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The SLS gets quite some beating this night, I doubt it will be without damage.
 
Urwumpe said:
The SLS gets quite some beating this night, I doubt it will be without damage.
Click to expand...
Who would have thought that an exposed rocket on the pad, during a hurricane/tropical storm/whatever is not the best of ideas... 🤦‍♂️
 
Urwumpe said:
The SLS gets quite some beating this night, I doubt it will be without damage.
Click to expand...
I'd guess insulation foam damage and maybe some water intrusion. Remember, this thing is designed for the dynamic pressures you'd get during ascent. Granted, it's different, but structural strength is structural strength.
BUT... why does this remind me of the (unrealistic) windstorm in "The Martian"? :cautious:
And they ended up launching the MAV in that storm...

GLS said:
Who would have thought that an exposed rocket on the pad, during a hurricane/tropical storm/whatever is not the best of ideas... 🤦‍♂️
Click to expand...
I guess they weighed the risks of WX damage over structural issues from vibration and stresses during rollback.
Every time something happens with this beast, it feels like it gets a bit more fragile. I hope they launch it before it falls apart! :rolleyes:
 
GLS said:
Who would have thought that an exposed rocket on the pad, during a hurricane/tropical storm/whatever is not the best of ideas... 🤦‍♂️
Click to expand...

Well, a safe rollback was not possible that quickly. KSC went into HURRCON III on Tuesday.
 
Max-Q said:
I'd guess insulation foam damage and maybe some water intrusion. Remember, this thing is designed for the dynamic pressures you'd get during ascent. Granted, it's different, but structural strength is structural strength.
Click to expand...

The problem is, a rocket is designed for taking strong dynamic pressures nose first, while it still is a long hollow tin can for any load from the sides. And its a huge sail area, all that forces acting dynamically on the hold down posts and bolts. I doubt it will topple at such forces, but I am pretty sure, some structures will collect fractures.
 
Exactly. But boosters are designed to handle side loads form upper-air winds.
However, I wasn't thinking about the hold-down bolts... 😬🤞
I wonder if they could have partially pressurized the core stage with nitrogen to give it more side-load strength?
 
Max-Q said:
Exactly. But boosters are designed to handle side loads form upper-air winds.
However, I wasn't thinking about the hold-down bolts... 😬🤞
I wonder if they could have partially pressurized the core stage with nitrogen to give it more side-load strength?
Click to expand...

The core stage should be at pretty low pressure even at flight pressure. Not sure if this really makes a change.

Also, these are segmented SRBs, which can deform quite a lot by bending loads.

Flexibility is pretty good in this case, since it prevents most kinds of damage, but you can't make everything flexible on a rocket.
 
Urwumpe said:
The core stage should be at pretty low pressure even at flight pressure. Not sure if this really makes a change.
Click to expand...
Yeah, true. Just a crazy idea originating from the stuff I've read about the Mercury-Atlas that could collapse under it's own weight.

Urwumpe said:
Also, these are segmented SRBs, which can deform quite a lot by bending loads.

Flexibility is pretty good in this case, since it prevents most kinds of damage, but you can't make everything flexible on a rocket.
Click to expand...
Like that insulation foam?

Just checked the WX at the shuttle landing facility:
Wind 29 gusting 49 knots; Heavy rain
At least the wind isn't too bad right now...
 
Rough night for SLS, looks like it's gonna pass unscheduled level 1 hurricane test, hopefully unharmed (y)
 
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