A sad day today for Elon musk and all of us who are really into SpaceX and our quest to colonize the universe. The rocket was being fueled for a static firing test ahead of Saturday’s launch of the Amos 6 satellite when it exploded on the launch pad. Not one was hurt. But this sets back SpaceX and that is a very sad day today.



  1. Musk should buy his lift rockets from the Russians like the U.S. Government does.

    They cost less, and work better.

    • Likes2LOL says:

      I once worked on a farm, and one of the tractor engines caught on fire when the neutral safety interlock switch on the transmission shorted out and the starter wouldn’t disengage and it overheated when I tried to start it and all the grease and oil on the engine caught on fire and the whole engine and front part of the tractor burnt up and before I could get the battery disconnected and Geez, Louise! was the farmer mad but it wasn’t *MY* fault so fortunately I didn’t lose my job but it did cost the farmer a lot of money.

      I bet Mr. Musk is mad, too. 😉 I recommend he doublecheck the neutral safety interlock switch on his next rocket before he gets mad at the employees…

      • Milwaukee Bob says:

        Damn, I HATE when that happens.

        • Likes2LOL says:

          AND THEN, a few years after the tractor fire incident, I had taken to carrying a fire extinguisher in my car and one day I was sitting at a stoplight when a well-dressed businessman on the other side of the intersection with a very nice new looking Chevrolet Kingswood Estate station wagon had steam coming out from under the hood and when the man opened the hood I could see it wasn’t steam but smoke and then I saw the FLAMES and I like a heroic volunteer firefighter after the tractor incident I grabbed my fire extinguisher and ran across the intersection and opened that baby up on the engine and heroically put out the fire! The man’s wife got out of the car in her expensive-looking fur coat and stood on the sidewalk with a stunned look on her face and then the man asked me and some of the other pedestrian onlookers if we would help push the car out of traffic which we did and then I approached the man and asked if he wouldn’t mind paying for me to have the fire extinguisher refilled and he balked and told me he hadn’t ASKED me to put out the fire and wasn’t intending me to pay for it. I got REALLY MAD and said “Hey look, buddy, I just put out the fire and kept your nice new expensive car from going up in flames and you’re going to stiff me for the price of refilling my extinguisher??” and I looked at the other guys who were still looking in the engine compartment and who had helped push the car and asked them in a VERY LOUD voice “Do you all think this man should reimburse me for refilling my fire extinguisher, because he says he won’t” and the crowd quickly turned into a lynch mob scene with people shouting “PAY THE MAN! PAY THE MAN!” at the businessman who suddenly relented and asked my how much I wanted and I said 20 bucks which was too much but I figured he needed to learn a lesson so I jacked up the price. The man looked at his wife and said “Margaret, pay this man 20 bucks” and the woman who was very nice opened her purse and gave me 20 bucks and sincerely said “Thank you so much for putting out the fire” to me. I took out my wallet and put the twenty in and took out 2 fives and gave 5 dollars each to the 2 guys who had helped push the car and loudly said “Here’s 5 bucks for helping to push the car” so the businessman and his wife could hear it. too. Then, I turned and looked at the businessman and said “You need to learn some manners, pal” and one of the other 2 guys looked at the businessman and said loudly “You’re an ASSHOLE, pal”. Vengeance is mine, sayeth the volunteer Good Samaritan firefighter! 😉

          • Milwaukee Bob says:

            Phew! That just goes to show ya…it’s ALWAYS something. My little Anna Rosanna Danna.

  2. Kaboom says:

    Didn’t seem to bother the birds much.

  3. NewFormatSux says:

    It exploded while being fueled? How do they mess that up?
    Did a solar collector concentrate sun rays on the gas?

    • Hmeyers says:

      Is that what happened?

      Would be interesting to know why or how it exploded.

      From the video it did just appear to be sitting on launchpad.

      • NewFormatSux says:

        I was joking, thinking about Die Hard 2, but it probably does use a flammable fuel.

  4. Cynical says:

    Looks to me like everyone’s TAXES went up a notch or two.

    … Everyone except super rich guys like Elon Musk, that is. And in case you’re late to how rich people play the shell game of funding, don’t be fooled. Not one single penny of Elon’s personal cash horde was EVER at any risk of being lost.

    I really HATE this guy. Such a waste trying to escape planet earth rather than advance any sort of humanity stuck behind. Talk about, “conceited”!

  5. bobbo, the pragmatic existential evangelical anti-theist says:

    Three elements to fire/explosions: oxygen, fuel, heat/ignition.

    Applied to rockets being refuled…..all you need is a spark. Which can be from the rocket, or from outside the rocket as in static electricity.

    I always knew rockets were fueled by liquid oxygen. What I didn’t know is that it is super cooled which is what all those off gases are…creating super concentrated oxygenated atmosphere….aka: highly combustible.

    Super cooled to make it more dense so the rockets can have more of it to mix with kerosene.

    I wonder why more rockets don’t explode…………..

    But I’m ready to throw the program out in favor of food stamps if its purpose is to “colonize the universe.”

