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from the we-don't-know-what-we-don't-know dept.
After a decade, NASA's big rocket fails its first real test:
For a few moments, it seemed like the Space Launch System saga might have a happy ending. Beneath brilliant blue skies late on Saturday afternoon, NASA's huge rocket roared to life for the very first time. As its four engines lit, and thrummed, thunder rumbled across these Mississippi lowlands. A giant, beautiful plume of white exhaust billowed away from the test stand.
It was all pretty damn glorious until it stopped suddenly.
About 50 seconds into what was supposed to be an 8-minute test firing, the flight control center called out, "We did get an MCF on Engine 4." This means there was a "major component failure" with the fourth engine on the vehicle. After a total of about 67 seconds, the hot fire test ended.
During a post-flight news conference, held outside near the test stand, officials offered few details about what had gone wrong. "We don't know what we don't know," said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine. "It's not everything we hoped it would be."
He and NASA's program manager for the SLS rocket, John Honeycutt, sought to put a positive spin on the day. They explained that this is why spaceflight hardware is tested. They expressed confidence that this was still the rocket that would launch the Orion spacecraft around the Moon.
And yet it is difficult to say what happened Saturday is anything but a bitter disappointment. This rocket core stage was moved to Stennis from its factory in nearby Louisiana more than one calendar year ago, with months of preparations for this critical test firing.
Honeycutt said before the test, and then again afterward, that NASA had been hoping to get 250 seconds worth of data, if not fire the rocket for the entire duration of its nominal ascent to space. Instead it got a quarter of that.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by fustakrakich on Monday January 18 2021, @02:08AM (15 children)
The "Check Engine" light came on. That's all they will tell us.
*sigh* Everything that is reported is being so dumbed down by shit like this.
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 18 2021, @04:37AM (2 children)
How can this be offtopic? It's spot on.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 18 2021, @05:18AM (1 child)
It's politically motivated modding, not content motivated.
(Score: 3, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 18 2021, @06:50AM
What? Here on SN? Who would do such a thing? Certainly not the kind, tolerant, open-minded Democrats!
(Score: 3, Funny) by Rosco P. Coltrane on Monday January 18 2021, @05:34AM (4 children)
You forget the number one rule of American news articles: it has to contain a comparison to football fields, libraries of congress or cars, lest American readers lose focus at the first hint of a complicated technical concept and go watch TV instead.
(Score: 2) by zeigerpuppy on Monday January 18 2021, @07:03AM (2 children)
That's a bit unfair.
Mass media is dumbded down everywhere...
But there are some great US based commentators on this.
Try Youtube channels: Everyday Astronaut and Scott Manley (ok he's a Scott, but based in US!)
(Score: 2) by Tokolosh on Monday January 18 2021, @02:41PM
Mr. Manley's review of the test is a gem. https://youtu.be/BG8Wv8-4xFM [youtu.be]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 18 2021, @03:27PM
Yeah the US sucks.
Let's follow the UK's space program instead. Oh wait...
(Score: 2, Touché) by crafoo on Monday January 18 2021, @01:03PM
Minorities and racism sell pretty well too.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 18 2021, @10:43AM
The "Check Engine" light came on.
It didn't go kaboom so you fix/change engine and try again. They will find out what went wrong. It's not like this is rock... nevermind.
(Score: 2) by PiMuNu on Monday January 18 2021, @01:50PM (4 children)
To be fair, why would they say anything else? Do you really want them to give some detailed issue break down, when they likely need to do few weeks/months of analysis? Or give an incomplete/likely wrong picture of what went wrong and back track later on (to howls of derision from their detractors)?
(Score: 3, Informative) by slinches on Monday January 18 2021, @02:34PM (3 children)
For projects like this one where the basic design has been widely publicized, they could report what component failed or at least what system they detected a fault in. That would give a little more insight into how significant the problem might be without speculating on the cause before a root cause analysis has even begun.
(Score: 2) by PiMuNu on Monday January 18 2021, @02:55PM (1 child)
I guess so. I guess it would make sense if they were trying to do outreach.
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Tuesday January 19 2021, @12:57AM
Mere transparency will suffice
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 2) by VLM on Monday January 18 2021, @06:45PM
I'd extend that remark with a lot depends on the location of the failure.
If the failure mode was loss of fuel pressure on the input of the fuel pump causing a shutdown that's all on the test stand assuming they didn't use the onboard tanks and were using ground based tanks. If the ground based tanks failed that is probably not a long term program stopper.
Historically there have been weird problems with running "free space" engines close to the ground WRT 140 dB sound waves bouncing off the ground and re-impacting the engine, also strange thermal effects from "rolling clouds of hot exhaust". Those problems should be well studied and merely historical, but thinking as positively as possible the end result is the engines may never be rated to operate more than a minute within 20 feet of the ground which would not be a major program problem.
Historically there have been interesting problems with chunks of ice breaking off and impacting things.
On the other hand if a pump blew apart then they got a major engine related problem.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 18 2021, @07:23PM
I think it was a "Chuck Engine Light".