Watched some of the official coverage: https://www.youtube.com/live/5CRB3FHV9Dw
Things that were new to me:
- 1:40:50 Drone footage of the capsule lift
- 34:42 Jones explains that the same set of 12 hooks secures Dragon to either its nosecone or to the ISS. Makes perfect sense; I’d just never thought about it before.
- 1:35:57 “There are multiple options so if Dragon were to splash down in a different orientation they could egress from the top hatch as well.”
- Would this be a last resort after they’d tried & failed to correct the orientation?
- Would it only be used when Dragon was still in the sea or would they ever lift Dragon onto the boat in an orientation that necessitated top hatch egress?
And all this talk of Dragon orientation, combined with the extensive weather delays in Crew-8’s departure, got me wondering … How would Dragon fare if it was left in very rough seas for an extended period? (Imagine the recovery vessel broke down a minute after splash-down and then a big multi-day storm blew in, or something.)
Given Dragon’s shape and mass distribution, I would not have thought it could float in a different orientation. Interesting to know that they have planned for that.
As for the capsule’s long-term seaworthiness, it would probably do fine, though I’m less certain about its occupants. Power could be an issue, since Dragon ditches its solar panels before reentry.
I would not have thought it could float in a different orientation
Me either. But they call that orientation “Stable 1”, possibly implying they’ve accounted for other stable orientations, and some non-stable situations.
Here was the first time I heard that term (with Bob & Doug): https://www.youtube.com/live/tSJIQftoxeU?t=6h29m34s
The commentator then gives some explanation.
Post-splashdown news conference: https://youtu.be/gOUoI-UYi2Y
They mentioned that Cargo Dragon sometimes reuses parachutes, which I didn’t know.