    We have a moronic quest, and a Pedro…..I guess that makes Perkel Don Quixote………..it all fits.

    • Hmeyers says:

      “I’m ready to throw the program out in favor of food stamps”

      Might be tough to do since you don’t have a space program. 🙂

      You have to be a billionaire like Elon Musk, Richard Branson or Jeff Bezos.

      Probably why you don’t get invited to the meetings, hahaha

      • bobbo, the pragmatic existential evangelical anti-theist says:

        Me…… you…… we the people ……. the Gubment.

        All the same thing……… unless you are a commie.

        • Hmeyers says:

          Globalists run the government now. Big Money, special interests, mega corps.

          You and I aren’t megacorps. We don’t have a say.

          You and I can talk, they write checks. The politicians prefer that 2nd one.

          • bobbo, the pragmatic existential evangelical anti-theist says:

            Good point to always keep in mind….but its still true we the people still have the vote. Corps will run the country except on those issues that capture the publics mind and politicians who get in front of those mobs.

            You see that a bit with the drug legalization programs.

            It is rare though. Rarer than it should be even with the country nearly split on every issue you can name.

          • Hmeyers says:

            Drug legalization is happening because authoritarian dogma is losing.

            Gay rights, science, etc. are all winning too.

            Authoritarians like to tell people what to do without a reason to back it up.

            Megacorps don’t care about those things, oppressing people and screwing with people for little to no reason doesn’t get megacorps more money.

            Besides, megacorps like to act like they care.

            So Tim Cook at Apple LIKES politics to stick his head in a little about gay rights for no reason.

            Then when the EU has their anti-American politics and rules that Apple must pay $15 billion in taxes suddenly he HATES politics 🙂

          • NewFormatSux says:

            That’s not Anti-American, they are mad at Ireland for having low tax rates. ‘Harmful competition’ they call it. They got Ireland to reverse two no votes in referendums by assuring them they would keep sovereignty including specifically on tax rates, but they feel enough time has passed to change the deal.
            You would think they would be worried about Brexit, that Ireland might follow, but instead they want to tighten their control.

          • Hmeyers says:

            That is your story.

            The EU frequently targets Google, Apple and Microsoft specifically for fines, taxes and regulation.

            Reading the EU “talking points” to me just means you don’t filter information.

          • NewFormatSux says:

            The EU is anti-American other times, but here it is Ireland’s taxes. They are even doing it in a way to put the Irish people against the government, declaring that Ireland can spend the money domestically rather than the usual requirement to pay down debt.

          • Hmeyers says:

            You say it isn’t political.

            Then you point out the EU is doing something very irregular by saying “declaring that Ireland can spend the money domestically rather than the usual requirement to pay down debt”

            If it isn’t political, why would they waive the requirement of it being used to pay down debt.

          • Milwaukee Bob says:

            “Good point to always keep in mind….but its still true we the people still have the vote. ”

            They’ll listen to me or I ‘ll vote for the other guy!!!

            Best laugh I’ve had all day.

          • NewFormatSux says:

            Of course they are being political. It is just not the anti-American political.
            Indeed, America started with the bashing of Irish taxes complaining about Microsoft and U2.

  6. bobbo, the pragmatic existential evangelical anti-theist says:

    Speaking of the oligarchy running the planet, if we assume Elon the God knows how to preflight his rockets…. I have to wonder if he blew up Zuckerbergs satellite on purpose??? Not that they probably aren’t in fact good buds. Anybody got the guest list for the last Bilderberg Group conclave?

    • jpfitz says:

      Here is the list. Well, the list given to us.

      http://bilderbergmeetings.org/participants.html

      • ± says:

        jpfitz, that is bullshit as you already indicated. But pardon me for stating it more directly.

      • bobbo, the pragmatic existential evangelical anti-theist says:

        thanks jp. What amazes me is that such a large group meets every year to talk about their grand kiddies. I guess they do grow and change every year.

    • Milwaukee Bob says:

      Google it dummy.

      • bobbo, the pragmatic existential evangelical anti-theist says:

        To the cognoscenti, an obvious joke based on a rhetorical premise. I assume jp was merely curious himself and posted since he did the work.

        Now…..anybody happen to grab the daily schedule of presentations and speakers? If any of the confrers shared a room??? Thats where the real deals are struck.

    • NewFormatSux says:

      Are the Rothchilds involved?

      • NewFormatSux says:

        If so, then perhaps they had Hillary take out the satellite as penance:


        Lynn, I was trying to reach you to tell you and Teddy that I asked Tony Blair to go to Israel as part of our full court press on keeping the Middle East

        negotiations going. He told me that he had a commitment in Aspen w you two and the conference, but after we talked, he decided to go and asked me

        to tell you. He is very sorry, obviously, but I’m grateful that he accepted my request. I hope you all understand and give him a raincheck.

        UNCLASSIFIED U.S. Department of State Case No. F-2014-20439 Doc No. C05774018 Date: 08/31/2015 If you were interested, he might be able to

        satellite in if you have the technology available. He should land around Sam Aspen time. Let me know what penance I owe you. And pis explain to

  7. Ah_Yea says:

    SpaceX can’t survive another one of these.

