Does this still count as a solid-fuel booster or is this some new science shit I'm too dumb and/or drunk to understand?
this post was submitted on 17 May 2026
321 points (93.3% liked)
Science Memes
20224 readers
1898 users here now
Welcome to c/science_memes @ Mander.xyz!
A place for majestic STEMLORD peacocking, as well as memes about the realities of working in a lab.
Rules
- Don't throw mud. Behave like an intellectual and remember the human.
- Keep it rooted (on topic).
- No spam.
- Infographics welcome, get schooled.
This is a science community. We use the Dawkins definition of meme.
Research Committee
Other Mander Communities
Science and Research
Biology and Life Sciences
- !abiogenesis@mander.xyz
- !animal-behavior@mander.xyz
- !anthropology@mander.xyz
- !arachnology@mander.xyz
- !balconygardening@slrpnk.net
- !biodiversity@mander.xyz
- !biology@mander.xyz
- !biophysics@mander.xyz
- !botany@mander.xyz
- !ecology@mander.xyz
- !entomology@mander.xyz
- !fermentation@mander.xyz
- !herpetology@mander.xyz
- !houseplants@mander.xyz
- !medicine@mander.xyz
- !microscopy@mander.xyz
- !mycology@mander.xyz
- !nudibranchs@mander.xyz
- !nutrition@mander.xyz
- !palaeoecology@mander.xyz
- !palaeontology@mander.xyz
- !photosynthesis@mander.xyz
- !plantid@mander.xyz
- !plants@mander.xyz
- !reptiles and amphibians@mander.xyz
Physical Sciences
- !astronomy@mander.xyz
- !chemistry@mander.xyz
- !earthscience@mander.xyz
- !geography@mander.xyz
- !geospatial@mander.xyz
- !nuclear@mander.xyz
- !physics@mander.xyz
- !quantum-computing@mander.xyz
- !spectroscopy@mander.xyz
Humanities and Social Sciences
Practical and Applied Sciences
- !exercise-and sports-science@mander.xyz
- !gardening@mander.xyz
- !self sufficiency@mander.xyz
- !soilscience@slrpnk.net
- !terrariums@mander.xyz
- !timelapse@mander.xyz
Memes
Miscellaneous
founded 3 years ago
MODERATORS
The fools! Diet works WAY better.
If I remember correctly diet is the only one that works at all. I don't know why.
The proportions are way off, you're never going to reach Mars this way. You only need 1 mentos per 1 - 1.5 liter of coke
This made me wonder, what is the fuel and oxidizer in a coke/mentos reaction?
To me, it seems like coke is the fuel, and mentos is the oxidizer.
Or would you say that coke is a monopropellant and the mentos is just the igniter?
The fuel is CO2 gas within the coke that gets rapidly released by the surface texture of the mentos.
Since the mentos doesn't interact chemically it's not an oxidizer, it interacts mechanically though so it acts as a turbopump maybe?
technically mentos is the catalyst
That's the trick, it's actually about advertising to increase the total NASA budget so that they can actually get some space travel done
you need about 18000km/s delta V to go from Earth's surface to Mars's surface.
A mentos+coke gets about a couple meters per second delta V.
no, you cannot use 18 million bottles, because of the rocket equation
no, you cannot use 18 million bottles
Not with that attitude, you can't!
because of the rocket equation
"Equation esmation!"
-- whichever idiot Trump is undoubtedly about to appoint as head of NASA regardless of whether or not he is legally authorized to do so
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Orion_(nuclear_propulsion)
The whole unit was built into a can with a diameter no larger than 6 inches (150 mm) and weighed just over 300 pounds (140 kg) so it could be handled by machinery scaled up from a soft-drink vending machine; Coca-Cola was consulted on the design.[40]
There's video of a small-scale demo with conventional explosives:
I'm surprised it's not shared around more frequently XD
Whoa whoa whoa...everybody knows it's diet coke that works best with mentos.
Apparently spacex doesn't
I mean. Have you seen their owner lately? Also Trump needs all the diet coke for himself. You think we have enough to go around after he's done?
Cybertruximus Promdate has no need for knowledge
What in the capitalistic hell is the plan, sponsorship?
mentos and coke is used as propellant for science projects, or for fun.
This is the type of thing a science teacher throws up on the projector as a joke before transitioning to the actual chemical reactions going on during takeoff now that they have the kids' attention with something funny and relatable.
That's literally the example in the XKCD 10k people comic. You should search for the coke + mentos thing, it's cool.
I know what coke and mentos do together. That has been mentioned plenty in this thread. My comment was going for a different take, a more literal interpretation of the image,, but that seems to have missed its target.
Any r/theydidthemath refugees around to calculate the amount of thrust you would receive from something like this?
the questions are the specific impulse of those engines, then Delta-V.
a mentos and coke can reach about 3m height gayser, therefore initial nozzle velocity is 7.67m/s, and a 2l bottle lasts about 2 seconds. resulting in a ISP of 0.7822 seconds.
for comparison, the shuttle solid rocket booster has an isp of 250 seconds, a normal liquid rocket engine is about 450 seconds (the more the better).
plugging in the weights of the Saturn 1, gives a delta V of [drumroll] 18.6 m/s... enough to accelerate a giant rocket to highway speeds.
can we make it bigger to get to orbit? nope, the rocket equation won't let you with that specific implied. sorry
Also, there would be ants everywhere in the vicinity after
Fine, be that way. Maybe we can use it for the little psshhh pshh boosters they use in space on the spacesuits, etc. Don't want to get too technical on you.
Finally! Faster than light travel has been achieved!
I wouldn’t be surprised if Elon came up with such an idea in front of all the lead scientists at SpaceX.