Posts: 106
From: Santa Clara, CA, USA
Registered: Nov 2009

posted 05-26-2021 10:52 PM               

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Wondering if SpaceX Falcon 9 first stages are landing on the barges because it is cheaper than fueling a return to launch site landing?

I've not seen any Cape Canaveral landings since their first launches.

Posts: 1225
From: Perth, Western Australia
Registered: Apr 2015

posted 05-27-2021 04:03 AM               

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Where SpaceX lands the booster depends upon the payload mass and destination.

The Falcon 9 booster has a finite amount of propellant, some of which is required for landing. The faster the vehicle goes, the more propellant is required to turn around. Slow down, and land back at the Cape.

Using the barge removes the requirement to turn back, saving that amount of propellant mass.

If the payload mass is larger, more first-stage propellant is required to lift the launch mass off the ground and accelerate it to a velocity at which the second stage thrust and fuel mass can loft the payload.

It is a balancing act between payload and capability. I suspect that the cost of moving the barge and support vessels from the Port, to sea, and return, combined with the risk of losing a serviceable rocket from the barge in rough seas would never outweigh the preference to land the booster back at the Cape, which would reduce the recovery cost significantly. The cost of propellant would be one of the smaller expenses.