The Air Force moves forward with the plans to develop a reusable first stage rocket.
The Air Force moves forward with the plans to develop a reusable first stage rocket.
Tag: Air Force
X-37B: The Air Force admits it has a fleet of two, does not plan on increasing the size of that fleet, and has plans for many more missions for both spacecraft.
The X-37B: The Air Force admits it has a fleet of two, does not plan on increasing the size of that fleet, but also plans many more missions for both spacecraft.
The X-37B marks one year in orbit
The X-37B marks one year in orbit.
More importantly, the Air Force has indicated that a third X-37B mission will launch this fall.
Is the Air Force using the X-37B to spy on China’s first space station?
Is the Air Force using the X-37B to spy on China’s first space station?
The tiny thrusters that could.
The Air Forces has awarded contracts to Andrews Space, Boeing and Lockheed Martin to develop a reusable first stage booster
The Air Forces has awarded contracts to Andrews Space, Boeing and Lockheed Martin to develop a reusable first stage booster.
The landing date of the X-37B remains a mystery, even as it nears a record mission length
The landing date of the X-37B has been extended, even as it nears a record mission length.
An update on the ongoing X-37B mission
An update on the ongoing X-37B mission.
I like this quote from the article:
Meanwhile, Boeing has begun to look at derivatives of their X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle — including flying cargo and crew to the International Space Station. Speaking this week at the Space 2011 conference —organized by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) and held in Long Beach, Calif. — Arthur Grantz of Boeing Space and Intelligence Systems sketched out a host of future uses for the space plane design. For one, the X-37B, as is, can be flown to the space station and dock to the facility’s common berthing mechanism. No new technology is required for X-37B to supply cargo services to the ISS, Grantz said. Also, an X-37C winged vehicle has been scoped out, a craft that would ride atop an Atlas 5 in un-shrouded mode.
The Boeing roadmap, Grantz added, also envisions a larger derivative of the X-37B space plane, one that can carry up to seven astronauts, as well as tote into Earth orbit a mix of pressurized and unpressurized cargo.
Air Force official suggests they would be willing to sacrifice the X-37 in budget negotiations
An Air Force official suggested this week they would be willing to sacrifice the X-37 in budget negotiations.
SpaceX about to break ground on launchpad and hanger for Falcon Heavy
SpaceX is about to break ground on launchpad and hanger for Falcon Heavy.
Second X-51 hypersonic flight crashes prematurely
Second X-51 hypersonic flight crashes prematurely.
After what the US Air Force described as a ‘flawless’ flight to the launch point aboard a Boeing B-52 mothership, the X-51 was successfully boosted to Mach 5.0 by a rocket booster. The Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne scramjet engine successfully ignited using its initial fuel, ethylene. During the immediate transition to JP-7, the conventional fuel that makes the X-51 unique, an inlet unstart occurred. A subsequent attempt to restart and reorient to optimal conditions was unsuccessful.
Air Forces moves to open up rocket purchases to competition
Air Forces is moving to open up its rocket purchases to competition. I especiallly like this quote from a SpaceX official:
“We know what it takes to do this,” says Harris. “We don’t understand why others are making it cost so much.”
Air Force and NRO ink deal with SpaceX
Who says there aren’t customers for the new rocket companies? The Air Force and the National Reconnaissance Office have inked a deal with SpaceX, preliminary to using the company’s rockets to launch military satellites.
No Future For X-37B?
Secret X-37B Space Plane Spotted Again by Amateurs
The X-37B space plane has been spotted again by amateurs.
The X-37B – what its first two flights have been about
The X-37B – what its first two flights have been about.