Perhaps someone somewhere out there doesn’t want Elon to succeed in his long term Martian colonization plans?

Confront them with annihilation, and they will then survive; plunge them into a deadly situation, and they will then live. When people fall into danger, they are then able to strive for victory. -Sun Tzu

A degree is like a frozen dinner. Sure there’s a lot of knowlege that can be had in a short time, but its a poor substitute for decades of experience.

As a peace offering, Tesla has offered the seasoned citizen, a more age appropriate car.

Oh don’t be such a fishpot!

I’ve seen some 90 year old WWII vets touch their squirrelly museum pieces down better than this poor sod.

You’re one bright cookie, BUT, total delta V is minimized with a hohmann transfer and classic orbital mechanics would favor mission specific vehicles.

Direct entry fuel savings? No thats just wrong. A direct entry vs something like a hohhmann transfer would just eat fuel. The mdot required is just huge look up the orbital mechanics.

Please, go on. I know enough to know Torch is on to something but please tell what made a room full of subject matter experts giggle?

Feh, you’d have to chase the numbers to determine which one is more fuel efficient. True the Musk pod has much better internal volume to surface area, but it’s also hauling alot of excess mass around where it doesn’t need it, as Torch points out, you don’t need to descend such a lumbering giant up and down from the…

unless you design them to operate in pure tension. then it’s like hanging jewelry on a yoyo string.

Great minds think alike, and so does yours. (image stolen from the martian)

Docter Rendevous himself (Buzz Aldrin) pioneered that solution.

Only it’s not. When such a vehicle is transitting, it’s in freefall. Like many other objects in freefall it will rotate along it’s minimum energy lines. (Think about what happens when you drop a wrench, for example) Elon’s fat cylinder design would have a slight wobble that will need to be corrected by thrusters or…

Torch.

I talked to an old engineer on this, and his view kind of cracked me up. To paraphrase.

I’d imagine sitting a few stories on top of the bio-luminescent, microbial soup we call an ocean may poise some other corrosion issues aside from just galvanic.

Instead of spending billions, couldnt you bum a procedure or two from the Navy since corrosion control (in a caustic salt water environment) is kind of their thing?

Some thoughts from some pilot friends.

Although the Navy routinely shock tests true ships, this is the first time they have done such devastating and potentially lethal testing on their Mil-Spec Jet Ski.