SpaceX Starship Path to One Month. One Week, One Day and Hours to Reuse
by Brian Wang from NextBigFuture.com on (#7788M)
The fundamental challenges that remain for the Starship heat shield. Mechanical loads on ascent (vibration + higher dynamic pressure). Coefficient of thermal expansion mismatch (steel expands far more than the silica-based tiles). Plasma intrusion into tile seams. These are being attacked with better attachments, gap sealing, edge geometry, and load-sensing tiles. Why these numbers? Tiles ...