why did space x name their boat of course i still love you

Why is the drone ship Name Of course I still love you?

The trend started six years ago when Musk announced via Twitter that he had named the company's first spaceport drone ship "Just Read the Instructions." Soon enough, he clarified the meaning behind the name, revealing that he did so in honour of Iain M Banks.May 5, 2021

What is of course I still love you SpaceX?

Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY) is an autonomous spaceport droneship (ASDS) that is operated out of the Port of Long Beach, California. Of Course I Still Love You was previously based in Florida from 2015 to 2021.

What are SpaceX drone ships named after?

A new SpaceX drone ship named “A Shortfall of Gravitas” was towed into Port Canaveral Thursday, completing a shuffling of SpaceX's rocket landing platforms to support upcoming launches from Florida and California.Jul 15, 2021

What is the name of SpaceX barge?

SpaceX currently lands most of its Falcon 9 first stage boosters on the drone barges “Of Course I Still Love You” and “Just Read the Instructions.” Now Elon Musk has revealed plans for a new, fully automated drone barge with the equally humorous name “A Shortfall of Gravitas.”Jul 9, 2021

Why is SpaceX rocket named Dragon?

SpaceX's CEO, Elon Musk, named the spacecraft after the 1963 song "Puff, the Magic Dragon" by Peter, Paul and Mary, reportedly as a response to critics who considered his spaceflight projects impossible.

What is the name of the SpaceX Droneship upon which serves as the ocean based landing station for the reusable Falcon 9 first stage booster?

On 14 January 2017, SpaceX launched Falcon 9 Flight 29 from Vandenberg Air Force Base and landed the first stage on the JRTI, which was located about 370 km (230 mi) downrange in the Pacific Ocean, making it the first successful landing in the Pacific.

Where is the drone ship Of course I still love you?

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The most prolific SpaceX drone ship has arrived on the West Coast. The floating Falcon 9 rocket landing pad "Of Course I Still Love You" (or OCISLY for short) departed Port Canaveral on June 10, to change coasts in support of SpaceX's increasing launch operations.Jul 7, 2021

Why does SpaceX land on drone ship?

Return to launch site landing requires more fuel so it isn't always feasible, especially if the Falcon 9 is carrying a massive payload. So typically the company relies on its drone ships to do most of the work. The ships are mobile and require less fuel reserves on the rocket.Sep 2, 2021

What does shortfall of gravitas mean?

SpaceX's new droneship, A Shortfall of Gravitas, means the company can power even more ambitious goals. Mike Brown. 9.13.2021 9:37 AM. SpaceX's new drone ship is taking to the sea in style.Sep 13, 2021

Who named SpaceX vehicles?

Nomenclature. Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX, has stated that the Falcon 1, 9, and Heavy are named after the Millennium Falcon from the Star Wars film series.

Where is the SpaceX drone ship going?

It is unclear how long the SpaceX drone ship will have to wait to pass through the canal and begin the final leg of its journey to the Port of Long Beach, California. The Panama Canal Authority needs special approval to (slightly) exceed its standard size limitations due to the huge proportions of MS1's droneship cargo.

What ship is OCISLY on?

Unlike its twin, the drone ship Just Read The Instructions (JRTI), which did the same journey in reverse roughly a year and a half ago, OCISLY was placed onto the deck of the Mighty Servant 1, a massive semi-submersible transport ship (MS1).

Where is the OCISLY drone?

The SpaceX drone ship Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY) has arrived in the Panama Canal. It reached its destination ten days and one unforeseen detour after departing Port Canaveral, Florida for what could be the last time ever.

How long does it take for Mighty Servant 1 to reach Los Angeles?

If Mighty Servant 1 maintains its outstanding average speed on the final part of its journey, the trek from Panama City to Los Angeles might be completed in under ten days, with an arrival in the first few days of July. After that, SpaceX would have several weeks to inspect the drone ship and prepare it for its maiden West Coast booster retrieval.

Who made the robot boats?

Elon Musk has named SpaceX’s two robotic landing platform boats after science fiction spacecraft created by Scottish sci-fi legend Iain M. Banks. The drone boats, designed by SpaceX to act as automated landing platforms for the company’s first stage rocket return system, were given the quirky names “Just Read the Instructions” ...

How much is Genesis the story of Apollo 8?

Available everywhere for $5.99 ( before discount) at amazon, or direct from the publisher, ebookit. If you buy from ebookit the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.

Who wrote "We would be wise to heed what he says"?

We would be wise to heed what he says.”. — Robert Zubrin , founder of the Mars Society. Share. A riveting new science fiction book by Robert Zimmerman that captures the heart of the human spirit, willing to push forward no matter the odds, no matter the cost.

Who is the CEO of SpaceX?

In 2009, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk articulated ambitions for "creating a paradigm shift in the traditional approach for reusing rocket hardware". In October 2014, SpaceX publicly announced that they had contracted with a Louisiana shipyard to build a floating landing platform for reusable orbital launch vehicles. Early information indicated that the ...

When did the Dragon SpaceX CRS-8 launch?

The ship was in place for a first-stage landing test on the SpaceX CRS-7 mission, which failed on launch on 28 June 2015. On 8 April 2016, the first stage, which launched the Dragon SpaceX CRS-8 spacecraft, successfully landed for the first time ever on OCISLY, which is also the first ever drone ship landing.

