In the movie Gattaca (which is awesome for many other reasons), there is a constant stream of rockets taking off in the background. I always wanted that to be a real launch rate.
I believe that rockets are horrendously polluting, and only the fact that they are relatively rare saves us from the ecological effects.
Current rockets do have pollution issues, but I’m hoping that the next generation of rockets will be an improvement.
Hypergols and SRBs seem to be on the way out, and the upcoming methalox launchers produce very little soot and could be run carbon-neutral. Every reflown Falcon booster is one fewer booster dumped in the ocean, and a fully reusable Starship will be a further improvement.
More research needs to be done on the effects of exaust gases in the upper atmosphere.
Tim Dodd did a writeup comparing rockets to the airline industry
https://everydayastronaut.com/rocket-pollution/
It would be cool to have a spiritual successor to the Delta IV Heavy that’s all hydrolox with no SRBs. I guess I want an H3 Heavy?
@burble @threelonmusketeers
thanks for the link - i had read that years ago and remembered the surprising nastiness of the all-too-common 2-stroke gasoline engine, but couldn’t remember where I’d read it. Bookmarked for the next time I need to dig it up again
The problem I see with Starship is the leaking of methane into the high atmosphere. In the second test flight so much propellant was released at termination it showed up on weather radar. There will likely be less RUDs as time progresses, but every engine shutoff and start up event leaks an unknown amount of propellant. That will definitely stop being a rounding error if these things are launching at the cadence spacex intends.
Acronyms, initialisms, abbreviations, contractions, and other phrases which expand to something larger, that I’ve seen in this thread:
Fewer Letters More Letters RUD Rapid Unplanned Disassembly ~ Rapid Unscheduled Disassembly ~ Rapid Unintended Disassembly SRB Solid Rocket Booster Jargon Definition hydrolox Portmanteau: liquid hydrogen fuel, liquid oxygen oxidizer methalox Portmanteau: methane fuel, liquid oxygen oxidizer
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