Hacker News

Favorites Setup
Comment by exe34 | original | SpaceX catches the Starship to end Flight 15
[−]exe34 · 2026-11-15 Sun 09:00 UTC · link
If they are as precise as they are now, can't they land on asian latrine type launchpads? Like the ones the shuttle used to take off from, with the guides for the blast to go through.
[−]fartfeatures · 2026-11-15 Sun 09:06 UTC · link
That would require landing legs, which would reduce usable payload to orbit significantly, the tyranny of the rocket equation.
[−]zardo · 2026-11-15 Sun 16:02 UTC · link
That was the original concept for the booster. You need some sort of giant rocket manipulator at the launch pad no matter what. If you can make it double as an active landing target, you go from needing cm level to m level landing precision.