What was the first launch vehicle barge?

SpaceX first launch vehicle landing barge ( Marmac 300 ), and also its third ( Marmac 303 ), were both named Just Read the Instructions ( JRTI ). In fact, some of the parts from the original hull/barge were used to build the Marmac 303 ASDS. The original, Marmac 300, was scrapped after the SpaceX CRS-6 landing failure on 14 April 2015.

What is an ASDS rocket?

The ASDS are a key early operational component in the SpaceX objective to significantly lower the price of space launch services through "full and rapid reusability", and were developed as part of the multi-year reusable rocket development program SpaceX undertook to engineer the technology.

Where is the second ASDS barge?

The second ASDS barge, Of Course I Still Love You ( OCISLY ), had been under construction in a Louisiana shipyard since early 2015 using a different hull — Marmac 304 — in order to service launches on the East Coast of the United States. It was built as a replacement for the first Just Read the Instructions and entered operational service for Falcon 9 Flight 19 in late June 2015. As of June 2015, its home port was Port of Jacksonville, Florida, but after December 2015, it was transferred 260 km (160 mi) further south, at Port Canaveral .

What is an ASDS ship?

Active, expected usage in few months. An autonomous spaceport drone ship ( ASDS) is an ocean-going vessel derived from a deck barge, outfitted with station-keeping engines and a large landing platform and is autonomously controlled when on station for a landing.

What was the first stage of the Falcon 9?

Starlink L4. Falcon 9 first stage B1056.4 made a water landing following the launch of Starlink L4, which was the fifth batch of 60 Starlink satellites. The first stage booster failed to land on the drone ship making it the first landing failure of flight proven booster.

Why are SpaceX drones named?

If these colorful names have you scratching your head, you’re not alone. SpaceX’s fleet of drone ships are named to honor the science fiction author Ian M. Banks. Specifically, his novel The Player of Games, in which OCISLY and JRtI are sentient spaceships.

What are some of the most famous names for space exploration?

That’s probably why rockets and spacecraft tend to have serious-sounding names. Atlas, Saturn, Delta, Soyuz (which means “union” in Russian), and a host of other spacefaring machines have some very authoritative names.

How many astronauts can a Falcon rocket carry?

Until recently, the ambitious extra, super-duper, great big launch system that Musk says will be able to carry 100 astronauts to Mars was called the Big Falcon Rocket. But that name has recently changed to simply “Starship.”.

Why is the Dragon capsule named after a song?

That’s right, the Dragon capsule was named for a Peter, Paul and Mary song about a boy and an imaginary dragon that has long been associated with smoking marijuana. Moreover, it was a very public clap back at SpaceX doubters. With 15 successful missions under its belt, it’s safe to say the Dragon does, in fact, work.

What is SpaceX in the commercial space industry?

On the commercial space scene, SpaceX is the kid who rolls around on a skateboard, always sits in the back of the classroom, and still makes straight A’s. The company makes a point of reminding the world that space is still fun—because we all wanted to be astronauts as kids. And they name their gadgets like enthusiastic eighth ...

What is a Merlin rocket?

A merlin is a variety of medium-sized falcon. Since the Merlin engine is currently used to power Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy, that fits nicely. SpaceX’s other rocket engines have equally avian monikers: Kestrel and Raptor.

Who is the founder of SpaceX?

Banks. Late last month, SpaceX's billionaire founder and CEO Elon Musk announced that he had named the company's first spaceport drone ship "Just Read the Instructions.". The second autonomous boat, which is ...

What is Musk's name for the rockets?

Musk has drawn inspiration for names from sci-fi before. For example, he named the company's rockets after the Millennium Falcon, Han Solo's spaceship in the "Star Wars" films. Dragon, meanwhile, got its moniker from "Puff the Magic Dragon," the 1963 hit song by the folk group Peter, Paul and Mary.

Did the Falcon 9 rocket explode?

The bold and unprecedented maneuver — which came after the Falcon 9 had sent SpaceX's robotic Dragon capsule toward the International Space Station on a cargo run for NASA — nearly worked. The rocket stage succeeded in hitting the drone ship, but it came down too hard and exploded. "Close, but no cigar this time.

Who is the founder of SpaceX?

After all, who would want to invest in a vehicle that's only capable of being used once? SpaceX founder Elon Musk took it upon himself to name each and every one of the famous SpaceX drone ships that carry the rocket boosters.

Who wrote the name of SpaceX drone?

Know the story behind SpaceX drone ship names. Written By. Sanjana Kalyanpur. IMAGE: ELON MUSK TWITTER. SpaceX has earned enormous respect over the years for paving the way for reusable rocket boosters. After all, who would want ...

What is the name of the Starship that Elon Musk named after?

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 17, 2018. Next, Mars designed Superheavy Starship was named “Heart of Gold ”, which is inspired by Douglas Adams’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy .

Robots

The Falcon 9 Securing Robot, known as Octagrabber, operates on both SpaceX droneships to secure boosters after a landing.

Spaceports

Phobos is one of two Starship floating spaceports that SpaceX is currently constructing.