7 thoughts on “From The Horse’s Mouth”

  1. Wow. While this may have seen like a slam-dunk for outside observers, it was far from it.
    Lots of stuff still going to TODO lists.
    A bit surprising that after close to ten years of operations and three years of prize attempts there is still so much to cover.

  2. I see he mentions Microcosm there. Didn’t a fair number of people jump from Microcosm to SpaceX a few years ago?

  5. Well, actually, I might not. I don’t follow those things that closely. I just know that Gwynne was there when I was doing some consulting for them a few years back. She may well have taken others with her when she jumped ship. Or was perhaps enticed by someone else herself. I’m not that familiar with the formation or genesis myth of SpaceX.

  6. Kurt:

    Very true – some of that was pretty obscure (overheating helium tank while filling), some seemingly obvious (UPS for ground control!). But it does all point to one of Rand’s ongoing points, that this is important stuff that will be solved cheaply with a reasonable flight rate, even by a shoe-string operation like Armadillo.

  7. Kert: I’m not surprised at all, given the size of Armadillo’s budget and team. Most of those guys weren’t even full time until recently, and Carmack still isn’t (he spends most of his time at id Software). What amazes me is that they have accomplished as much as they have, while NASA wastes billions. This is just a small step removed from hobby rocketry, which is why they’re qualifying to win the LLC is so cool.

    I think Carmack’s ROI is going to amaze people – even Elon Musk.

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