Re:SpaceX just landed a rocket on a drone ship for the first...
by stcredzero on Saturday April 09, 2016 @04:28PM
(#11463156)
For the vertical landing, this would seem to work against them
Actually, an inverted pendulum -- where most of the weight is on the top -- is easiest to balance on top of the rocket thrust. Coming down at high speed, this would be aerodynamically unstable, but this is why they have the grid fins, to move the center of aerodynamic pressure behind the center of gravity.
Actually, an inverted pendulum -- where most of the weight is on the top -- is easiest to balance on top of the rocket thrust. Coming down at high speed, this would be aerodynamically unstable, but this is why they have the grid fins, to move the center of aerodynamic pressure behind the center of gravity.