Falcon 9 Block 5 on the launch pad before the testA few days ago, the head of SpaceX, Ilon Mask, spoke about future plans. The story was quite detailed, with the cast of financial details.
According to Mask, over the next three years, the cost of launching the Falcon 9 will drop to $ 5-6 million. This forecast will be real if more launch vehicle components become reusable.
Now the most expensive element of the rocket is the first step, which SpaceX representatives have already learned to return. It accounts for about 60% of the price of the rocket, respectively, its price has the greatest impact on the cost of launch. In addition, another 20% is the second stage and 10% is the head fairing and other elements, without which the launch is impossible. The remaining 10% is fuel and the cost of everything that is somehow related to the launch.
The modification of the
Block 5 rocket is planned to be exploited further - all of SpaceX is going to carry out about 300 launches, including those that will be implemented using already completed stages. Now, according to company representatives, the first stage can be run about ten times without repair. If it is regularly repaired, it is possible to achieve an increase in the number of starts up to one hundred times. Until 2019, the company intends to conduct an interesting experiment - to launch Block 5 twice within one day with the same first stage.
The previous version of the stage, Block 4, could also be used up to ten times in a row, but this required redecorating between flights. Now, no work is required - the stage can be used immediately, as soon as it returned to Earth. The only thing a rocket needs for flight is fuel. Bucky steps refuel, and she flies again.
Block 5 Falcon 9, according to Mask, is the most advanced modification of the Falcon launch vehicle. For the first time the updated rocket flew into space a few days ago. She delivered the first satellite of Bangladesh to the geostationary orbit of the Earth, it was named Bangabandhu-1.
There is some confusion with the numbering of modifications of the first stage. Despite the fact that it is called Block 5, this is the sixth version. All improvements and improvements made on the basis of information obtained earlier. By the way, the word “Block” itself was taken by Mask from the vocabulary of Russian cosmonauts and rocket scientists.
Now the engines of the first stage are improved, their power has increased by 8%. As for the second stage, the engines are improved here, their power is 5% higher. A further increase in engine power is possible - thrust are planning to increase the percentage by 10%.
According to SpaceX representatives, the safety of the steps has also been increased; now their manufacture and operation fully comply with all NASA requirements. Making them has become a little easier, which reduced the amount of time required for production. Among other changes - folding supports, which are no longer needed to remove after landing steps to Earth.
The current version of Falcon is final. It was so successful that SpaceX would not modify it anymore, leaving it static in time. Instead, the company will have more time to implement its projects to create the Big Falcon Rocket and the Starlink satellite network. If necessary, the design of the Falcon 9 can make some changes, but they are unlikely to be significant. “There will be no Block 6. We decided to dwell on the version of Block 5 and in the future we do not plan to make significant changes to its design,” said Musk.
By the way, the Chinese have recently announced plans to create a returnable first step of the Falcon 9 type. After all, China is a space power, and no one would mind saving a couple of tens of millions of US dollars on launches there. Recently, Chinese Long Lehao design engineer from the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT) of the China Rocket Technology Technology (CALT)
said that the development of the Long March 8 launch vehicle with a reusable first step. The first test launch can take place already in 2020.
By 2035, the Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) plans to achieve the reuse of all launch vehicles of the country.