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sjtrny
on Aug 23, 2014
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SpaceX rocket explodes during testing over Texas
I wonder if the reusable rockets from SpaceX could recover from a flipped position during re-entry?
exDM69
on Aug 23, 2014
[–]
No, they can't. Once you're supersonic, the aerodynamic stress will tear a rocket into shreds if there's even a few degrees of angle of attack.
Gravityloss
on Aug 23, 2014
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parent
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But if you're high enough, the forces are not very high, so there's probably a Q limit, (that is, proportional to density * speed^2).
lutorm
on Aug 23, 2014
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root
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Yeah, the landing attempts obviously flip before entry, while they're out of the atmosphere.
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