Tesla, first car in space

amberwolf

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I guess the marketing opportunity was too much to resist:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCc16uozHVE



That said, landable reusable heavy-lift rockets, for real, finally. (not just demo-scale stuff like the Delta Clipper, or technology proving flights, etc).

Maybe we really will get back into space; maybe (just barely) within my lifetime. (not just satellites, tiny research stations, small robotic missions, etc., but commercially-viable self-sustaining expansion of humanity off our little rock).


Back when I was a kid, I figured at the rate things were going we'd have colonies on the moon, if not mars/etc., by now. Yeah...kid dreams.
 
The rocket required a dummy payload. Normally a large steel block would have been used but the car was sent instead for the lulz.
 
Exactly, too untested to risk an expensive new satellite, or mars lander. Needs to have a payload, why not a car?

But as ad dollars go, blows away the cost of a super bowl commercial. Must be the most expensive ad in all history. Or, depending on the point of view, free.
 
OK, you've got me there. ;)

Though it was a lot more than 40 years. 2018 now, 40 years would've been 1978, and there hadn't been a moon mission in years. 50 years would be 1968 (I"ll be that in just under 3 months), so closer; 48.4 years more accurate. :p


I suppose I meant "first commercially-produced car"; something people would recognize as one. (vs a "science experiment")
 
I'm going to assume he removed the battery pack from the car before loading it on the rocket since a bunch of 18650's burning up unexpectedly would be a slight buzzkill for the mission?
 
amberwolf said:
OK, you've got me there. ;)

Though it was a lot more than 40 years. 2018 now, 40 years would've been 1978, and there hadn't been a moon mission in years. 50 years would be 1968 (I"ll be that in just under 3 months), so closer; 48.4 years more accurate. :p
The "Luna Rover" landed with Apollo 15 in 1971, so 47 yrs ago... (isnt Wiki' useful ! :wink: )
But actually it was preceeded by the Russian "Lunakod 1". Autonamous vehicle which landed on the moon in 1970.
Recently i believe the Chinese have also landed and operated a Luna exploring vehicle.
But the US wins on shere numbers with 3 Luna Rovers on the moon currently !
Sound like its a bit of a parking lot up there now ! :D
Counting the various Mars Rover vehicles, there are multiple EVs in front of Tesla, all of them with much more functionality.
I doubt there was much "Commercial" about the Roadster,...they have not started producing them yet .
Infact , its a good bet there are more Luna Rovers on the moon than there are Tesla Roaster 2s on Earth ? :lol:
 
Yeah, technically the moon rover was a car. But I thought of it as more like an off road vehicle. Sort of like you would not call a WWII army mule a car, though it did have four wheels and carry people.

But yeah, its a car. Just like fords first cars were, though to look at them you sure don't see "car".

The unmanned rovers are bots though, not cars.
 
Apparently he also put a storage device with hundreds of terrabytes of history and knowledge designed to last for millions of years in the car. In the radio? Glovebox?
 
Apparently so: https://techcrunch.com/2018/02/09/the-special-data-device-spacexs-falcon-heavy-sent-to-orbit-is-just-the-start/
 
Punx0r said:
Apparently so: https://techcrunch.com/2018/02/09/the-special-data-device-spacexs-falcon-heavy-sent-to-orbit-is-just-the-start/
So the only thing on it is the foundation series? Lol going to be some confused aliens or unrecognizable descendants of ours that crawl out of our ashes.
 
[/quote]
I doubt there was much "Commercial" about the Roadster,...they have not started producing them yet .
Infact , its a good bet there are more Luna Rovers on the moon than there are Tesla Roaster 2s on Earth ? :lol:
[/quote]




The roadster was the first cars Tesla ever produced. Selling 2,450 since 2008.
 
The regular falcon 9 block 5 should be able to put a roadster in a Martian orbit. Not sure about the entry tho but strap on a sky crane and land that puppy. Do some burnouts around curiosity. Lol. Use some solar city solar panels and you got yourself the first solar supercharger on Mars. Lol. Elon's typical dream.
If you look closely in the pics it looks like they removed the brake rotors...those won't slow you down.
 
Hillhater said:
st35326 said:
The roadster was the first cars Tesla ever produced. Selling 2,450 since 2008.
.....Different Roadster.....
He launched a Roadster 2


We launched a first generation Roadster, which was basically a Lotus body with a Tesla drivetrain and Panasonic cells. Trust me when I tell you there are not enough Roadster 2.0 prototypes to launch into space.
 
st35326 said:
Hillhater said:
st35326 said:
The roadster was the first cars Tesla ever produced. Selling 2,450 since 2008.
.....Different Roadster.....
He launched a Roadster 2
Are you with space x or Tesla? Why the foundation series. I would guess Elon identifies with the brilliant scientist that accepts the fall of empire as given and must singlehandedly craft a plan to pull humanity from the dark ages.

We launched a first generation Roadster, which was basically a Lotus body with a Tesla drivetrain and Panasonic cells. Trust me when I tell you there are not enough Roadster 2.0 prototypes to launch into space.
 
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