The carbon fiber fuel tank, which is planned to be installed in the new Martian spacecraft SpaceX, successfully passed the first tests. Elon Musk, CEO of the SpaceX space company, said that this tank is one of the most complex and necessary parts of the future ship, so he needs to pay special attention.
Yes, this thing in the photo above (note the people in the lower right corner) - this is the very tank. The design and material of which it is made, can withstand extreme pressure and temperature. Carbon fiber is much lighter and stronger than metal, which is usually used to create tanks for spacecraft, but to create a tank out of this fiber is quite difficult and expensive, and yet you need to make sure that there are no leaks in it, and the wall thickness is the same .
This is a very complicated part of the spacecraft, ”said Elon Musk,“ we do well with other details, but with the tank everything is not so fast and simple, therefore, with it we will start testing.
They were testing a tank on a huge barge, which they had previously brought to the center of the lake. Apparently, the risk of harm to people and buildings in the case of ground tests was unreasonably high.
A couple of weeks ago, Space X conducted tests with cryogenic fuel, which also ended successfully. Now it is definitely early to talk about great successes, but a good start in preparing for the first Martian mission, Space X is definitely good. According to Mask, its launch can take place in 2023.
The article is based on materials .
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