Re:We Built the Saturn V (2017)
by nickmcc on Tuesday December 17, 2024 @07:46PM
(#42447072)
An individual F1 engine outperforms an individual Raptor 2/3.
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I just realized that after hitting post. Edited my comment.
Re:We Built the Saturn V (2017)
by Polizeiposaune on Tuesday December 17, 2024 @08:33PM
(#42447317)
Depends on the metric.
F1 is still the winner in sea level thrust per engine (6770 kN vs 2660kN).
Raptor is more efficient (with higher sea level and vacuum specific impulse); it also has a much higher thrust density -- those 2660kN come from a nozzle only 1.3m in diameter, vs the F1's 3.7m diameter.
The higher thrust density and smaller size means that you can fit 33 raptors in a ~9m diameter circle and end up with a stage with double the thrust of the ~10m diameter Saturn V.