'Challenge Accepted:' SpaceX CEO Elon Musk Agrees To Make Falcon Boosters Support 42 Missions After Retiring Booster That Launched Intuitive Machines' Lunar Lander
'Challenge Accepted:' SpaceX CEO Elon Musk Agrees To Make Falcon Boosters Support 42 Missions After Retiring Booster That Launched Intuitive Machines' Lunar Lander
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk on Sunday said that the company will work towards reusing the Falcon 9 rocket's boosters and fairings for 42 missions each after an X user challenged him to it.
SpaceX首席执行官埃隆·马斯克周日表示,在一名X用户向猎鹰9号火箭发起挑战后,该公司将努力重复使用猎鹰9号火箭的助推器和整流罩执行42次任务。
What Happened: A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched the European Commission's Galileo L12 mission to medium earth orbit from Florida on Saturday. The mission was the 20th and last flight of the first-stage booster that supported the mission.
发生了什么:周六,一枚SpaceX Falcon 9火箭将欧盟委员会的伽利略L12任务从佛罗里达州发射到中地球轨道。该任务是支持该任务的第一级助推器的第20次也是最后一次飞行。
The particular booster, SpaceX said, launched about 200 spacecraft as part of its rideshare program, supported 13 Starlink missions, and even sent Intuitive Machine's lunar lander to the Moon.
SpaceX说,作为拼车计划的一部分,这种特殊的助推器发射了大约200艘航天器,支持了13项Starlink任务,甚至将Intuitive Machine的月球着陆器送上了月球。
"In total, this Falcon delivered 228+ metric tons to Earth orbit and beyond," SpaceX said.
SpaceX说:“这架猎鹰总共向地球轨道及其他轨道输送了超过228公吨。”
The company is now working towards making its Falcon boosters capable of supporting 40 missions each, the rocket manufacturer said. "Increasing Falcon's flight count provides valuable information on repeated reuse, a critical element for making life multi-planetary with Starship," SpaceX wrote on X.
这家火箭制造商表示,该公司目前正在努力使其猎鹰助推器每台能够支持40次任务。SpaceX在X上写道:“增加猎鹰的飞行次数为重复重复使用提供了宝贵的信息,这是使用星际飞船使生命成为多行星生命的关键要素。”
However, an X user chimed in to say, "Look, if you're not going to 42 you're not even trying." The user, Eric Berger, is a rocket enthusiast and editor at technology news website Ars Technica.
但是,一位X用户插话说:“看,如果你不打算到42,你甚至不会尝试。”用户埃里克·伯杰是火箭爱好者,也是科技新闻网站Ars Technica的编辑。
"Haha true! Challenge accepted," Musk responded, hinting that the company would now attempt to make reuse possible for 42 missions.
“哈哈是真的!挑战已接受。” 马斯克回应说,该公司现在将尝试使42项任务的重复使用成为可能。
Why It Matters: Musk's SpaceX is attempting to make its rockets reusable in an attempt to bring down the cost of spaceflight.
为何重要:马斯克的SpaceX正试图使其火箭可重复使用,以降低太空飞行的成本。
In July 2023, Musk warned that rocket manufacturers will need to go all-in on reusability or risk being uncompetitive.
2023年7月,马斯克警告说,火箭制造商将需要全力提高可重复使用性,否则将面临失去竞争力的风险。
"Rockets are no different from other transport technologies, just harder to make reusable. No one would buy a single-use airplane, car or even bicycle! You'd need to tow another car just for the return trip," Musk then said.
“火箭与其他运输技术没有什么不同,只是更难重复使用。没有人会购买一次性飞机、汽车甚至自行车!回程时你需要再拖一辆车,” 马斯克接着说。
Check out more of Benzinga's Future Of Mobility coverage by following this link.
点击此链接,查看更多Benzinga的《未来出行》报道。
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