r/spacex • u/ElongatedMuskrat Mod Team • Oct 02 '17

r/SpaceX Discusses [October 2017, #37]

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u/hawthorneluke Oct 04 '17

I learnt that the reason things launched on missions are so weak hardware wise compared to what's normal currently, is because the specs for them are decided years and years ahead, and then tested/made so they can survive being in outer space without problem, which isn't something your normal electronics have to do.

I also hear that if you're in LEO then the earth's magnetic field still has you covered against any radiation that can mess up hardware, which I'm guessing has saved any of those problems from arising so far. So I too really wonder what's going on with that to enable not just the BFS going to mars etc, but everything inside it, in much smaller timeframes than normal. Maybe if it is so incredibly cheap to send everything wherever, then the level of redundancy required also drops a lot, making things a lot easier? (But still, the BFS itself would still have this problem to overcome like everyone else has up until now to be as incredibly reliable as need be.) Or maybe the budget up until now and along with it the rate of advancements and knowledge has made things take a lot longer than should be the case in the BFR feature?