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First attempt to catch the booster back at the launch site. The "mechazilla" launch tower has two "chopstick" arms which are used to pick up and stack both sta

First attempt to catch the booster back at the launch site. The "mechazilla" launch tower has two "chopstick" arms which are used to pick up and stack both stages and which are intended to be able to catch the returning booster and maybe also the returning Starship upper stage.

bloopernova 2y ago
What benefit does catching the booster provide? (Or, what's a good written guide to that system?)
- admax88qqq 2y ago
  Don’t need landing legs/gear on the ship. Saves weight
- thrance 2y ago
  It allows removing the landing gears on the booster, which saves wheight, which saves fuel, which increases efficiency and reduces costs. It also avoid having to fetch the booster from wherever it would have landed.
- exitb 2y ago
  What others said is true, but I think the endgame is also to literally land on the launchpad, allowing for a quick turnaround.
- tgsovlerkhgsel 2y ago
  Given that a lot of the landing failures we've seen started with a near perfect landing followed by the rocket tipping over, I suspect one benefit is that the contact point is now above the center of gravity and thus it can't really tip over. Of course, it can't tip over unless something fails or the rocket ends up in the wrong spot (and fails to get caught) and the previous tip-overs also had to involve failures (of the landing strut, in the latest loss) or landing in some way that isn't perfectly aligned.
1659447091 2y ago
> has two "chopstick" arms ... which are intended to be able to catch the returning booster Do you mean this literally? As in something like Mr. Miyagi catching a fly with chopsticks in the orig Karate Kid?
- lucianbr 2y ago
  How could it possibly be meant literally? Do you consider it possible for a rocket to be caught by a literal person with literal wooden sticks? I guess I don't really understand what you are asking. There's a tower with some huge metal arms that is meant to catch the rocket. They call them chopsticks in a joking manner. Obviously, I would have thought.
  - _dain_ 2y ago
    >How could it possibly be meant literally? Do you consider it possible for a rocket to be caught by a literal person with literal wooden sticks? in ordinary English there are many degrees of "literally".
    - TiredOfLife 2y ago
      In ordinary English literally is a synonym of figuratively since 2013
      - mavhc 2y ago
        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-ImRMJX68s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-ImRMJX68s
  - 1659447091 2y ago
    Yeah I totally envisioned a person holding wooden chopsticks trying to catch a booster /s You missed the quoted part about > which are intended to be able to catch Which would be the unique thing to clarify. As in "something like" the "chopsticks" moving to > catch < the thing -- Like Mr. Miyagi moving the chopsticks to > catch < the thing

bloopernova 2y ago

What benefit does catching the booster provide? (Or, what's a good written guide to that system?)

admax88qqq 2y ago
Don’t need landing legs/gear on the ship. Saves weight
thrance 2y ago
It allows removing the landing gears on the booster, which saves wheight, which saves fuel, which increases efficiency and reduces costs. It also avoid having to fetch the booster from wherever it would have landed.
exitb 2y ago
What others said is true, but I think the endgame is also to literally land on the launchpad, allowing for a quick turnaround.
tgsovlerkhgsel 2y ago
Given that a lot of the landing failures we've seen started with a near perfect landing followed by the rocket tipping over, I suspect one benefit is that the contact point is now above the center of gravity and thus it can't really tip over. Of course, it can't tip over unless something fails or the rocket ends up in the wrong spot (and fails to get caught) and the previous tip-overs also had to involve failures (of the landing strut, in the latest loss) or landing in some way that isn't perfectly aligned.

1659447091 2y ago

> has two "chopstick" arms ... which are intended to be able to catch the returning booster Do you mean this literally? As in something like Mr. Miyagi catching a fly with chopsticks in the orig Karate Kid?

lucianbr 2y ago
How could it possibly be meant literally? Do you consider it possible for a rocket to be caught by a literal person with literal wooden sticks? I guess I don't really understand what you are asking. There's a tower with some huge metal arms that is meant to catch the rocket. They call them chopsticks in a joking manner. Obviously, I would have thought.
- _dain_ 2y ago
  >How could it possibly be meant literally? Do you consider it possible for a rocket to be caught by a literal person with literal wooden sticks? in ordinary English there are many degrees of "literally".
  - TiredOfLife 2y ago
    In ordinary English literally is a synonym of figuratively since 2013
    - mavhc 2y ago
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-ImRMJX68s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-ImRMJX68s
- 1659447091 2y ago
  Yeah I totally envisioned a person holding wooden chopsticks trying to catch a booster /s You missed the quoted part about > which are intended to be able to catch Which would be the unique thing to clarify. As in "something like" the "chopsticks" moving to > catch < the thing -- Like Mr. Miyagi moving the chopsticks to > catch < the thing