Rocket quest crashes and burns

Bill Hensley, Houston, TX — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 01:44:09 GMT

What a heartbreak! I'm so sorry to hear that Armadillo came away empty-handed again this year. Best wishes for next year to John Carmack and his team.

Rocket quest crashes and burns

Wayne Barlow, Dover, Kent England — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 09:23:29 GMT

jeah that's a pity that that was happened again, but John can read up on what has gone wrong and try better next year. All the best for next year, John.

Rocket quest crashes and burns

MHD FAISAL ABBAS AL-BITAR — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 09:33:20 GMT

I hardly accept the results after such combined efforts had been executed. I believe the cause lies between cheap electromechanical ignition system and/or specific fuel condition which is subject to the right temperature at the instant of press to start!!!

Rocket quest crashes and burns

Greg Zsidisin — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 12:21:50 GMT

It's a great pity, but I think they had no one but themselves to blame.

Last year, they had a vehicle (Pixel) that all but did the deed. They simply needed to practice more with that very same vehicle (maybe build another backup or two), perhaps make some design and operational tweaks - and the prize would have been theirs.

Instead, they went to a quite different design, the MOD. This rocket is supposed to be part of their scalable, "modular" vehicle - that's fine. But spending all kinds of time and money on making this new configuration work like a lunar lander made little sense - especially when they literally had a "bird in the hand".

If the prize itself was really important to them, they should have spent the past year really wringing out their almost-there vehicle, and worked on their rocket module as a separate deal. Oh well.

Rocket quest crashes and burns

steve smyth lynn ma — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 12:41:43 GMT

Rockets are a waste of time.
Click my name, and follow the links for a better way.
To those who feel this is shameless self-promotion, I can only say have a look, remain objective, and realize that the earliest of the guys involved in space programs knew that rockets were the great limitation.
I seriously believe that Gaia Two is superior to any other concept out there...and, yes, Kids...they're all still concepts...
Fall into Space

Rocket quest crashes and burns

Wayne, Alamogordo, NM — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 13:55:33 GMT

It was good seeing the high turnout of people for the combined Air & Space Expo here in Alamogordo. Our remoteness and isolation somewhat limit having a really large amount of people at any one time, but it's also the reason why this area has been used for the last 60+ years for some of our nations leading R&D and T&E of major air & space programs. Holloman AFB and the White Sands Missile Range combined make up one of the most versitile test ranges in the world. And even though history was not made this weekend, it did make for a highly entertaining and educational couple of days.

Rocket quest crashes and burns

Jerry, Claremont, CA — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 14:01:56 GMT

One of the main problems is rocket science is complicated. Rocket launches get delayed for technical reasons all the time. This contest specifically requires the event occure in a narrow window of time. If the prize were paid independent of when during the year or where it was tested the prize would have been won already.

Rocket quest crashes and burns

Richard Hoppe, Knox County, Ohio — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 16:14:05 GMT

I spent the decade of the 1960s in aerospace and defense, part of it at the Cape on a launch crew. This kind of disappointment hurts.

The mention of Murphy's Law reminded me of what in those days we called O'Toole's Commentary on Murphy's Law: "Murphy was an optimist." Better luck next time, guys.

Rocket quest crashes and burns

Todd, Billerica, MA — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 18:21:40 GMT

It is a shame. I applaud their effort and hope they will try again next year.

Rocket quest crashes and burns

Mike Buxbaum — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 19:40:50 GMT

Who are they kidding by reinventing the "wheel". This technology is available for the past 40 years. As soon as "big guys" will step in to the picture the Armadillo's and alike will find out that they have just wasted their time and money. There is no Wright Brothers, Xerox and Apple "garage" startups in the air-space business today. The field requires never ending capital and "mind" resources that only the government can afford. I do not see anyone bringing a new technology in to the light. I build and launch rockets with my son. So what. Should I be considered an air-space “Start-Up”?

