Tag: Orion
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Orion PTV preparing for drop test on Wednesday – EFT-1 Orion progress
The Orion Parachute Test Vehicle (PTV) is on track for its drop test on February 29 at the US Proving Grounds in Yuma, Arizona. The vehicle has completed processing prior to boarding the C-17 aircraft for the test of the parachute system. Elsewhere, the Exploration Flight Test (EFT-1) Orion is continuing construction in New Orleans, while…
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Space Launch System: How to launch NASA’s new monster rocket
With the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) falling silent after the retirement of the Space Shuttle, it’ll be at least five years before the public will see the iconic sight of NASA’s follow-on vehicle rising off the launch pad. Interestingly, the Space Launch System (SLS) will follow some of the Shuttle’s heritage of “Flight Operations” –…
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EFT-1 Orion hitting construction milestones – first backshell tile manufactured
Engineers at the Michoud Assembly Facility (MAF) in New Orleans are making good progress with the construction of the Orion spacecraft tasked with the Exploration Flight Test in 2014 (EFT-1). Construction of the Back Bone panels for the Crew Module was completed around the same time as the first tile was manufactured for the vehicle’s…
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NASA outline FY13 Budget Proposal amid warnings of political battles to come
The US space agency announced a reduced FY13 budget proposal on Monday, with planetary science becoming this year’s major casualty. The Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion – as exploration – also received cuts, leading to Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison issuing a warning that NASA should not cut any money from the Agency’s exploration vehicles.…
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Orion hoping for success with second generation parachute system
Orion teams are in the final stages of preparing for the first Generation II Parachute Test Vehicle (PTV2) airdrop at the end of this month. Following the failure of the last Capsule Parachute Assembly System (CPAS) test, the new system will be hoping for a successful outcome, when the vehicle is deployed out of the…
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Aerojet cite Solar Electric Propulsion as an enabler for an Exploration Gateway
Aerojet – famous for being a key element of numerous launch vehicle and satellite propulsion systems – believe their Solar Electric Propulsion (SEP) technology can be positively applied to an Exploration Gateway Platform – which has been touted as a potential – and often favored – approach in NASA’s ongoing studies into a long-term exploration…
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SLS Exploration Roadmap evaluations provide clues for human Mars missions
As NASA managers continue to work through the evaluations into an exploration roadmap for the agency, the end goal of sending humans to Mars is starting to show a level of consistency. Per documentation, the key Design Reference Mission (DRM) evaluations are pointing to the “Flexible Path” approach of visiting a Martian moon, prior to…
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EFT-1 set to receive Spring, 2014 launch date after contract negotiations
The first launch into space for NASA’s new Orion spacecraft is expected to receive a realigned Spring 2014 launch date, once contract negotiations between NASA and Lockheed Martin are finalized at the end this month. The mission, which will see Orion launched on an uncrewed flight, will be launched by a Delta IV-Heavy. EFT-1: The…
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KSC renovation work continuing ahead of future 21st Century spaceport role
The Kennedy Space Center is undergoing improvements to its buildings and infrastructure, work which will continue at the spaceport through to 2013. Most of the work is taking place on the 50 year old waterway, which links the Turn Basin to the crawlerway through to both Pad 39A and 39B – the latter of which…
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“Asteroid Next” missions: Proving Grounds for future crewed Mars missions
As NASA continues to define and plan for the future of human space exploration of the solar system beyond Low Earth Orbit, the Human Space Exploration Community’s Workshop on the GER – in cooperation with NASA – has outlined the potential path the U.S. space agency will follow in the build up to eventual crewed…