Elon Musk's rocket and more space junk

Elon Musk’s has sent a Falcon Heavy is essentially three of SpaceX's workhorse. And, as is the usual practice for SpaceX, all three boost stages - the lower segments of the rocket - returned to Earth to attempt controlled landings.

The only down side he has sent his old car as a payload with an mannequin in a spacesuit with the radio set to play a David Bowie soundtrack on a loop – “Ground control to Major Tom” ?
All I can say is that if in the future he sends another rocket into space and hits his car, then .. . . . . .

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-42969020

At least he has the future of all mankind at heart. We will need electric cars on Mars.

Mr Musk may in his lifetime strap himself into one of his rockets and go and join his electric car on Mars , it may be the only place in the whole universe where he can enjoy traffic jam free driving but if that happened, how long will that last for?

I heard the car is not in the right obit to make it to Mars or even come close to it as well one of his booster rockets missed it landing and ended up in the ocean, I think this person is way out of obit and has to much money to burn, a wasted space me thinks.
Well thats my opinion anyway.

Ashley

What happens to Musk's batteries at the end of their useful lives ? - Same with solar panels - they only last for about 20 years - what then ? I often wonder about some of these guys. Bill Gates seemed to be the real deal, but I think that many of these geniuses ride on the backs of other people.

Hell of a project to achieve a payload like that at a cost that is quite a lot less than a shuttle launch.

If that trend of development vs cost continues then we are almost gaurneteed to be going on space cruises rather than Mediterranean cruises in 50 years time. Very exciting.

As for his car being space junk..... well yes. But as long as it’s out of the earths orbit the chances of it causing an inconvenience is infinite = space is infinite.

Disclaimer; I’m no space expert

I saw a piece on PBS today about "zombie satellites", non-functioning space junk that is in low orbit. An experimental satellite-killing missle blew one to hell to keep it from crashing down and within a short time period the subsequent debris had encircled the earth. The piece postulated that if we didn't learn how to deal with all the crap that's floating around up there, Earth will one day have rings like Saturn. Rings of space trash.

I have always been under the impression that sending rockets into space is done in the interests of improving science and technology. What has Musk learned from sending a car into space ? I think he is just another rich dick playing with himself.

Well he might have money to burn and his rockets must be something as NASA is letting him use their launch pads so maybe they are learning a thing or two off his testing, putting a car into space has nothing to do with his ego but to prove his rockets can carry heavy loads and to be able to reuse the booster rockets will save a lot of time and money, space technology is big business these days and there is a lot of money to be made from it and Australia plays a big part in it as well.

Ashley

I'd be more impressed if he put a communications satellite of the same weight into orbit.

I don't think he had any intentions of orbiting the stuff. He was testing a high-thrust launch system specifically to break free of orbit.

Some of these rich guys have a big need to grand-stand to exercise their egos. I have more respect for somebody such as Bill Gates who does his thing quietly then donates to good causes.

How he tried to catch something falling from space with a huge net mounted on a boat;

https://www.cnet.com/news/spacex-missed-fairing-nose-cone-with-mr-steven-net-boat/

acetrel got it right, very few industrialized alternative energy or transportation are sustainable and cost way more in energy/materials than what they pay back even over 20yr life leaving ages of toxic waste accumulating. Indoors and inner city is only place electrics make sense, and then only because they can get back some braking energy and can use the special charging stations, which no neighborhoods power lines could carry but a few electrics w/o rebuilding whole grid.

Early rocketry was for fun and science but by WWII its military and commerce that drives development with a few projects devoted to science. Car launch was supposed to just test systems not orbit near Mars and there was mention its trajectory was changed from advertised plans. This adds some intrigue that the Spaceman is a body being hidden where no one will ever go and E.T.'s stumbling will think a religious burial relic.

Btw scientist came to conclusion Earth got past point of no return from 6th major extinction event in the mid 1980's, saying if no more pollution produced after that, still way too late. When this fact sinks into public at large, there will be end of the world parties to die for.

Elites at this level have nil concerns but their own so why bother to follow NASA precautions on polluting space with infective agents from Earth. Ya know how War of the Worlds radio show ended and how American Indians mainly taken over. If any of us polluted at such scale for just fun and profit we'd be in jail.

https://phys.org/news/2018-02-tesla-space-bacteria-earth.html

Musk is a "rent seeker," a man who accepts politicians offers to sell favors, cash flows, assets, subsidies, and so on. Yeah, he does interesting, even exciting, things but always on the public dime.