Rocket quest crashes and burns

Red Pill Junkie, Mexico city — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 02:57:47 GMT

Well, this IS rocket science after all.

Literally.

We can only be glad that there were no casualties nor injuries in this dissapointing accident. Best of luck to Armadillo next year. Winners are not the ones who never lose, but the ones who keep trying until they succeed.

Rocket quest crashes and burns

C Eldridge, Harrisburg PA — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 11:49:34 GMT

I'm not sure this helping or hurting. The colonization of space should be a worthy and WORLDWIDE goal but we seem more interested in occupying Iraq and Iran than reaching out into space and actually learning/doing something, arguably for the same cost! I'm not sure NASA even knows what it want's to do when it gets to the moon other than plant another flag. It's um... universal knowledge that you have to know what you wish to do before you actually attempt it or brain storm at possible solutions. An inter-orbital transit sled (for massive amounts of supplies) to go between earth and lunar orbits with re-usable landing ships is better than an Apolo re-run.

Rocket quest crashes and burns

Steve Harrington — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 14:35:16 GMT

They did an excellent job and I am sure they will be back, hopefully with some competition to make the event more exciting. Or better yet, they will ignore the competition entirely and work on their suborbital tourism business. They really don't need the money and the came so close to winning anyway.
BTW, I think that Mr. Al-Bidal is right, their supplier may have changed the fuel composition so that the engine did not work properly, kind of like trying to run a race car on low octane regular.

Rocket quest crashes and burns

steve smyth lynn ma — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 20:19:51 GMT

The more I think about it...this is not about proving we can put whirlygigs in space...it's about expansion of the human spirit...and until we get that straight, we ain't goin' nowhere.
Tne guy who wrote about playing rockets with his son, and wanting in on the New Space Race has the idea.

Rocket quest crashes and burns

Frank Glover, Rochester, NY — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 20:59:27 GMT

"This contest specifically requires the event occure in a narrow window of time. If the prize were paid independent of when during the year or where it was tested the prize would have been won already."

If these are meant to prototype technology to be used operationally in space, turnaround time *is* important. Ask any commercial transportation (not just aerospace) operator. (remember thattht shuttle was originally billed as flyable again in two weeks...has it come close?)

"Who are they kidding by reinventing the "wheel". This technology is available for the past 40 years."

Um, why didn't aircraft development stop at the DC-3? We have the benefit of, what did you say, 40 years of new technology? No one expects to fly exact copies of Grumman's Lunar Module today, or later (Even Orion only *resembles* Apollo)

And yes, if you and your son launch rockets outside of the strict power and burn time limits of model rocketry, *with the intention of eventually developing a commercial product,* you ARE a 'start up.'

This is rocketry R&D in the open, not unlike the air races of the 1930's. And one expects things to occasionally break:

http://www.hobbyspace.com/nucleus/index.php?itemid=4836

Rocket quest crashes and burns

Guy S. Newell — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 21:14:14 GMT

Yes, go look at Steve Smith's web site. "If I had a rocket, this is what it would look like." Great stuff. Solves all kinds of problems, at least on paper. On paper, I'm a genius too. So why am I so afraid to go into the lab and blow myself up? Maybe being a genius isn't good enough. The difference between knowledge and wisdom. Knowing how to do somthing is not the same as actually doing it. The latter takes guts and determination. The former only requires a library card. So, pictures really are worth a thousand words. But that's all they're worth. Even very pretty pictures.

Rocket quest crashes and burns

steve smyth lynn ma — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 22:59:47 GMT

Geez, Guy...who said anything about not doing it?...you did...whassupwidat?
Got a spare $mil?
We're there if ya do.
Thanks for the positive input...but it ain't a rocket ship...first and foremost...this ain't about rocket science.

Rocket quest crashes and burns

Todd, Billerica, MA — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 13:10:55 GMT

I do not believe anyone with a spare million dollars will invest in something that is that "pie in the sky". I think you are on your own to raise that money Steve.