Desidiosus
It was typhoon season?

zatojones
Our early space program could not have been just as catastrophic because when we made those calculated risks we always put safety first. The Chinese put production first, prestige gain second, and safety maybe somewhere towards tenth.

Chancho
In addition to luck, science and technology require a certain amount of magic and faith.

glasseye
Bah. Magic and faith are for weak-willed superstitious types. Scientists and engineers do not need such crutches in their work.

Cena_mark
Our space program worked because we had fine engineers, who were motivated and well educated. China's didn't work because they live in a society that oppresses the individual. We're not any luckier than them. They finally got their shit to work after Americans showed them how to do it right.... We're better.

Harveyjames
American concludes Americans are better after watching American documentary, there's a surprise

kingarthur
Im not saying luck, and especially NOT faith, have anything to do with it. It's just extremely fucking difficult to get your ass out of a gravity well strapped into a coke can shot into the air by tons of explosive fuel. Shit is bound to go wrong SOMEWHERE.

j lzrd / swift idiot
At least their walls don't fall over when hit by a "gust of wind."

("Wind" = Chinese word for "inept engineering")

kiint
i think they've taken that craft to its apogee here (get it? oh I slay me)

Scrotum H. Vainglorious
The Space Shuttle has them in each SRB and I guess our unmanned rockets have them as well.

j lzrd / swift idiot
I had heard that you can't really put killswitches in a Solid Rocket Booster; you light them, and they go until they run out.

I am no rocket scientist however, so take that with a grain of salt.

Repomancer
No. You can't kill an SRB once it's lit. You can jettison it, but that's about all.

zatojones
That's why we launch out over the ocean

glasseye
Ahaha, nice.

Udderdude
What could possibly go wrong?

...

Oh.