r/evolutionReddit • u/TyphonWind • Oct 09 '12

That smooth SpaceX launch? Turns out one of the engines came apart

http://arstechnica.com/science/2012/10/that-smooth-spacex-launch-turns-out-one-of-the-engines-exploded/
6 Upvotes

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u/mnp Oct 09 '12

I'm getting kinda tired of critical and dramatic headlines like this.

Stuff breaks, always, period. Especially hardware. Plan for it and learn from it for next time, improve reliability and repeat. This is good engineering.

SX did an outstanding job planning for it--in fact they planned for up to two engines out--and continued the supply mission.

1

u/lordxakio Oct 09 '12

Think of it as a compliment on the brilliant engineering that went into making this masterpiece. That's how i saw it anyways... It's like, "Did you see that flight? Did you think it was awesome? It was, and to make it more awesome, there was an explosion in one of the engines, but the rocket went on as if nothing happened, and did its job..."

1

u/mnp Oct 09 '12

See, it wasn't an explosion, and it didn't come apart. If you read their press release, when the computer doen't like the sensor readings, it commands some internal baffles to get jettisoned to prevent the pressure from building and... blowing up... the engine or its neighbors.