Well, I’ve always asked myself why can’t we use some kind of train or catapult to help the rockets to save fuel or to go further. Can anyone explain me why?
In: Engineering
They need to get up to 28,000km/hr to get into orbit.
Starting at 0km/hr or 40km/hr or even 400km/hr is practically insignificant (especially when the Earth’s own rotation adds more than that) and only adds complexity and failure points.
When your plan is to accelerate hundreds of tons of rocket fuel in a literal missile to 28,000km/hr, minimizing failure – especially on the ground with people around – is important.
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