[HN Gopher] SpinLaunch just catapulted a NASA payload into the s...
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       SpinLaunch just catapulted a NASA payload into the sky for the
       first time
        
       Author : rmason
       Score  : 21 points
       Date   : 2022-10-06 18:54 UTC (4 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (interestingengineering.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (interestingengineering.com)
        
       | jqpabc123 wrote:
       | Looks very interesting but I see one obvious issue that may or
       | may not be significant --- any satellite to be launched will have
       | to be built to withstand the 10000g launch.
        
         | nonesuchluck wrote:
         | Forget satellites: launch water, rocket fuel, 3D printing
         | material!
         | 
         | Relativity Space is building 3D printers large enough to
         | construct orbital-class rockets in one piece. Others will
         | follow. If they can make printers work in vacuum at 0g, that's
         | how we build our next-next generation of space stations.
         | SpinLaunch wants to launch around the clock, multiple times per
         | day. Just keep flinging materials and consumables to the
         | construction robots building our future habs.
        
         | Nomentatus wrote:
         | True - just to be over-precise; as I read it the launch
         | (release) per se isn't 10000g, nor the acceleration (so to
         | speak) to velocity inside the device, but the centrifugal force
         | inside the device gets to 10000g. There are guided artillery
         | shells whose electronics survives much greater force (although
         | it's a tough, expensive way to go.) For an integrated circuit
         | or solar panel designed for it, 10000g may not be that much,
         | however. Not much compared to an artillery launch, at least.
         | 
         | We've been launching electronic devices by artillery since WWII
         | - those with proximity fuses - without transistors!
        
       | ilaksh wrote:
       | What portion of escape velocity is imparted by the spinning
       | ground launch? I assume it's more of a jumpstart and still
       | requires a rocket?
        
         | pkaye wrote:
         | Check out this Real Engineering video. Goes it a lot of
         | engineering details.
         | 
         | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrc632oilWo
        
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       (page generated 2022-10-06 23:02 UTC)