I don't use that word often... I don't have a better word to describe the launch of the SpaceX SN8 today.
We watched on LabPadre and Space.com as the countdown stopped just short of 2 minutes, but a hold, not an abort. Then, at 4:45pm, with 3 screens playing on our deck... "Liftoff!"
The rumble of the rocket engines vibrated the railings on the deck; within seconds, we could see it rising over the house across the canal from us...
This is a big deal for south Texas. The SpaceX facility here is in its infancy, and it seems like a poor cousin compared to the Cape Canaveral facility, with decades of NASA money poured into it. And right there in front of us: the Raptor rocket blasting its way towards the 40,000' goal...
As one, then two of the three engines shut down, there was the anticipated plume...
About 4 minutes into this test flight, it began to freefall back towards the SpaceX facility. We didn't go over to the gathering at the gazebo, but could hear the cheers from the crowd. Before touchdown, the engines fired again and put the rocket in the landing position. Right at touchdown...
A feiry explosion. If you listened to the media, it was a disappointing ending. The SpaceX officials got all the information they needed on the important parameters of this test flight. While it may have looked better to the public without the explosion at the end, SpaceX considers this a successful test flight.
Rufus was out on the deck with us - I was surprised that all the noise didn't seem to bother him. He kept looking up to see what we were looking at. You could hear the cheer of the folks at the gazebo at liftoff... and then 5 seconds later, the sound of the rocket engines reached us and that's all you could hear. When the engines shut down, more crowd noise, a cheer and a group "Awwwwww!" before the sound of the explosion reached us.
SpaceX Boca Chica is a real thing. ;-)
2 comments:
It was a very interesting flight. We watched via YouTube feeds of which the NASA site was the most entertaining. I'm pretty sure that at least 2 of the commentators pee'd themselves from excitement. The SpaceX feed proved the most informative because of their onboard cameras. I'm a tad jealous of your proximity to the launch facility.
Definitely a lot of local interest. It was a delight to be able to see it from our deck. I know some have questioned the purpose of the SpaceX facility here, but they have goal in mind. This launch made it feel very real.
Post a Comment