Tag: TPS
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Experts warn current Starship heat shield tech is a “dead end” for rapid reuse
SpaceX successfully launched its Starship vehicle on Friday and appeared to demonstrate important and credible steps toward fulfilling the massive rocket’s immense promise. As soon as the vehicle’s next flight, Starship could go orbital, begin delivering satellites into space, and potentially return to the launch site to be ‘caught’ by the tower. All of this…
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TPS evaluations taking place at Starbase on next two Ships to fly
SpaceX continues to accelerate production of its next-generation Starship vehicles at the Starfactory facility in Starbase, Texas. With vehicles up to Ship 48 in various stages of assembly and preparation, attention is now focused on the first two Block 3 vehicles slated to fly in 2026. Both are undergoing detailed inspections of their Thermal Protection…
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How Sierra Space Protects America’s Next Space Plane, Dream Chaser
Dream Chaser, the so-called “mini shuttle”, is set to bring back the capability of returning experiments and equipment from the International Space Station (ISS) through Earth’s atmosphere for an eventual runway landing. As much as the vehicle resembles NASA’s Space Transportation System, better known as the space shuttle, it’s actually based on a different NASA…
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SLS Core Stage thermal protection system refurbishment in work at Kennedy for Artemis 1
NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) and Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) programs are working with Core Stage prime contractor Boeing and prime test operations and support contractor Jacobs to finish repairs to thermal protection system (TPS) spray-on foam insulation on the Artemis 1 Core Stage at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The TPS foam, cork,…
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Bally Ribbon Mills Bringing Decades of Experience to New NASA Partnership
Private contractors are a crucial part of America’s space program. NASA has been partnering with industry since the beginning of the agency, and today, these partnerships range from launch services to research and development. A recent set of research and development partnerships announced by NASA included many familiar names. But there were also several small…
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Boeing finishes SLS LOX tank foam work, recovering from tube contamination issues
Prime contractor Boeing recently completed Thermal Protection System (TPS) applications on the liquid oxygen (LOX) tank for Core Stage-1 (CS-1), the first NASA Space Launch System (SLS) Core Stage. The cryogenic propellant tank was moved out of Cell N at the Michoud Assembly Facility (MAF) in New Orleans on June 20, where spray-on foam insulation…
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Protecting SLS from Fire and Ice – TPS foam application proceeding at MAF
NASA and prime contractor Boeing are deep into the application of spray-on foam insulation (SOFI) to elements of the first Space Launch System (SLS) Core Stage (CS-1) and their sister test articles, inaugurating one of the later stages of production at the Michoud Assembly Facility (MAF) in New Orleans, with hopes of completing final assembly…
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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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India successfully launches Reusable Launch Vehicle demonstrator mission
The Indian Space Research Organisation has successfully launched a Reusable Launch Vehicle Technology Demonstrator mission. The flight began at 07:00 Indian Standard Time on 23 May (01:30 UTC), resulting in a successful launch for the winged, reusable space plane that conducted a suborbital mission to gather in-flight data. Reusable Launch Vehicle Technology Demonstrator: The quest…
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India successfully launches Reusable Launch Vehicle demonstrator mission
The Indian Space Research Organisation has successfully launched a Reusable Launch Vehicle Technology Demonstrator mission. The flight began at 07:00 Indian Standard Time on 23 May (01:30 UTC), resulting in a successful launch for the winged, reusable space plane that conducted a suborbital mission to gather in-flight data. Reusable Launch Vehicle Technology Demonstrator: The quest…