Tag: Orion
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NASA creates working group to get Orion ESM back on schedule
NASA is continuing to work towards the historic maiden launch of the Space Launch System (SLS), with the rocket still on schedule to make a 2018 debut. However, the passenger – the EM-1 Orion – is requiring the assistance of a working group, specifically focused on the European Service Module (ESM), which continues to struggle with…
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‘Great relief’ the worst of Hurricane Matthew stayed away from space center
Kennedy Space Center officials said Tuesday that Hurricane Matthew knocked out the main cooling system for the iconic Vehicle Assembly Building and surrounding structures, but they expect no lingering effects from the storm on NASA’s Space Launch System and Orion spaceship scheduled for their first full-scale test flight around the moon in 2018. Employees returned…
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Orion’s heat shield arrives at Kennedy for EM-1 mission preparations
Lockheed Martin has delivered the Orion crew vehicle’s heat shield for the upcoming EM-1 test flight to the Kennedy Space Center from its manufacturing facility in Denver, Colorado. The heat shield, upgraded from data received after Exploration Flight Test -1 (EFT-1) in 2014, will help protect Orion from the harsh environment of reentry at speeds…
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SLS critical flight paths refined for 2018 debut; thrust profiles updated
NASA’s Exploration Systems Development office has completed its review of progress to date as well as forward path activity on the development of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket to the NASA Advisory Council. While several tasks and issues remain open, SLS continues a steady march toward its planned debut in late 2018 during the…
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NASA updates status and timetable of ambitious Asteroid Redirect Mission
NASA’s Human Exploration and Operations (HEO) standing committee has presented the NASA Advisory Council with a status update regarding the agency’s direction and execution of the upcoming Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM). Among the prominent updates include confirmation of new target launch dates and information on how NASA will handle partner payloads and the creation of…
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SLS Mission Trajectory – Mike Sarafin outlines the ride uphill for EM-1
NASA managers are closing in on a mission trajectory plan for the new Space Launch System (SLS) rocket that is set to debut in 2018. Mike Sarafin, NASA’s mission manager for the first Orion/Space Launch System (SLS) mission, recently provided an early look at an outline of launch events and a high-level status of the process…
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Orbital ATK unveils cislunar habitat plan, potential missions for SLS and Orion
Orbital ATK has unveiled preliminary plans to place a four-person habitat in cislunar space by 2020. The announcement during testimony to the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Space would not only see the creation of a permanent human presence in lunar orbit by the start of the next decade, but would potentially provide a…
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Orbital ATK unveils cislunar habitat plan, potential missions for SLS and Orion
Orbital ATK has unveiled preliminary plans to place a four-person habitat in cislunar space by 2020. The announcement during testimony to the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Space would not only see the creation of a permanent human presence in lunar orbit by the start of the next decade, but would potentially provide a…
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Orion capsule put under pressure in Florida
Lockheed Martin engineers and technicians prepare the Orion pressure vessel for a series of tests inside the proof pressure cell in the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This capsule will fly on Exploration Mission-1 in 2018. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett The skeleton of NASA’s next Orion capsule,…
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Space Industry press forward with exploration hardware development
The multi-center, multi-partner effort is continuing to piece together the key hardware elements that will return NASA to deep space exploration. Recent progress has been made on items such as Orion’s Launch Abort System (LAS) and the design phase for the Asteroid Redirect Robotic Mission (ARRM) spacecraft. SLS and Orion: The main focus continues to be…