Last mile delivery? Grey paint to the rescue!

Credit: u/Sarigolepas

9 points · 3 comments · view on lemmy.world

3 Comments

Robomekk@lemmy.ca · 4 pts · 196d (1 reply)

Tried to find some info on the Falcon Heavy grey paint. For those that don’t know, apparently it was an adjustment made to the falcon heavy upper stages, to increase the heating on the RP1 tank, to try to prevent freezing during long coast phases.

Ref: https://youtube.com/shorts/P6IMIxnAZB4

burble@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 3 pts · 196d

There's a little more to the Mission Extension Kit, via https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falcon_9_Block_5#Improvements

dark-painted band (for thermal control), extra COPVs for pressurization control, and additional TEA-TEB ignition fluid.

mech@feddit.org · 2 pts · 196d

I heard they also found it was too expensive to design a cooling pipe that would reliably transport liquid to the tip of the rocket in zero G, so instead of a rocket they launched a pencil.