A Sound of Thunder: The Rise of the Soviet Superbooster

[Athelstane]

I enjoy the posts of all the posters involved here, and I've been guilty of straying off topic on this thread in recent days, too.

...but I do think that we really have hijacked poor @nixonshead's timeline. Maybe we could move the current discussion over to a separate thread on Chat?

 

[RanulfC]

I enjoy the posts of all the posters involved here, and I've been guilty of straying off topic on this thread in recent days, too.

...but I do think that we really have hijacked poor @nixonshead's timeline. Maybe we could move the current discussion over to a separate thread on Chat?

Might be a good idea

Randy

 

[Craig]

FYI: The last update was January 23, on page 47.
OTOH, he may feel complimented that his TL has generated so much interest that it's still hotly discussed two months and twenty-three pages later.

 

[RanulfC]

FYI: The last update was January 23, on page 47.
OTOH, he may feel complimented that his TL has generated so much interest that it's still hotly discussed two months and twenty-three pages later.

Or it may be that we readers have kidnapped him and are holding him in a small dimly lit basement till the generates enough updates (and art) to satisfy our greedy needs...
You know, just saying....

Randy

 

[Athelstane]

Or it may be that we readers have kidnapped him and are holding him in a small dimly lit basement till the generates enough updates (and art) to satisfy our greedy needs...
You know, just saying....

Randy

"It finishes the Soviet space station update or it gets the hose again."

 

[KAL_9000]

Yeah, I was going to say, this is the “what if N1 worked timeline” thread, not the “rant about Starship/SpaceX/commercial space in general” thread.

 

[Ry01tank]

Yeah, I was going to say, this is the “what if N1 worked timeline” thread, not the “rant about Starship/SpaceX/commercial space in general” thread.

I wish i didn't nap i had the document deciding SpaceX pulled up
(Blue Moon is a different design from National Team lander and the old design had issues)
lol

I am done talking about it, lets get back on track

Will Delta-III be successful ITTL?, maybe a further modification of Delta with widened and stretched tanks

 

[Ry01tank]

FYI: The last update was January 23, on page 47.
OTOH, he may feel complimented that his TL has generated so much interest that it's still hotly discussed two months and twenty-three pages later.

Your welcome

Also RanaulfC had a bunch of posts, this recent Starship one, and the reusable Saturn 1 dissusion, the "Capitalism vs Communism" debate which got heated enough to make a mod bring the hammer down with a "stop talking about it" recommendation
We also have a splinter threat for the Commonwealth stuff

 

[TheKutKu]

FYI: The last update was January 23, on page 47.
OTOH, he may feel complimented that his TL has generated so much interest that it's still hotly discussed two months and twenty-three pages later.

The timeline was more predictable in the hiatus between Part 1 and 2, there are just so much uncertainty associated with the upcoming turmoil and eventual fall of the USSR, and also the upcoming commercialisation of space, there's more to think about. It's fun.

 

[Athelstane]

Will Delta-III be successful ITTL?, maybe a further modification of Delta with widened and stretched tanks

*If* McDonnell can make it more reliable right out of the gate, and *if* the EELV program as we know it does not come along at that moment, I think it's *possible* that it could. At least, for a little while. Ultimately, Mickey D/Boeing (assuming the merger happens ITTL) is going to need something more to meet DoD requirements and stay competitive, which was a struggle for them even with Delta IV coming online...

But speaking of the Delta family....I hope I may take the small liberty of noting that the very last vehicle of the family is supposed to launch from the Cape tomorrow. A 64-year long story, and it's finally coming to an end.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1773034150330573056

 

[nixonshead]

FYI: The last update was January 23, on page 47.
OTOH, he may feel complimented that his TL has generated so much interest that it's still hotly discussed two months and twenty-three pages later.

Honestly, I've been so busy with other stuff I haven't had a chance to follow the thread so closely. It's nice that the thread keeps appearing near the top of the forum, makes me look more popular But yeah, probably best to open specific threads for specific topics.
Also, to reassure you, I have started blocking out Part 3, so it's moving slowly forward. For art, I have a major project to finish up in April, then 2-3 commissions in queue, but I really hope to get back to personal stuff (like this TL) in the summer.
Thanks for the continued interest!

 

[Ry01tank]

*If* McDonnell can make it more reliable right out of the gate, and *if* the EELV program as we know it does not come along at that moment, I think it's *possible* that it could. At least, for a little while. Ultimately, Mickey D/Boeing (assuming the merger happens ITTL) is going to need something more to meet DoD requirements and stay competitive, which was a struggle for them even with Delta IV coming online...

