After the pre-launch explosion in 2016 of their Falcon 9 rocket, SpaceX seriously considered sabotage, going as far as to see how easy it would be to shoot the Falcon 9 rocket from the ULA building. What would happen if the Falcon 9 actually had been shot a few hours before launch? Would it explode in flight or on the pad? I know of this related question but that asks if that would explode, not when would it explode.
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BrendanLuke15
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Starship - On Strike
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I am also asking when would it explode, but that helps @OrganicMarble – Starship - On Strike Feb 09 '22 at 16:11
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2Why do you assume it would explode? – BrendanLuke15 Feb 09 '22 at 17:10
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Because it shot, hello, rockets are fragile – Starship - On Strike Feb 09 '22 at 19:28
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1@ABC Musk called what happened a "fast fire" and I guess the difference is that the fuel and oxidizer only react quickly where they are mixed well, and the two start out in separate containers and compared to the speed of a real explosion, mix relatively slowly over seconds. That's different than what happens to an explosive material where the reaction travels through the material at the speed of sound, so the entire thing is over in microseconds. – uhoh Feb 09 '22 at 21:34
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One scenario is they would notice leaking fuel/oxidizer, and rocket not pressurizing correctly? – Bojan Kogoj Feb 11 '22 at 08:02
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True. Regardless there are still answers to these questions – Starship - On Strike Feb 11 '22 at 11:48