SpaceX static test a success
From Clark Lindsey, with video: The static test firing of the Falcon 9 rocket today was a success. Actual launch is planned for Tuesday.
Tag: engineering
Falcon 9 first stage test firing aborted
In preparation for its Tuesday test launch, SpaceX attempted a static test firing of the Falcon 9 rocket early today, only to abort at the last second. They plan another attempt on Saturday and still hope to launch on Tuesday.
Photos of X-37B After Landing at Vandenberg Air Force Base
Photos of the X-37B after landing at Vandenberg Air Force Base.
Power from poop?
Discovery launch delayed until February
It’s official: The launch of Discovery is delayed until February.
SpaceX to offer NASA its own plans for a heavy-lift rocket
SpaceX is putting together its own plans to provide NASA a heavy-lift rocket. Key quote:
Fast-track development, multi-use and low cost are key, says [SpaceX owner Elon] Musk. “The development timeframe is on the order of five years and would come to fruition before Obama’s likely second term ends. It has got to fit within a NASA budget that fits in 2008 levels, and it’s got to have operational costs when functioning that is as close to zero as you can make it. That latter point demands that whatever components are in use for super-heavy lift must be in use for launching other satellites for say, geostationary commercial and government customers. If not, then the likelihood of success in my opinion is zero.”
A Croatian space mission to the Moon?
A Croatian space mission to the Moon?
Root cause of shuttle external tank cracks still not clear
Bad news for the space shuttle: The root cause of the cracks on Discovery’s external tank is still not identified.
X-37B has returned successful to earth
After more than seven months in orbit, the unmanned X-37B space plan has successfully returned to Earth. Key quote:
“Boeing and the Air Force are building another X-37B vehicle scheduled for launch in the spring of 2011.”
Update: Since several different reports are listing slightly different totals for the number of days in orbit, I’ve edited my note above to be less precise. I could add up the days myself, but that involves more math than I prefer to do!
Sierra Nevada Studying X-34 As Rocket Testbed
Sierra Nevada, one of the new aerospace companies competing for NASA’s commercial crew money, appears to be the frontrunner to use the two X-34 suborbital rockets recently taken out of storage.
Airplane telescope flies its first observation mission
The telescope in an airplane flew its first observation mission today.
Branson says Virgin Galactic could be flying tourists within a year
Is this finally going to happen? Richard Branson says Virgin Galactic could be flying tourists within a year.
Second Falcon 9 test launch set for December 7
It’s now official: the second test launch of the Falcon 9, with the Dragon capsule, is set for December 7, with a static test firing of the rocket’s engines on December 3.
X-37B returning to Earth as early as Friday
The military reports that the X-37B’s mission is complete and it will be returning to Earth as early as Friday.
First Orion Space Capsule Could Ride Delta 4 Heavy In 2013
Lockheed Martin is moving ahead with its plan to launch the first Orion capsule on a Delta 4 Heavy rocket, notwithstanding the desire of NASA that Lockheed instead focus on using NASA’s own as yet unbuilt rocket system.
NASA engineers struggle to analyze cause of cracks in tank
NASA engineers continue to struggle to analyze the cause of the cracks in Discovery’s external tank. Key quote:
Forty-three tanks have been constructed with the lighter alloy, requiring just more than 4,600 stringers. So far, 31 cracks have been found, including those on Discovery.
“All of those have been known assembly issues,” Shannon said of the previous cracks, which were traced to misalignments of the stringers as they were fastened to the tank or to mishandling in which the fragile stringers struck or were struck by other hardware. Discovery’s cracks were the first found and repaired at the launch pad using techniques previously employed only at the production plant.
The ongoing detective work is immune to schedule and budget pressure, according to Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA’s associate administrator for space operations.
The unimaginative Union of Concerned Scientists does it again
According to the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), the reusable X-37B — in orbit at the moment and expected to return to Earth in the near future — has no compelling use.
“It’s hard to think of what could make that mission compelling,” [UCS scientist Laura] Grego told SPACE.com. “It doesn’t protect you from antiaircraft fire, and the element of surprise doesn’t really work in your favor if you’re launching on Atlas V [rocket].”
In reading this article, it is fascinating how completely unimaginative the scientists from the Union of Concerned Scientists seem. Nor do I find this surprising. For the last few decades this organization has opposed almost every new aerospace engineering project that might actually have made possible the human exploration of space. It’s as if these scientists feared new ideas and grand achievement. Sadly, the UCS had great influence with policy makers in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, and thus helped limit the American government’s space program capabilities during that time period.
Fortunately, the UCS’s influence has waned in recent years. Though the American government space program might be dying, it is because of budget limits and a lack of leadership by the Obama administration, not the unimaginative thinking of the UCS. Furthermore, their lack of imagination — which once seemed so culturally dominant — seems to no longer influence the rest of society. The happy result is the creative innovation coming from many new private aerospace companies.
The UCS meanwhile reminds me of an old curmudgeon, who won’t keep quiet but everyone still ignores.
Why NASA recently pulled the X-34 out of storage
Why NASA recently pulled the X-34 out of storage. Key quote:
The idea to ship the X-34s to Mojave and inspect them originated with a Dryden-based NASA engineer, Brown said. “When he found out this thing still existed … he decided people should take a look to see if it could be refurbished and made flightworthy.” That’s when the contractors came to retrieve the two neglected spacecraft, pictured above en route to the Mojave.
But that doesn’t mean NASA has formal plans to operate the X-34s under its own auspices, now or ever, Brown stressed. Provided they’re in flyable shape, it’s far more likely the space agency will make the X-34s available to private industry. “There are a number of firms interested in these things, developing communications and other technologies,” Brown said. “It would be helpful if they had a vehicle.”
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Second test flight of hypersonic vehicle pending
The Pentagon’s second test flight of its hypersonic test vehicle is pending.
ISS crew land safely in Kazakhstan
Three astronauts from ISS landed safely in Kazakhstan this morning. Meanwhile, the next crew contingent passed its exams in Russia.