    Not only did the rocket blow up, so did the satellite, the launchpad, and all the support structure.
    A MASSIVE failure on a historic launchpad that Bezos wanted!

  8. Ah_Yea says:

    The larger issue, is Musk going to run out of money??

    I believe so, and this article’s bottom line says it all.

    Musk “is going to run out of tax rebates before he gets to the real world consumer.”

    http://latimes.com/business/autos/la-fi-hy-musk-tesla-autopilot-cash-flow-20160901-snap-story.html

    • Hmeyers says:

      He’s been in that situation at least once (maybe twice) before.

    • NewFormatSux says:

      The Model 3 customers will use up the rebates, before even getting to those who ordered the base model version and will get theirs later. Don’t know which one Perkel signed up for.

  9. Mr Diesel - Libertarian says:

    While I am glad that no one was hurt and I do support the effort to get the hell off this planet I also find it HILARIOUS that Zuckerburger lost his damn satellite. Screw that little weasel.

  10. NewFormatSux says:

    What is SpaceX doing launching satellites? I thought all their test landings on the boat have failed? I’m pretty sure if they were successful, I’d have heard about it.

    • bobbo, the pragmatic existential evangelical anti-theist says:

      Ever hear of google?

      The answers are right at your fingertips, but you prefer to crow your ignorance.

      Why is that?

      • ± says:

        bobbo was unable to address NewFormatSux’s post in a cogent manner so he responded with following babble:

        ************ start babble *******
        Ever hear of google?

        The answers are right at your fingertips, but you prefer to crow your ignorance.

        Why is that?
        ******* end babbble *************

        • NewFormatSux says:

          Bobbo likes to project.

        • bobbo, the pragmatic existential evangelical anti-theist says:

          Of course I could give the answer to nfs…but I was hoping to teach the man how to fish so he could survive in this information age on his own rather than panhandle in the streets for basic information.

          Evidently, he and his cohorts are immune to edumacation.

          Waste of a species.

        • NewFormatSux says:

          Alternatively

          ************ start bobbo *******

  11. jpfitz says:

    This is how to get into orbit. Amazing how Russia has a more reliable transport to the ISS. 500 lift-offs, wow.

    http://space.com/30442-blast-off-new-crew-launch-will-make-it-9-on-space-station-video.html

  12. jpfitz says:

    Leaving this planet and dreaming of colonizing another is ludicrous at this time without killing the crew/passengers.

    “Special provisions would also be necessary to protect against a solar proton event, which could increase fluxes to levels that would kill a crew in hours or days rather than months or years. Potential mitigation strategies include providing a small habitable space behind a spacecraft’s water supply or with particularly thick walls or providing an option to abort to the protective environment provided by the Earth’s magnetosphere.”

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_threat_from_cosmic_rays

  13. Ah_Yea says:

    Hold the presses!!

    The rocket was attacked! Shot down by a drone!!

    http://dailystar.co.uk/news/latest-news/542878/spacex-rocket-explosion-elon-musk-falcon-9-attacked

    I believe…. Bezos!!

    • NewFormatSux says:

      Oh my, look for Marc Perkel to post about boycotting Amazon, Washington Post, and more.

    • NewFormatSux says:

      Or maybe that was Marc’s drone looking to get some video, and it accidentally reflected some sunlight ad sparked the fuel.

      • Ah_Yea says:

        Har!!
        It’s Marc’s fault!!
        He’s a Bezos spy. Get close, stick the knife in…

        • jpfitz says:

          Oh, you’re terrible, but I can’t stop laughing.
          “Get close, stick the knife in…”

          I don’t know why that’s so funny, it’s terrible. That line must be from a book or movie.

          • Ah_Yea says:

            Thank you, thank you.

            I just made it up. What a mental image! Perkel, I knew he was bad…

  14. jpfitz says:

    How NASA is working to take us deeper.

    http://marketwatch.com/story/how-nasa-is-working-to-take-us-deeper-into-space-2016-09-01?siteid=yhoof2

    Maybe too little too late with the new epoch upon us.

  15. Martin says:

    NASA hasn’t done anything like since the Atlas rockets of the late 50’s early 60’s blew up.

  16. B. Dog says:

    The company that was trying to launch a satellite in space wants some money. They were going to sell out to the chiners before this mess.

    http://arstechnica.com/science/2016/09/spacex-explosion-amos-6-satellite-owner-demands-50-million-dollars/

  17. sensor operator says:

    Nobody Is Right AH the Tune. Realize that it is not required that a
    person be 100% right at all times. It is in the nature of things that we progress by acting, making mistakes, and correcting course. A guided torpedo arrives at its target literally by making a series of mistakes and continually correcting its course.

    Thomas Edison’s wife once’ observed that, “Mr. Edison worked
    endlessly on a problem, using the method of elimination. If a person asked him whether he were discouraged because so many attempts proved unavailing, he would say, ‘No, I am not discouraged, because every wrong attempt discarded is another step forward.'”

    It was a big step forward!


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