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The largest-ever solid rocket engine is ready for its first static fire
This week, the European Space Agency (ESA) will perform a hot fire test on the P120C rocket engine. It is the largest-ever solid rocket motor ever built in one piece. The ESA plans to use it on the Vega rocket, replacing the current first stage booster, as well as the upcoming Ariane 6, scheduled to launch in 2020.
CE-Oh no he didn't!: SpaceX creator Elon Musk says Ariane 5 rocket has 'no chance'
Entrepreneur Elon Musk is well-known for talking trash about the vehicular competition... just not when it involves rockets instead of four wheels. Still, that's what we're facing in the wake of a BBC interview. He tells the broadcaster that the Ariane 5 rocket stands "no chance" in the face of the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy systems from his own SpaceX outfit, as it's more expensive to use -- and the contrast will only get worse when a cheaper, next-generation Falcon 9 arrives, he says. Musk echoes France's position that Ariane should skip a mid-life upgrade to its vehicle and jump directly to a less expensive Ariane 6. The executive has a point when there's more than 40 booked SpaceX flights so early into the Falcon program's history, although there's something left to prove when the first scheduled Dragon capsule launch ran into a non-critical engine failure. We'll know that Musk can walk the walk if there's still a long line of SpaceX customers by the time Ariane 6 hits the launchpad.
