Off Topic: BFG my apologies, BFG, having re-re
Post# of 82672
BFG, having re-read your original message, seems I owe you an Apology , I had read the year 2018, not 2019 in your post.
You are correct, in one since, as there is not a Mars Launch Window in 2019, unless you can lift and have room after a payload with all the fuel needed required to get to Mars, its possible but not practical to launch in 2019, because the Earth & Mars are on Opposite sides of the Sun which make the trip to Mars about 249 Million miles vs about 33 Million Miles when launching during the perfect hohmann transfer window .
After the window in 2018 the next Window opens 26 months later.in late 2020. Anyone with knowledge of or capable of the Mathematics involved in Orbital Mechanics, deserves a reread.
Again my mistake mis-reading the year in your post. True Putin was wrong, but the Russians just follow the Lead of Americans and never follow through to Completion at least when it comes to Space.
In this case Putin or his advisers, probably just listened to Elon Musk who's Statement may have been misquoted in the press, as he only plans to begin Testing Grashopper in 2019 (just up and back down) tests at his Facility in Texas. Similar to the same thing he did with the Falcon 9 Boosters when practicing landings of the Boosters. It took a little while, but hes got it down pat now.
Sorry BFG we all make mistakes. seems I'm just spreading myself to thin, as I've got to many Hobby Irons in the Fire to do a perfect Job in all of them. I'll try to correct this by cutting back the amount of time spent on each one, as if there's one thing I hate is Making Mistakes.
This one deserved correcting in open public apology on the board.
Speaking of Elon I was at the Cape when he arrived, people kind of laughed at him as the little kid who wants to launch rockets.
Elon was going up against Lockheed and Boeing who had been building and launching Rockets for the USAF for multiple decades.
In less than 10 years he not only caught up with them with the Falcon 9, he was landing the Boosters back on earth and refurbishing them. This has a big cost savings, so much so he now has lots of Customers due to the cost of a launch compared to everyone in the world.
Now in ten years, he has surpassed by a factor of 2 the lifting Payload weight of any current Rocket with his Falcon Heavy. and is working on BFR (not what you think the acronym stands for) Big Falcon Rocket. the Falcon 9 has also been doing the majority of resupply missions to the ISS.using his Dragon Capsule, originally designed to ferry Astronauts to the ISS. Work toward achieving Dragon certification for providing safe crew transportation services to and from the International Space Station Elon is well on his way to that Goal.
NASA is building its own Space Launch System (SLS) for Ferrying Missions also, which one or both are sorely needed since the U.S. is relying on the Russians for the Job. In 2008 the Russians charged $21.8 million per seat, in 2018 that cost has risen to NASA $81 million per seat. that's a 372% increase over 10 years !
With the BFR (video link posted Sunday to you by mistake), Elon stands to Leap Frog everyone by many factor's in his Goal for a Mars Mission and reducing Launch Cost even more dramatically.
Unlike Nasa's and the USAF 45th Space Wing Rocket Building Contractors Snails pace of Development and Innovation, in Comparison Elon's time table is moving a the Speed of Light.
This video that was made in Oct 2017, is Old Info on the BFR with Elon;s fast Pace, but informative in many ways.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuRu1CP6sOM