why was the drone ship named "of course i still love you"?

by Prof. Zion West 7 min read

For this try, SpaceX’s new drone ship "Of Course I Still Love You" will be waiting. It takes over the role originally held by "Just Read the Instructions," the company’s first autonomous vessel. The names of both ships are a nod to the Iain M. Banks novel "The Player of Games."

Full Answer

What happened to the of course I Still Love you droneship?

Mar 02, 2022 · Why Is The Drone Ship Named Of Course I Still Love You? Elon Musk sparked the trend six years ago with a tweet where he announced the name of the company’s first spaceport drone ship. As time passed, he revealed that he was inspired by Iain M Banks, he was able to clarify the meaning of the name shortly afterwards.

Why do they call them drone ships?

Mar 03, 2022 · Why Is The Drone Ship Named Of Course I Still Love You? It began six years ago with Musk announcing via Twitter that “Just Read the Instructions” would be named a company spaceport drone ship. A short time later he explained the meaning behind the name, showing respect for Iain M Banks by doing so.

What is the first space ship to land on a drone?

SpaceX repositioned Of Course I Still Love You from Port Canaveral, Florida, to the Port of Long Beach, California in June 2021. Just Read the Instructions droneship was previously based in California until mid-2019 but was repositioned to Florida as launched out of Vandenberg slowed down. This meant that SpaceX no longer had a dronship to support Pacific Ocean operations.

Did that rocket land hard on the drone ship?

Jun 23, 2017 · The autonomous drone ships used by SpaceX are named after the sentient ships in Banks ... Of Course I Still Love You operates off the coast of …

How did of course I still love you drone ship get its name?

On 23 January 2015, during repairs to the ship following the unsuccessful first test, Musk announced that the ship was to be named Just Read the Instructions, with a sister ship planned for West Coast launches to be named Of Course I Still Love You (OCISLY).

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 is of course I still love you named after?

SpaceX Drone Ship Names

For those who aren't familiar, Iain M Banks is a famous science fiction author who was the man behind the Culture Series. The naming ceremony didn't stop there as the founder went onto name the second autonomous boat "Of Course I Still Love You".
May 5, 2021

What is SpaceX drone ship called?

– SpaceX will try out A Shortfall of Gravitas, its new automated droneship, for its next Falcon 9 rocket launch from Florida sending supplies to the space station. The rocket booster will land on the new and improved ship floating in the Atlantic Ocean about eight minutes after liftoff.Aug 27, 2021

How much is Elon Musk worth?

$300 billion
How crazy rich is Elon Musk? The Tesla (TSLA) and SpaceX CEO's net worth is now about a stratospheric $300 billion, according to Forbes' real time rankings of the world's wealthiest people.Apr 5, 2022

What does shortfall of gravitas mean?

SpaceX: Elon Musk shares photo of drone ship that enables more missions. SpaceX's new droneship, A Shortfall of Gravitas, means the company can power even more ambitious goals.Sep 13, 2021

Where is course I still love you drone ship?

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

How far offshore is the SpaceX drone ship?

about 400 miles
This booster is again equipped with 4 landing legs and 4 grid fins. Following stage separation, SpaceX will try to soft land the first stage on the “Of Course I Still Love You” drone ship positioned about 400 miles (650 km) off shore of Florida's east coast in the Atlantic Ocean.

Where was the drone ship located?

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — SpaceX's newest drone ship, "A Shortfall of Gravitas" (ASOG) arrived in port Tuesday (Aug. 31) with its first catch secured to its deck. The booster, dubbed B1061 by SpaceX, launched just two days prior, carrying a cargo Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS) for NASA.Sep 2, 2021

Where is the barge of course I still love you?

Of Course I Still Love You was built as a refit of the barge Marmac 304 for landings in the Atlantic Ocean. Its homeport was Port Canaveral, Florida from December 2015 to June 2021, after being ported for a year at the Port of Jacksonville during most of 2015. In June 2021, OCISLY began heading towards the Port of Los Angeles to begin supporting launches on the west coast. Of Course I Still Love You worked successfully as a landing platform after the Falcon 9 rocket brought astronauts to space on the crewed mission Launch America on 30 May 2020.

How long was the landing platform on the Falcon 9?

The landing platform of the upper deck of the first barge named Just Read the Instructions was 170 ft × 300 ft (52 m × 91 m) while the span of the Falcon 9 v1.1 landing legs was 60 ft (18 m).

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 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.

When will the fourth ASDS ship be released?

A fourth ASDS, A Shortfall of Gravitas ( ASOG ), was announced in February 2018 and was originally planned to enter service in mid-2019. In October 2020, Elon Musk re-affirmed plans to build a ship of this name. In January 2021, Marmac 302 was spotted at Bollinger Fourchon site.

When did SpaceX first test the Falcon 9?

The first flight test was 10 January 2015 when SpaceX conducted a controlled-descent flight test to land the first-stage of Falcon 9 Flight 14 on a solid surface after it was used to loft a contracted payload toward Earth orbit. SpaceX projected prior to the first landing attempt that the likelihood of successfully landing on the platform would be 50% or less. The landings went from being landing tests towards being routine parts of missions.

Where did the Falcon 9 land?

The Falcon 9 first-stage performed a successful landing on OCISLY in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida at T+9 minutes and 10 seconds after liftoff of SpaceX CRS-8, the first-ever successful landing of a first stage on an Autonomous Spaceport Drone Ship.

What is pacex rocket?

S paceX is a spaceflight company focused on building big-ass rockets capable of taking people to Mars, but it’s also a strangely famous purveyor of so-called “drone ships,” autonomous platforms floating in the ocean. By now, the world has seen the company manage to vertically land several rockets on one its two ocean drone ships.

Who is the CEO of SpaceX?

See, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk is a pretty big fan of science fiction. One need look no further than his adoration for The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy for proof. He literally named his company’s future Mars-bound spacecraft Heart of Gold for this reason.

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 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.

Is space exploration a business?

Space exploration is serious business. Missions cost tens of millions of dollars and frequently put human lives on the line. That’s probably why rockets and spacecraft tend to have serious-sounding names.

What rocket engines are used in Falcon 9?

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.

What is a Merlin engine?

While this one sounds like it’s straight out of a 13-year-old's D&D game, it’s actually named for another bird. 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.

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?

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 ...

Who is Michael from Space.com?

13, 2018. Before becoming a science writer, Michael worked as a herpetologist and wildlife biologist . He has a Ph.D. in evolutionary biology from the University of Sydney, Australia, a bachelor's degree from the University of Arizona, and a graduate certificate in science writing from the University of California, Santa Cruz. To find out what his latest project is, you can follow Michael on Twitter.

Who is the CEO of SpaceX?

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 under construction, will be called "Of Course I Still Love You," Musk added.

Elon Musk brings his love for sci-fi literature at work as he names each drone ship after his favourites. Know the story behind SpaceX drone ship names

SpaceX has earned enormous respect over the years for paving the way for reusable rocket boosters. 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.

SpaceX Drone Ship Names

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.