What is it?
Space Exploration Technologies Corporation best known as SpaceX was founded in 2002 by Elon Musk, PayPal co-founder, in order to “revolutionize space technology.” SpaceX is an American aerospace manufacturer and space transport service that produces and launches rockets and spacecraft. This ambitious company was created with the ultimate goal of making spaceflight an affordable routine and to allow people to live on other planets transforming humans in multi-planet species. What started with an aspiring idea, today occupies about half-million sq ft in facilities in Hawthorne, California with more than 4,000 employees. SpaceX manufacturing facilities are located in Southern California and their structural test facilities are located in Central Texas, besides these two locations this corporation has a different launch facilities, space offices and supplier locations around the US as best shown in the picture below.
The video below displays a quick summary of SpaceX and its essence
Analysis + Energy and force concepts used
Most of us have the impression that once we “step out” of planet earth reaching a certain altitude we reach a “zero g” and start to float. According to SpaceX website information, gravity never stops and its range it’s infinite. The reason why astronauts seem to be floating is because they have no net acceleration. “The outward acceleration of (apparent) circular motion, which wants to sling them out into deep space, exactly balances the inward acceleration of gravity that wants to pull them down to Earth.” To complete this action, it’s necessary to utilize kinetic energy. During the process of trials and errors for this corporation, they have encountered that both stage rocket system has a staging altitude of 100km, plus a minus 20km. the rocket booster really consists on how fast it can throw a payload of what mass at roughly 100 km. “The amount of energy needed to achieve a given velocity increases with the square, so going from 0km/h to 2000 km/h, takes four times as much energy as going from 0km/h to 1000km/h, not twice as much. When trying to understand the value of a reusable rocket booster, the kinetic energy transfer at a 100km reference altitude is what matters. That altitude is the equivalent of the starting line of a race. The race itself is the kinetic energy.” Says Elon Musk.
Spacecraft
Falcon 9 / Falcon Heavy and Dragon are the three “vehicles” owned by SpaceX as of today.Falcon 9 is the first rocket completely designed and developed in the 21
Falcon 9 is the first rocket completely designed and developed in the 21st century. This is a two-stage rocket designed to transport satellites and the dragon spacecraft into orbit.
Dragon was designed from the outset to carry astronauts. This spacecraft made history in 2012 by being the first commercial spacecraft in “history to deliver cargo to the International Space Station and safely return cargo to Earth” as of today NASA is working in agreement with SpaceX to make Dragon crew-ready expecting its first text flight in 2 years.
Falcon Heavy, it’s under construction and will be the “world’s most powerful rocket” SpaceX is definitely the world’s fastest growing provider of launch services which has launch more than 60 launches on its manifest and has been working together with NASA is several missions.
We are definitely seeing the future closer to us, and SpaceX seems to be previews what’s next the world.
References:
http://www.nasa.gov/offices/c3po/partners/spacex/
http://www.airspacemag.com/space/is-spacex-changing-the-rocket-equation-132285884/?no-ist
http://www.spacex.com/news/2015/12/21/background-tonights-launch