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A comment on SpaceX Launches Super-Heavy Communications Satellite. Parent comment

Re:SpaceX Launches Super-Heavy Communications Satellite by simonh on Tuesday May 16, 2017 @04:47AM (#14348240)
Funding hugely expensive non-reusable technology, based on 70s Shuttle components, from traditional cost-plus contractors is not the way to put pressure on SpaceX. That will come from Blue Origin, and almost certainly the Russians and Chinese. It's unlikely they will sit by and leave reusability a US/SpaceX exclusive capability.
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Re:SpaceX Launches Super-Heavy Communications Satellite by Symmetry on Tuesday May 16, 2017 @08:41AM (#14349080)
I wouldn't bet on Russia and China still has a lot of catching up to do. If we're talking about putting stuff in orbit cheaply I wouldn't rule out India but there are also a host of companies with small rockets that show some promise.

And ULA has a good story about their work on in-space reuse of rockets even if they aren't going to be reusing boosters any time soon.

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Re:SpaceX Launches Super-Heavy Communications Satellite by simonh on Tuesday May 16, 2017 @11:18AM (#14350244)
I'm actually quite bullish about Boeing, Lockheed and the other big space contractors even if SpaceX and BO (ho, ho) do eat their lunch on boosters. If access to space costs peanuts, companies and governments are going to want to put a heck of a lot more stuff up there. That means someone is going to have to build it all.

Even if SpaceX themselves have no interest in going to The Moon, they're not going to say no to a contract to put a Lockheed/ Boeing/ etc NASA funded Moon mission into orbit for them.

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Re:SpaceX Launches Super-Heavy Communications Satellite by greglindahl on Tuesday May 16, 2017 @02:11PM (#14351879)
It's worth noting that Boeing's satellite division already did a special design of an all-electric-propulsion GEO satellite, which can launch 2 at a time on Falcon 9 and reduce launch costs even further. They've sold and launched 2 pairs so far.
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Re:SpaceX Launches Super-Heavy Communications Satellite by lambdadmitry on Thursday May 18, 2017 @08:39AM (#14366683)
Strike Russians from that list. Angara isn't ready yet and not heavy at all, there are no other launchers in the works and the industry is in shambles.
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