That was asked on the spacex sub-reddit. The response was something like "you underestimate the power of a Merlin" which I took to mean that a reasonable distance to avoid the effects is too far to reasonably run ship-to-ship cabling.
I've only been posting here for a bit over a year. Has HN always had an issue with these sorts of pragmatic speech mis-queues where one posits that the experts are not aware of some painfully obvious solution? I find it to be condescending, but I'm not sure that such commenters realize it, and so I struggle with pointing it out - in case they didn't honestly realize the issue - or keeping my mouth shut, thereby avoiding potential conflict with someone who either can't be swayed or may actually be smarter than the group whose collective knowledge is being challenged.
EDIT: I asked a legitimate question. Down votes don't teach people who want to learn, people.
It does seem to me that the rocket scientists would have had their hands full with all the other issues around the launch and recovery. My guess is that the live feed isn't a priority for them, knowing that they can get what they need after the fact.
When "have you guys always screwed up this way" is your only non-rhetorical question, I call shenanigans on intent to learn. You solidly earned that downvote by being so patronizing.
That said, it's very easy for a solution to be both painfully obvious and at the same time not worth the effort. The rocket scientist is busy doing rocket science. If they give a flippant answer, it's okay to point out that the answer is flippant. It's not condescending. It doesn't imply they are "not aware" of the solution. They simply lack infinite spare time to implement every solution to everything.
My child has pragmatic communication issues, and I've experienced that he (and others, adults and children alike) generally appreciate being told when they're speaking in a manner that suggests superiority even when I know they're not intending to sound that way. On the other hand, people who are just arrogant will become hostile. That's my gamble, and my question would help me to quantify the nature of that gamble.
Many people in certain segments of information technology, for example, are frequently challenged by social cues and pragmatic speech. I don't know if those groups are more concentrated here versus, say, in a community focused on space. And I don't like to piss off the communities that I have enjoyed being a part of. I learn from mistakes and, when I'm not sure, I ask.
Please don't project a hostile intent; I didn't accuse anyone of anything negative and I was sincerely trying to better understand the people in this community because, for better or worse, I identify with it.
The term "rocket scientist" is often used euphemistically, and I wanted to make sure my usage of the words rocket scientist could not be interpreted any way but literally. Perhaps the phrases "he's no rocket scientist" or "it ain't rocket science" aren't used in the milieu of the community here? I know humor is generally dismissed in this community, but if there is an in-built assumption that euphemistic language isn't expected either, then I can certainly see how my use of literal could be misinterpreted.
When you ask if it's possible that [insert conclusion], when your conclusion is worded as to be super obvious and something your conversational partner really should have thought of, you're not writing the nicest sentence in the world. When you add the "I'm sorry, but", well, you're not actually apologizing for anything. A non-apology is one of those polite veneers that are put on sentences to pretend they're not insulting. Which magnifies the condescension.
The "rocket scientist" that is responsible for landing the craft previously worked on NASA's SMAP satellite, on the control team. One challenge faced with controlling that satellite was that several systems had to share an antenna for different purposes, and the hardware needed to be steered as part of its scanning duties. Dr. Lars Blackmore (said rocket scientist) has authored many papers on control systems, several of which discuss communications as part of it.
I would submit as my "argument from authority" (appealing to Dr. Blackmore's authority) that this particular rocket scientist is likely to have ruled out the ideas posited by any given armchair quarterback engineer, a role I know many of us like to play. The premises behind the argument are not in danger of being flawed, that I can tell; my conclusion may be, but that would just be an everyday incorrect conclusion and not an outcome from a logical fallacy.
You demanded answers. There's a big difference.
EDIT FOLLOWS
From your profile:
>Hi, I'm Bucky. I'm sorry if I've come off as a jerk, communication on the internet is really tough.
It sure is, so thanks in advanced for your helpful response.
Yes.
Mod dang has spoken about it a few times. Here's one example, but there are others: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8769453
Note the way he talks about it is less harsh than the way you talked about it, which may explain some of the downvotes.