The launch of a new rocket is always an exciting event. SpaceX’s ‘go fast and fail’ approach means that even though the test ended with engineers blowing up the rocket, it was a valuable first flight.
Rocket emissions in the upper atmosphere can damage the ozone layer but are neither measured nor regulated. It’s a policy gap we have to close if the space industry is to grow sustainably.
Rocket launches release hazardous pollutants in the atmosphere’s upper layers.
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Chances are small that space junk will destroy property or harm a person, and existing space law could deal with such an event. But current law doesn’t address the bigger problem of space pollution.
This are looking up when it comes to launching things into space from Australia. The rules on what can be launched are currently under review and open for comment.
Aircraft and missiles on display at Woomera, South Australia. Will we launch more rockets from here in the future?
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We’ve launched rockets from Woomera in South Australia, but in reality Australia could support multiple launch sites. And the closer to the equator, typically the better.
Why no rocket launch plans from Australia?
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Proposed changes to Australia’s space activities legislation do little to inspire confidence in the government’s approach to a commercial space industry.
The ability to land rocket boosters makes them reusable, substantially reducing the cost of launches.
SpaceX
Automatic feedback control is what enabled the Falcon Heavy rocket boosters to land. It also drives most of our technology – and even describes the fundamentals of how humans and animals behave.
Falcon Heavy’s first payload will be a Tesla Roadster, set to become the world’s fastest car following its launch into a heliocentric orbit.
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SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy could propel two fully loaded city buses more than 50 times the height of Mount Everest at 32 times the cruising speed of a Boeing 747.