SpaceX Grasshopper 12 story test flight
December 25, 2012
SpaceX’s Grasshopper — a 10-story vertical takeoff and landing (VTVL) vehicle — took a 12-story leap towards full and rapid rocket reusability in a test flight conducted December 17, 2012 at SpaceX’s rocket development facility in McGregor, Texas.
Grasshopper rose 131 feet (40 meters), hovered, and landed safely on the pad, using closed-loop thrust vector and throttle control. The total test duration was 29 seconds.
Grasshopper consists of a Falcon 9 rocket first stage, Merlin 1D engine, four steel landing legs with hydraulic dampers, and a steel support structure.
If it passes testing, Grasshopper would be the first-ever fully reusable rocket — the Holy Grail in rocketry. It could mean big savings in developing and operating the rocket.
The 12-story flight marks a significant increase over the height and length of hover of Grasshopper’s previous test flights, which took place earlier this fall. In September, Grasshopper flew to 1.8 meters (6 feet), and in November, it flew to 5.4 meters (17.7 feet/2 stories) including a brief hover.
Testing of Grasshopper will continue with successively more sophisticated flights expected over the next several months.
Video Source: SpaceX
Comments (4)
by Elch
Nice, but a disposable rocket does also mean that you don´t have to carry fuel for the landing with you. The fuel to payload ratio gets worse if you want to land and reuse the rocket.
by Chrispium
Fuel is not the expensive component of takeoff.
by someday69
yea’beautiful, think’about it…as long as’,all our cars go green….We got’a find ah’way’for the rockets’, to burn green..Dew’Yu- have any”idea”’how much’un’burn’ed hydro’carbon’s are release’d not to mention’the other deadly polutants’from the high’temp’burn’…SOo just in’case’ your en’thu’sea’as’ium get’s yu think’ing this is the Way to get us Up-there— Its old’waste’full,,We need people to bee puting there efforts into the Elevator.
This is where i float my theroy of diamond’nano’cable’s ,attacted to the earth’with something real strong’n'very heavy’to support the un’breakable’nano’diamond cables”that go all the way up the the Laragne’Point between the earth n’ our’moon….Something like the Pirimids..an’those other huge Pirimid type pile’s of gigantick’cut stone’s that no’body seems to know why or how they did it back then?…Yes folks our past is full of Gold–which was mined’bye the Class two’ beings who…turned us into there gold miner’slaves…And built the elevators to slowly elevate the presisis/precheis/very sought after/worth it ..oh’it all about gold…cause yu can’t just make it in an’,,corn’ah’cope’pia…machine.
SOoo keep play’in with kids toys…spending your tmie n’ money…on something..that’s old’paridime..buddy have yu got ah para’dime??
by John
Beautiful.