SpaceX grid fin materials are resistant to high-temperature combustion during re-entry
the verdict
INSUFFICIENT LEANING
refutedsupported
the weight of evidence
4 sources for · 0 against
AS REPORTEDno primary record reached; this is what the reporting says
The retrieved records confirm that SpaceX uses grid fins during booster re-entry and note instances of charring or burning associated with them, but they do not comprehensively establish the specific material properties governing high-temperature combustion resistance.
The company said that production rate for Falcon 9 cores had only increased to 18 per year. They also said that the number of first stage cores that can be made at one time had doubled from three to six. The rate was expected to grow to 30 cores per year by the end of 2016.[59] Still, By August 2016, SpaceX was working towards a production capacity of 40 cores per year.[60]
Since 2018, SpaceX has usually reused first stages. This has reduced the need for new cores. In 2021, SpaceX had 31 F9 launches. Only two of those used new boosters. They recovered the booster on all but one flight. Design
The Falcon 9 is a two-stage rocket. it is powered by LOX and RP-1. Both stages have Merlin 1D rocket engines. The first stage has nine that are adapted for use at sea-level. The second stage has one that is adapted for use in a vacuum. The engines uses a pyrophoric mixture of triethylaluminum-triethylborane (TEA-TEB) to ignite the engine.[61] The first stage engines are set in a form SpaceX calls "Octaweb."[62] Many cores have four landing legs at the base of the Octaweb.[63] To control the core while it falls through the atmosphere, SpaceX uses grid fins.
# Is SpaceX grid fin material flammable?
Tags: spacex, falcon-9, grid-fins
- Score: 11
- Views: 1595
- Answers: 2
- Answered: yes
- Asked by: Perttu Yli-Opas (133 rep)
- Asked: 2016-12-15
- Edited: 2016-12-15
- Site: space
## Question
I was looking at the Thaicom 8 falcon 9 launch and landing, trying to get a bit more info about the trajectory the first stage takes. The camera is however damaged and we miss most of the atmospheric footage.
It seems however that the camera was damaged because a grid fin on the rocket was lit on fire by the monopropellant. You can see the event in this video (It'll start 07:18 which is T+00:06:53).
I don't know which RCS fuel they use but I'd imagine it coming out pretty hot and being able to light some materials on fire. It seems like the rocket is a bit sideways to the air flow, which brings the smut from the fire straight to the camera lens.
Does anybody know what the grid fins are made of? The paint on them might only be the flammable part too.
And, as a side note the landing seems really badly filmed, I'd imagine the would have had more cameras on the rocket and the barge, not only one which doesn't catch the landing and then freezes a f
# Why did the grid fin of the CRS-8/SES 10 booster burn?
- Tags: spacex, reentry, reuse, grid-fins
- Score: 22
- Views: 3,746
- Answers: 3
- Asked by: Jake Blocker (4,306 rep)
- Asked on: Mar 31, 2017
- Last active: Jul 30, 2019
- License: CC BY-SA 3.0
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## Question
After a successful reentry burn of the stage, around [10 seconds after engine shutdown](https://youtu.be/xsZSXav4wI8?t=25m55s), one of the fins glows red, then begins to burn. My question is why would this burn after the stage already completed to reentry burn to slow it down. And if this grid fin began to burn, why didn't the others?
Here's a picture of the fin just as it began to start to burn.
[](https://i.sstatic.net/GLIaN.jpg)
I know there was already a question about whether the grid fins are flammable but I'm just wondering why they burned when they did and what stopped the others from doing so. I read that SpaceX uses ablative paint on their gridfins which would explain why it is burning in the first place, but why would it do so after slowing down for the reentry burn?
The reentry burn typically happens at around 70-40 km in altitude. I w
SpaceX successfully launches its second rocket in three days [Updated] - Ars Technica
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4:40pm ET Sunday update: The Falcon 9 rocket took off amid a dense canopy of fog on Sunday, but nevertheless it successfully delivered a payload of 10 Iridium satellites into a good orbit. Then the first stage booster fired its engines for home. SpaceX founder Elon Musk had warned that landing conditions were marginal due to extreme weather, and that the droneship had had to be relocated as a result. But no matter, the first stage booster hit the mark on Just Read the Instructions all the same. Also, it appeared the new grid fins performed well, with little evidence of charring.
Original post: Chances are, if you’re a SpaceX employee, you’ve had a busy weekend. On Friday, the company successfully launched its second “used” Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Now, two days later, the company will attempt to launch a new Falcon 9 from California’s Vandenberg Air Force Base. The instantaneous launch window opens at 4:24pm ET.
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Everything we examined (4) — 3 independent sources
This check searched the claim as stated. It did not run a separate search for evidence against it.