have failed.'
Tesla Seeks 'Tesla Robotaxi' And 'Robobus' Trademarks Ignoring Prior Art
'A robobus had just rolled up to the curb.'
Scary Grid Safety Robots
'The ultimate horror for our paranoid culture...'
Does AI Provide A Way Forward For Talk Therapy
'And there in the next room by the sofa sat a familiar suitcase, that of his psychiatrist Dr. Smile.'
