Orbital ATK is preparing for the next phase of development for their Next Generation Launcher (NGL) \u2013 a solid and liquid fueled rocket designed for National Security, NASA science missions, and commercial flights. Under the current plan, Orbital ATK intends to introduce NGL from LC-39B at the Kennedy Space Center, FL, with certification flights in early 2021, with operational flights set to begin later that year.<\/p>\n
NGL aims for debut in three years:<\/b><\/p>\n
The progeny of NGL can be traced back to 2004, when then U.S. President George W. Bush announced the Constellation program, consisting of the crew launch vehicle known as Ares I \u2013 a five-segment Solid Rocket Booster (SRB) rocket, atop which sat a Liquid Oxygen\/Liquid Hydrogen (LOX\/LH2) upper stage. <\/p>\n
A test flight variant of Ares I, known as Ares I-X, completed a successful test flight on 29 October 2009, shortly after which the Constellation program was cancelled by then U.S. President Barack Obama in favor of developing a more robust rocket that could carry both crew and cargo, the SLS, to locations Beyond Low Earth Orbit and shifting International Space Station crew rotation missions from NASA-made rockets to commercial rockets and capsules \u2013 a goal SpaceX and Boeing plan to fulfill.<\/p>\n
Despite the Constellation program\u2019s cancellation, Orbital ATK, the predecessor of which would have built the five-segment SRB for Ares I and the company that is now building the five-segment dual SRBs for SLS, continued to see a usefulness for the overall Ares I design. This initially translated in 2011 to the Liberty rocket, a five-segment SRB first stage with an Ariane V core serving as the upper stage.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n