“It exploded and we don’t know why” is not a success.

It was nowhere near being in orbit. Even if the test had been 100% successful it wasn’t going into orbit.

All of this (What you’ve written up there) would mean something were it not for this simple fact :-

So basically the same thing, you’re saying? Making sure the surface area around the manhole is up to snuff is just as important of a thing as making sure the manhole cover is.

The issue is not that there was only 8 minutes of action. The issue is not about it being delayed. The issue was that they delayed the race knowing full well safety crew were contracted only up to a certain time, and yet didn’t inform anyone that this would be the case. Instead they had us sitting outside since 8:38PM…

“No humans launched with the first SLS rocket, so I don’t get why you try to imply that was the case. They also spent almost twelve BILLION dollars on SLS up to the first launch. That’s an INSANE amount of money, one which literally nobody can afford.”

A rain out may be considered ‘Force Majeure’, or act of god, because nothing can be done to control the weather. Unsecured manholes are negligence on the part of the race organizers. It’s their job to make sure the track was in proper condition.

“We know this was disappointing. We hope our fans will understand based on this explanation that we had to balance many interests, including the safety and security of all participants and the fan experience over the whole race weekend.

They know. They’re fine with it.

Both IAmBrett & KinjaKungen are shameless SpaceX lovers, for some ridiculous reason.

This is NOT an anomaly. It is a testament to the hard work of all the people who built it know that it had to be right the first time because as a Public (Goverment) entity they knew that failure would likely result in the whole thing being shut down. Also, they actually cared about the payloads (humans) and knew…

>>>Yes, prototypes fail when you embrace an iterative, development process. But you save money and time doing it.”

There are certainly components of SLS which are proven tech, but a LOT of it is also very new (especially if you include the never-implemented parts it inherited from the Atlas program).  Yes, the engines are the same, but so much of what the rocket is and how it works is totally new or radically redesigned.

SpaceX takes high risk

This is not SpaceX’s first launch attempt. Honestly, I’ve never seen anyone celebrate failure with as much gusto as SpaceX apologists.

Did it get to Space, though?

Amazing how goalposts are constantly shifted and bars lowered just so Elmo can be gifted his little “victories”

>>>>”Yes, it just took them 14 years to do it with modified Shuttle hardware* and with cost overruns in the billions of dollars. If you’re willing to violate your deadlines and can blow out your budget by billions of dollars because you have an Alabama Senator covering for you on the Appropriations Committee, then you…

>>>>”With the tremendous amounts of time, money and effort spent on SLS, it would have been catastrophic for the program had the rocket blown up on launch. Even as it is they’ve hit plenty of setbacks and delays.”

It didn’t make it to space.