Elon Musk reveals SpaceX's stainless steel Starship rocket

[captaincranky]

It's the other way round. The car industry back then was taking design clues from aerospace industry. 1959 Chevy looks like a rocket that will take You to the Moon.

Yeah well, the '59 Caddy had vertical fin yaw stabilizers, the forerunners of today's "lane centering technology".

 

[captaincranky]

Elon Musk reveal [again] the dream about the size of his ****

That rocket does give one pause to wonder if it's, "finned for extra stimulation".

 

[JB Northwest]

Have you noticed that more and more his rockets look like something out of the old Buck Rogers? And stainless steel? Seriously? It must be rolled paper thin because the weight alone would be very prohibitive for any kind of launch vehicle. I'm almost wondering if the one they use will be different and this one is just for the big media event. If you ever go down to Huntsville, AL and see the various launch vehicles it has to make you wonder .....

Have you noticed that more and more his rockets look like something out of the old Buck Rogers? And stainless steel? Seriously? It must be rolled paper thin because the weight alone would be very prohibitive for any kind of launch vehicle. I'm almost wondering if the one they use will be different and this one is just for the big media event. If you ever go down to Huntsville, AL and see the various launch vehicles it has to make you wonder .....

Have you noticed that more and more his rockets look like something out of the old Buck Rogers? And stainless steel? Seriously? It must be rolled paper thin because the weight alone would be very prohibitive for any kind of launch vehicle. I'm almost wondering if the one they use will be different and this one is just for the big media event. If you ever go down to Huntsville, AL and see the various launch vehicles it has to make you wonder .....

Steel is heavier but it's vastly cheaper and more importantly very tough. Remember that what you are used to seeing is the disposable part of the rocket. But this rocket is coming back and must be constructed of materials that can survive reentry. Carbon fiber, aluminum, and many other materials would all be destroyed, requiring expensive and heavy ceramic shielding. Stainless steel on most of the rocket can survive reentry without any additional cladding.

 

[captaincranky]

Steel is heavier but it's vastly cheaper and more importantly very tough. Remember that what you are used to seeing is the disposable part of the rocket. But this rocket is coming back and must be constructed of materials that can survive reentry. Carbon fiber, aluminum, and many other materials would all be destroyed, requiring expensive and heavy ceramic shielding. Stainless steel on most of the rocket can survive reentry without any additional cladding.

Steel is just the element iron that has been processed to control the amount of carbon. Iron, out of the ground, melts at around 1510 degrees C (2750°F). Steel often melts at around 1370 degrees C (2500°F).
Chromium - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Chromium

Chromium is a chemical element with the symbol Cr and atomic number 24. It is the first ... Stainless steel and chrome plating (electroplating with chromium) together comprise 85% of the commercial use ... Chromium has a melting point of 1907 °C (3465 °F), which is relatively low compared to the majority of transition metals ...

Nickel melts at 2651 F & 1455 C

Vanadium melts at 3470 F & 1910 C

Spacecraft reentry temperature
See more spacecraft and space shuttle pictures. This friction is a mixed blessing, however. Although it causes drag, it also causes intense heat. Specifically, shuttles face intense temperatures of about 3000 degrees Fahrenheit (about 1649 degrees Celsius) [source: Hammond].

I believe these are the most common elements which comprise "stainless steel", steel, nickel, and chrome being the primaries.

Objectively, most metals are fairly efficient conductors of heat. Whereas the ceramic tiles on the space shuttle have lower heat transmission properties, along with, (AFAIK) some ablative ability. So, whatever metal you choose for the rocket's skin, you must take into account and design for, heat transmission to the interior.. Which means more insulation, and more weight.

Musk's fascination with booster recovery has to be costing dearly against the potential payload(s) weight.

 

[wiyosaya]

That rocket does give one pause to wonder if it's, "finned for extra stimulation".

Don't forget all those rivets and ribs!

 

[wiyosaya]

Steel is just the element iron that has been processed to control the amount of carbon. Iron, out of the ground, melts at around 1510 degrees C (2750°F). Steel often melts at around 1370 degrees C (2500°F).
Chromium - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Chromium

Chromium is a chemical element with the symbol Cr and atomic number 24. It is the first ... Stainless steel and chrome plating (electroplating with chromium) together comprise 85% of the commercial use ... Chromium has a melting point of 1907 °C (3465 °F), which is relatively low compared to the majority of transition metals ...

Nickel melts at 2651 F & 1455 C

Vanadium melts at 3470 F & 1910 C

Spacecraft reentry temperature
See more spacecraft and space shuttle pictures. This friction is a mixed blessing, however. Although it causes drag, it also causes intense heat. Specifically, shuttles face intense temperatures of about 3000 degrees Fahrenheit (about 1649 degrees Celsius) [source: Hammond].

I believe these are the most common elements which comprise "stainless steel", steel, nickel, and chrome being the primaries.

Objectively, most metals are fairly efficient conductors of heat. Whereas the ceramic tiles on the space shuttle have lower heat transmission properties, along with, (AFAIK) some ablative ability. So, whatever metal you choose for the rocket's skin, you must take into account and design for, heat transmission to the interior.. Which means more insulation, and more weight.

Musk's fascination with booster recovery has to be costing dearly against the potential payload(s) weight.

Definitely, all that extra fuel needed to slow the vehicle on reentry is costing weight. You bring up some excellent points WRT the materials. It sounds like unless it is significantly slowed on reentry, it will end up being an Elon experiment in high-temperature furnaces.

 

[Markoni35]

Looks cheap. In fact, Elon said that it was made from steel because it's 50 times cheaper than composite or aluminum.