https://newschematic.org/tags/space/Recent content in Space on New SchematicHugoen-usChristopher Boette, CC by-sa-ncFri, 10 Oct 2025 07:33:27 -0500https://newschematic.org/blog/how-brutal-is-the-rocket-equation/Fri, 10 Oct 2025 07:33:27 -0500https://newschematic.org/blog/how-brutal-is-the-rocket-equation/<h2 id="δv">Δv</h2> <p>Δv, or delta-v, is what keeps orbital engineers up at night. Simply, delta-v is the change in velocity that is necessary for anything to happen in space. One of the great promises of a momentum-exchange tether is that the system can transfer tremendous amounts of delta-v to a payload without paying exponential costs to do so.<sup id="fnref:1"><a href="#fn:1" class="footnote-ref" role="doc-noteref">1</a></sup></p> <p>However, we can&rsquo;t evaluate these claims in a vacuum (ha). To really get a sense of the unreasonable effectiveness of tethers, let&rsquo;s first look at the rocket equation more deeply.</p>https://newschematic.org/blog/how-to-save-327-6-million-using-rust/Tue, 09 Sep 2025 17:33:27 -0500https://newschematic.org/blog/how-to-save-327-6-million-using-rust/<p>It was 1999. In my memory, I&rsquo;m in Mr. Wilson&rsquo;s chemistry class when I hear about the cause of the crash, but I&rsquo;m not sure about that. What I am sure about, though, is the feeling: overwhelm at the sheer magnitude of the blunder. $327.6 million spacecraft was lost in seconds. Three years of development. Ten months traveling through space. All because two teams used different units.</p> <p>Could Rust have prevented this disaster?</p>