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by thejarren 791 days ago
Won't traditional rockets become more cost effective over time? The main KPI for most agencies is cost per ton to orbit, and given that is is targeting lightweight operations, it's increasingly more niche.

Though it's good to focus some % of our attention on alternatives, and I'd feel more comfortable going to space on a balloon instead of a rocket.
2 comments
JumpCrisscross 791 days ago
> Won't traditional rockets become more cost effective over time?

Yes, though this strikes me as competing with space stations more than launch vehicles. (It would be a convenient way to e.g. quickly get a space station around Mars.)

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HPsquared 791 days ago
Airships won't work very well in Mars' atmosphere.
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codexb 791 days ago
No. Not really. Not unless we invent some magical fuel with tons of energy that weighs close to nothing.

The problem with rockets is that most of your fuel is used to lift... the fuel, that's also lifting your payload. We might get better at manufacturing fuel, but we're not going to get around the fuel weight problem without some major breakthrough.

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Sander_Marechal 791 days ago
See also: The Tyranny of the Rocket Equation: https://medium.com/teamindus/rocket-science-101-the-tyranny-...
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