SpaceX Falcon 9 First Launch Reaches Orbit (View From KSC VAB Roof)

[ti994apc]

Thank you so much for this video. Beautiful coverage, liquid fueled engines are so much more elegant than old dumbed down solid rocket fuel like on Shuttle. I cannot wait for the next launch. Go SpaceX !

[Ondelendo]

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[bebeheuy]

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[willamricard]

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[imegatrone]

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[bundawartini]

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[MrAlexHuff]

They're planning on colonizing on mars, can't wait till that happens.

[sylvainraillard]

superbe... et quel bruit ;-)

[werogers49]

I helped build this rocket. Thanks for the great video and especially the audio. The nine engines sound great.

[Ferrariman601]

These guys will put a man into space sooner rather than later. Who needs NASA?

[leokimvideo]

nice footage and love the sound, it's something you have to experience for real at some time in your life, raw power that only rockets can display

[Solarspot0287]

@ugowar : The RD-180 was actually just a half-sized RD-171. They share 70% if their parts in common. The nozzles are identical. Far more in common than simply concept and technology.

Sources: Astronautix webpage on the RD-180, and P&W Rocketdyne page on the engine.

As to whoever said that the Falcon 1 was "all American"...

It's all SpaceX. They said all along that they wanted to do everything internally for cost reasons, which some other organizations saw as dubious.

[ugowar]

@Solarspot0287 RD-180 isn't exactly 1/2 of RD-171. The turbopump (the most difficult part) is AFAIK different as a result of 1/2 propellant flow rate required. The Isp performance of RD-180 is also slightly better than RD-170 as a result of this change. It's not accurate to simply claim they Energomash just removed two combustion chambers. Compared to a completely new development, of course this one was much easier, but it still represents a new engine.

[AZRon34]

Hats off to SpaceX... A really amazing feat!!

[navalink]

Go Space X, Go! This is what America is all about!

[andresilva7]

@navalink yeah right

[Zoomer30]

The Merlins are more based off of the F1s they used on the SatV. Same fuel/ox just a much more reliable design. May not be nearly as green as say a SSME ( h2/02 = water) but LH2 is a pain in the rear to design for.

[ugowar]

@Zoomer30 LH2 is only green if you ignore the way it's actually produced - cracking hydrocarbons and releasing CO2 into the atmosphere. The net result with RP-1 is then the same, if not worse.

LH2 is also a lousy first stage propellant, its positive sides really shine in upper stages.

[Zoomer30]

SpaceX is years ahead of anything NASA is doing. Heck less than a year the will be sending the Dragon on a supply mission. Wish I knew what kind of skills SpaceX needs, would kick ass to work with them.

[p4n0sgr]

amazing sound !!!

can feel its power

[arfywarfy]

We want ARES I....

[A86]

@arfywarfy - I like both the Falcon and the Ares.

[arfywarfy]

It uses old Russian rocket technology. We want BIGGER rockets!!

[vgritsev]

no, it does not use old Russian technologies. Taurus does, Atlas does, but not Falcon. Engines, avionics, flight software, tanks and everything else are brand new and developed from scratch in the USA.

[ugowar]

@vgritsev It's quite a stretch to say Atlas uses old Russian technology. The RD-180 engine was tailor-made for Lockheed Martin in the 1990s, the fact it's based on staged combustion concepts pioneered with NK-15/33 and RD-170 doesn't change the fact it's a new engine.

Otherwise you could just as well say all rocket engines use old German WWII technology... Just as all gasoline internal combustion cars use the old Karl Benz principle.

[cracylord]

@ugowar

"Otherwise you could just as well say all rocket engines use old German WWII technology... Just as all gasoline internal combustion cars use the old Karl Benz principle."

thats right :P german technology ftw

[ugowar]

@cracylord LOL. It wasn't my intention to imply that, but now that I look at what I wrote - it's kind of funny, isn't it? :D

[angelavillani]

A jewel lifts off into space!

[WannaB321]

Nice job, SpaceX !! Congratulations. 

[lonebison]

Great video! Such a clean burning rocket too!

[scowell]

What an excellent video! Thanks for shooting it... good job! Must have really been cool to be there.

[LeadHammer]

I wish you used a tripod.

[MMKKEEGVG]

Great videos, thanks for posting!! Great to hear the audio that the other video was missing. Man, would have been nice to shoot this from the top of the SMARF :)

[cyberteque]

Yeah!

Waaaaaa Hooooooo!

How many G's was it pulling? It looked like it accelerated pretty damn fast!!

Great job Space X!

[moneyman10k]

its no big deal. they only built an entire rocket company for the cost of one nasa test flight

[Frapazoid]

@moneyman10k And that NASA test flight only flew 40% of a vehicle.

[moneyman10k]

@Frapazoid 40% is generous as far as I know, because I think ares i-x only shared the shape and some parachutes in common with ares i... and the parachutes failed

[Frapazoid]

@moneyman10k

Yup, just a big aerodynamics test article. When people like Michio Kaku go on Fox News and declare "Ares I has been tested, Obama is a fool for cutting it" it gets under my skin.

Of course, as has been the case for many years now, Congress is free to swoop in at _any_ time and fund the damn thing.

In the meantime, Falcons will fly.

[A86]

@moneyman10k - The Ares I first stage was ground-tested in the DM-1 test. The Ares I-X also tested the Roll Control System.

As for the parachutes it was only a partial failure. Which was pretty insignificant since the first stage survived and the rough splashdown doesn't affect a mission or present any danger to a crew. It's also an easy fix. That's not the first time an SRB chute folded up.

It is true this test of the Falcon 9 was far closer to the real thing than Ares I-X to Ares I.

[moneyman10k]

@A86 I appreciate an accurate reply, thank you

[madcio]

@moneyman10k

"for the cost of one nasa test flight" - seems like this cost is quite... high.

[sirachman]

@moneyman10k less

[shaydis]

Great video, thanks for the post!

[daveonthejob]

The exhaust plume looks like a big X. Great video, Congratulations to SpaceX.

[spacearium]

This was one of the more rewarding missions to cover. Good work SpaceX.

[omgitstotallyawesome]

Woohoo nice vid :D

[mttdgf]

Great video, thanks for posting!