SpaceX is Developing a Reusable VTVL Rocket
- Thread starter Wanderlust
- Start date
He meant the point of launching 2 rockets simultaneous to fly side by side.
Simultaneous launching was, of course, tested with ICBMs in the 60's, but I doubt there were cameras installed on the missiles for a photo opportunity.
A full recording of a space flight is inevitably going to happen one day, but it will probably be when space flight is common and the technologies behind it are proven and polished. This will take away much of the wonder from watching it. The wow-factor will be gone. Footage of these “first” flights is what I want. 
The facepalm is for trying to seriously answer my joking post.
YS did state "joke aside". In any case, it looks like NASA is going to have to learn how to do closely spaced launches to return to the Moon by using assembly in Earth orbit.
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Bugger. Well I can't say it's surprising given the economic situation. Let's hope the technology is preserved so that it can be picked up again down the road. Of course, most of the engineers will likely never return to the field.
SpaceX hopes to enjoy economies of scale by making a mountain of Merlin engines. A good strategy -- if he can sell launches.
This Build It and Customers Will Come strategy leaves me a little queasy.
As for Elon's plan for a 3 stage RLV, I am not giving that even odds.
If Elon has a NASA sugar daddy to keep him afloat, SpaceX may survive and prosper. I was hoping NASA would keep Bigelow afloat, a day dream that seems less and less plausible as time goes on.
If you don't count Dragon as an upper stage.
Dragon is a payload. You could replace it with a satellite. The RLV is 2 stage.
From SpaceX' website (bolded by me):
Dragon is not required as part of the rocket to place payloads in orbit.
From SpaceX' website (bolded by me):
http://www.spacex.com/falcon9.php
Dragon is not required as part of the rocket to place payloads in orbit.
They've actually sold a really impressive number of launches over the past few years. Slightly more worrying is the fact that they haven't DELIVERED many of them since they opened for business.
Bigelow isn't going anywhere, they're simply going into hibernation until the launch industry can catch up. This has really been the problem with space exploration since the beginning: space ships (and space stations) aren't all that hard to build, but GETTING THEM INTO ORBIT is a pain in the ass.