Tag: Commercial Crew
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NASA gears up for brisk launch pace, starting with weather satellite
The first stage of the Atlas 5 rocket set to launch NOAA’s GOES-S weather satellite was lifted atop its mobile launch platform Jan. 31 inside the Vertical Integration Facility at Cape Canaveral’s Complex 41 launch pad. Credit: NASA/Ben Smegelsky Engineers at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center tasked with overseeing launches of scientific satellites and interplanetary probes…
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Trump budget aims to kick-start lunar exploration, cancels space telescope
Artist’s concept of NASA’s proposed deep space station near the moon. Credit: NASA The White House’s $19.9 billion NASA budget outline released Monday would continue development of NASA’s heavy-lift Space Launch System rocket and Orion crew capsule and begin the deployment of a mini-space station around the moon as soon as 2022, but the proposal…
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Lawmakers question safety, schedule for Boeing/SpaceX commercial crew ships
STORY WRITTEN FOR CBS NEWS & USED WITH PERMISSION Astronaut Eric Boe examines hardware during a tour of the SpaceX’s headquarters facility in Hawthorne, California. Credit: SpaceX Boeing and SpaceX hope to launch commercial crew ferry ships on long-awaited test flights later this year, but both companies face major challenges getting the spacecraft certified before late 2019…
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Engine for upgraded Falcon 9 rocket explodes on test stand
File photo of a Merlin engine on a test stand in McGregor, Texas. Credit: SpaceX A Merlin engine designed for the version of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket that will carry astronauts into orbit for NASA failed during testing Saturday in Texas, but the company said its upcoming launches will not be affected by the mishap.…
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Shuttle-era structure dismantled piece-by-piece at pad 39A
Credit: Spaceflight Now A heavy-duty crane towering over launch pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in recent weeks has removed several large sections of a disused structure once needed to install satellites and space station modules into space shuttle cargo bays. A demolition crew hired by SpaceX, the launch pad’s current tenant, has plucked…
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Propulsive landings nixed from SpaceX’s Dragon spaceship
Artist’s concept of SpaceX’s Red Dragon spacecraft. Credit: SpaceX SpaceX’s upgraded Dragon capsules will not return astronauts to Earth for powered landings as originally envisioned, company boss Elon Musk said Wednesday, a design change that raises questions about the space transport firm’s plans to send commercial landers to the surface of Mars. Musk cited safety…
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Musk previews busy year ahead for SpaceX
Elon Musk speaks with reporters after Thursday’s launch of SES 10. Credit: Walter Scriptunas II / Spaceflight Now There’s a lot on SpaceX’s agenda this year if the company can maintain its pace, including refinements of the Falcon 9 rocket to hasten refurbishment between flights and the debut of the long-delayed Falcon Heavy launch vehicle…
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Animation: The flight of a Boeing Starliner capsule from launch to landing
Animation depicts the flight of Boeing’s Starliner commercial crew capsule, ascending into orbit atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket to reach the International Space Station and re-entry to make an airbag-cushioned touchdown on land. Video courtesy: Boeing
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Video: Take a virtual ride on the Atlas 5 launch pad emergency ziplines
Commercial ziplines have been installed and tested at United Launch Alliance’s Atlas 5 rocket pad as the emergency escape system if astronauts and ground personnel need to evacuate the Crew Access Tower. Read our full story on the new zipliness. Video courtesy: NASA
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Ziplines installed to whisk personnel from danger at Starliner launch pad
Commercial ZipRiders will be used as the emergency escape system at the Atlas 5 launch complex. Credit: NASA CAPE CANAVERAL — Ziplines are used by thrill-seekers in adventures around the world, but now they are coming to the U.S. space program as the emergency escape system for personnel at Cape Canaveral’s Complex 41. Commercial, off-the-shelf…