But speaking of the Delta family....I hope I may take the small liberty of noting that the very last vehicle of the family is supposed to launch from the Cape tomorrow. A 64-year long story, and it's finally coming to an end.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1773034150330573056

Bye Bye Delta

I was thinking more of a different then otl design for the Delta-III, say EELV happens and McDonnell gets a bid

I have a mental image of Delta-2 in a common core config like Delta 4, just with widened and stretched tanks (more widened)
That way the Thor first stage can have a complicated name like Improved Extended Long Tank Thor, and with SRB's Improved Extended Thrust Augmented Long Tank Thor

I would be happy just if the design was OTL Delta-IV, just as long as its blue and looks like a NASCAR with the logos on the side like Delta-II had

 

[Athelstane]

I would be happy just if the design was OTL Delta-IV, just as long as its blue and looks like a NASCAR with the logos on the side like Delta-II had

Believe it or not, someone asked Tory Bruno for that on Twitter a few years ago, and Tory actually responded:

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1353773379103420416

 

[Juumanistra]

But speaking of the Delta family....I hope I may take the small liberty of noting that the very last vehicle of the family is supposed to launch from the Cape tomorrow. A 64-year long story, and it's finally coming to an end.

Hey, the H3's still flying, so the Delta family is still going strong! H3 has about much in common with the N-I as the Delta IV Heavy has in common with the Long Tank Thor, after all.

 

[Athelstane]

Hey, the H3's still flying, so the Delta family is still going strong! H3 has about much in common with the N-I as the Delta IV Heavy has in common with the Long Tank Thor, after all.

There is a bit of Ship-of-Theseus about the development of many of these very long lived rocket families, I suppose.

There is a little bit of Delta in the Vulcan-Centaur, but there's more Atlas. In another age, I don't doubt that it would be called the Atlas VI. In the end, however, I'm lazy enough to defer to what the operators decide to call these things.

 

[Sasza]

Returning to the alternative EELV, previous work may indicate that American companies will not be very interested in Russian engines. Private investors can reach for them, but large companies can avoid it.

 

[Athelstane]

Returning to the alternative EELV, previous work may indicate that American companies will not be very interested in Russian engines. Private investors can reach for them, but large companies can avoid it.

Quite possibly. The question is, however, how much administrations in the 90's will lean on them to pipeline them, as part of the (probably inevitable) policy of trying to keep Russian rocket engineers and techs from selling their services to the likes of North Korea or Iran?

 

[Sasza]

Quite possibly. The question is, however, how much administrations in the 90's will lean on them to pipeline them, as part of the (probably inevitable) policy of trying to keep Russian rocket engineers and techs from selling their services to the likes of North Korea or Iran?

The first solution will be to build an ISS. Perhaps, as part of some commercialization of supplies to the moon, supply flights with the participation of N-1 could be made. The biggest change would be the return to using RP-1 in LR-87 engines.

 

[Ry01tank]

The first solution will be to build an ISS. Perhaps, as part of some commercialization of supplies to the moon, supply flights with the participation of N-1 could be made. The biggest change would be the return to using RP-1 in LR-87 engines.

My idea is that ITTL the OTL Shuttle-MIR would instead be Freedom-Moon Town

Zarya having a nuclear meltdown with a death and a radioactive shuttle would stop any replacement from being flown, think of what Chornobyl did to most people's idea of nuclear power. Nuclear power in space as a whole is dead, nobody would dare fly a reactor outside of small ones for lunar missions (RTG's)

Basically, IF the Soviets launch one the US of A would likely have a major issue with it, same with most other countries, the late 80s was a period of easing tensions and newfound cooperation, a nuclear station would cause this to be shattered, the US would likely condemn it and maybe even put sanctions on soviet exports or imports (Pepsi shipments)

I don't mean to sound like a crazy person but public sentiment is based on examples, very few will actually learn the "how it works/happened aspect". Nuclear reactors OTL have largely stopped being built due to safety concerns and nobody wanting them built in their area
New York City for example bans nuclear-powered ships from entering the harbor or bay around it, the HMS QE was the first to enter in a long ass time due to this reason
people picketed Cassini's launch due to a few kg of plutonium, Apollo 13 had to do a course correction to put the RTG in the Mariana Trench

Basically, my idea for how TTL plays out is that the American Freedom Program works in conjunction with the N1 and Soviet/Russian program, TTL's ISS analogue is the International Moon Base or IMB, a joint base with Soviet/Russian and US modules, the N1 is kept around to keep Russian engineers employed and launches 1 manned mission every year. The Americans launch one a year as well and this creates a permanent manned station with 6-month crew rotations, Cargo is flown with the landers and later commercial companies, likely TTL's Delta-4 analogue launches the landers

 

[Ry01tank]

My theory that this thread stays active due to us going off topic is true, every time we stay ON topic nobody posts but the minute we talk about Capitalism vs Communism, Reusable Saturn Rockets, and the merits of SpaceX and Starships rocky development, everybody seems to post like crazy