(by Massimiliano D'Elia) Space Economy, since yesterday a new development opportunity for a sector that today is worth 300 billion of global turnover and is expected to increase 5 or 10 times in the next 3 decades.
Elon Musk's rocket, Crew Dragon he left on May 30, 2020, at 21.22 Italian time, with two American astronauts on board, Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken, respectively colonels of the Marine Corps and of the Us Air Force, with other important missions behind him with the Shuttle.
The project was developed with a new formula that saw, for the first time in the sector, the collaboration between private individuals and the government, Space X and NASA, with a common goal, that of saving taxpayers money (NASA absorbs approximately 4 percent of the American GDP) while pursuing essential strategic objectives for the domination of space, in a particularly delicate moment for the country.
Musk's Module is 6 meters tall, weighs 9,5 tons, has 7 seats and panoramic windows, will soon host wealthy tourists as well as Italian astronauts Parmitano and Cristoforetti.
The live broadcast of the launch was followed all over the world via social media and on many TV channels. In Italy on Focus TV there was a very high peak of "share", during the take-off phases and immediately after when the spectacular nature of the event was commented, examining many technical details that clearly highlighted the beginning of a very near future in the space for civilian passengers.
The module consisting of three parts or stages, after about ten minutes has lost a part, the first stage. A component that contains the 9 motors, all independent, which push the module beyond the atmosphere. In the event of an engine malfunction, one software gradually increases the power of the others to always guarantee the same power to the rocket.
An element that is too important that for costs and expressed technology cannot be lost. For this reason Elon Musk, with his technicians, has thought of a sophisticated system that allows the entire part to return to Earth in complete safety, ready to be reused for at least another 10 launches. Musk, according to NASA sources, is pushing his engineers to find a solution that allows the precious launch element to be used for at least 100 missions. Yesterday this part of the module landed in a few minutes on a platform positioned in the middle of the ocean. The landing was very precise with a delay of only 10 seconds with respect to the program, due to the unpredictable drafts present at the moment of impact with the atmosphere.
The intervention on was very compelling Focus TV of the lieutenant colonel of theAir Force, the cosmonaut Walter Villadei who recounted the importance of the event by highlighting that there is also a bit of Italy on the Crew Dragon. The two seats where the astronauts are positioned, Villadei points out, were made by an Italian company. These elements have been treated in detail because they must be able to guarantee the astronauts maximum comfort and a very high capacity to absorb and distribute all the stresses of the launch phase in a balanced manner over the entire surface of the seat so as not to burden the pilots' physique. and in the future of wealthy passengers.
In short, Italy is always at the forefront when it comes to expressing quality and niche products in high technology, as it happened in the Space Shuttle, where most of the components are made by many Italian companies.
After 9 years, the United States, in a delicate moment for the country, launched a rocket into space directly from American soil, regaining full autonomy. Trump despite the disputes due to the Covid-19 emergency and the clashes that are setting the country on fire after the events in Minneapolis, he could not miss the event, he went to the Kennedy Space Center to witness the launch of the story.
Just after the launch he said: "Incredible", Then announced to the country that he has"the beginning of a new space age has begun: the first woman on the Moon will be American and the United States will be the first on Mars! "
A launch that could give the US the kick it needs right now. A very special moment that sees, for the first time, the tycoon's popularity drop steadily. The stimulus to the economy given by Trump based on the "America First" paradigm had favored employment by generating millions of jobs, launching the stars and stripes GDP far beyond the rosiest expectations. Trump's leadership seemed indestructible. With Covid-19 everything has changed internally but also abroad in the close confrontation with China and from yesterday also with the WHO to which the US will no longer provide funds.
Returning to the mission at 16.29:XNUMX today Crew Dragon will dock the international space station.
The President of the Italian Space Agency also spoke about the historic day, George Saccoccia: "The beginning of a new commercial era for human space flights. There is also the contribution of Italy, thanks to the support provided by the ASI base, Broglio Space Center in Malindi in Kenya. that tracks the flight of the Crew Dragon. Congratulations to NASA, our historical partner for over 50 years".
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