News NASA's Future: The News and Updates Thread

[N_Molson]

...where's the other thread?

NASA's Future : The War Continues

 

[RGClark]

Posey Reintroduces REAL Space Act to Return Astronauts to Moon.
Marcia S. Smith
Posted: 10-Apr-2013
Updated: 10-Apr-2013 01:29 PM
http://www.spacepolicyonline.com/news/posey-reintroduces-real-space-act-to-return-astronauts-to-moon

Bipartisan Legislation Sets NASA’s Focus on the Moon.
Washington, Apr 10.

Specifically, the REAL Space Act directs NASA to plan to return to the Moon by 2022 and develop a sustained human presence there as a stepping stone for the future exploration of Mars and other destinations within our solar system. The legislation also emphasizes the importance of maintaining the United States’ preeminence in space, and underscores the necessity of preserving America’s independent access to space.
http://posey.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=327243

A return to the Moon by 2022 would make it by the 50th anniversary of the Apollo program.


Bob Clark

 

[Kyle]

NASA's Mars-Bound Mega Rocket on Track for 2017 Test Launch

 

[RGClark]

NASA's Mars-Bound Mega Rocket on Track for 2017 Test Launch

From the article:

"The whole theory of it was to use existing hardware so we could design something relatively low-risk and get a capability soon," Elbon said.

The current plan is to use 1960's era alloys. However, there are modern, lighter alloys and composites already in common use in aircraft that could bring the payload capability to the 100 mT range.
This would make possible a manned lunar landing mission by the first launch of the SLS in 2017.

Bob Clark

 

[BruceJohnJennerLawso]

The current plan is to use 1960's era alloys. However, there are modern, lighter alloys and composites already in common use in aircraft that could bring the payload capability to the 100 mT range.
Bob Clark

I keep hearing this as well. Why on Earth would they ever want to do that? Its absurd not to use the best materials available in a launcher thats this expensive.

This would make possible a manned lunar landing mission by the first launch of the SLS in 2017.
Bob Clark

Well, no I cant imagine modern NASA actually following through on something that risky on a first flight. I could see them launching a "lunar skylab" with the extra payload though.

 

[Pipcard]

I keep hearing this as well. Why on Earth would they ever want to do that? Its absurd not to use the best materials available in a launcher thats this expensive.

"Let's evoke the Saturn V" taken too far...

 

[BruceJohnJennerLawso]

"Let's evoke the Saturn V" taken too far...

I thought that too, but the idea is almost too ridiculous to even consider. At the very least, I think Urwumpe has to admit that SpaceX doesnt look old fashioned when compared to this.

 

[Pipcard]

The current plan is to use 1960's era alloys. However, there are modern, lighter alloys and composites already in common use in aircraft that could bring the payload capability to the 100 mT range.

Are you talking about this? What's the source for the alloys being "1960's era"?

The switch is not just about reducing costs, but it will also prove to be more optimal for the stresses that SLS will endure.

 

[BruceJohnJennerLawso]

Are you talking about this? What's the source for the alloys being "1960's era"?

Ah, I see, that does make some more sense. Still, reasonable cost is not part of the goal for SLS, so I dont see why they shouldnt consider a lighter alloy.

 

[RGClark]

Are you talking about this? What's the source for the alloys being "1960's era"?

The shuttle external tank was designed in the seventies. It originally used the same Al 2219 aluminum alloy used on the Saturn V S-IC stage tanks from the 1960's.

NASA was able to save 25% off the ET weight by later switching to aluminum-lithium alloys. Boeing and NASA says those Al-Li alloys can't be scaled up. But as noted in that Nasaspaceflight article, another more modern Al-Li alloy that is already in common use in aircraft can be scaled up to again save 25% off the SLS tank weight.

Additional structural elements such as the intertank can be constructed out of composites whose use in the industry goes back decades, saving additional weight.

Use of these modern materials can bring the payload capacity to the 100 mT range.

Bob Clark

 

[orb]

NASAMarshallTV:

 

[orb]

[ame="http://vimeo.com/64176823"]Exploration Systems Division Quarterly Report: Q1 2013 on Vimeo[/ame]

 

[orb]

SPACE.com: NASA Must Pay for Plutonium Production to Fuel Deep-Space Probes

Space Politics: A busy week of NASA hearings

 

[N_Molson]

Apollo-Era Test Stand Being Prepared for SLS Core Stage Testing

Apollo-Era Test Stand Being Prepared for SLS Core Stage Testing

Before NASA's new Space Launch System (SLS) flies to space on its inaugural mission in 2017, it will fly in place at the agency's Stennis Space Center in Mississippi.

The B-2 Test Stand at Stennis, originally built to test Saturn rocket stages that propelled humans to the moon, is being completely renovated to test the SLS core stage in late 2016 and early 2017. The SLS stage, with four RS-25 rocket engines, will be installed on the stand for propellant fill and drain testing and two hot fire tests.

"These tests will help us understand how the spacecraft and engines behave and provide critical information for ensuring mission safety," said Rick Rauch, manager of the B-2 Test Stand Restoration, Buildout and Test Project. "After all, if there are problems, it's better to address them on the ground than in the air."

NASA is developing the SLS to send humans deeper into space than ever before -- to places like an asteroid and Mars. The SLS will launch NASA's Orion spacecraft and other payloads from the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The SLS program is managed at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. The first test flight of SLS will be in 2017. The rocket will send an uncrewed Orion spacecraft around the moon.

Stennis engineers were asked early in the SLS development process to determine the cost of restoring the B-2 stand to the condition needed for green run testing of the spacecraft’s core stage. A green run is the first time the engines are assembled into a single configuration with the core stage and fired at nearly full-power. This will test the compatibility and functionality of the system to ensure a safe and viable design.

The team spent 18 months conducting structural, mechanical and electrical system evaluations to assess the work needed since Apollo- and space shuttle-era testing.

Once the decision was made to proceed with core stage testing, Stennis engineers began converting original hand-drawn facility blueprints into computer models so design work could be completed. The actual renovation work was divided into three phases: restoration, buildout and special test equipment.

"In the first phase, we are restoring the test facility to its original design condition, where it could be used to test any number of stages," Rauch explained. "In the second phase, we will focus on building out the stand specifically to accommodate the SLS core stage. Then, in the third phase, we will complete the structural, mechanical and electrical interfaces required to test the core stage."

Each phase involves assessment, design and contractor support. In the end, no area of the stand will be left untouched, including all structural areas, as well as supporting mechanical, electrical and piping systems. The fundamental design of the stand will not be changed since it originally was built to test rocket stages.

However, the SLS stage is different from the Saturn stages and the space shuttle main propulsion test article installed and fired on the stand in earlier years. It is taller, standing 212 feet. To lift the stage into place, the derrick crane atop the stand must be extended 50 feet. The stand’s weight and thrust takeout structures also must be modified, and a higher support frame must be erected. The process will involve repositioning an existing 1.2 million pound frame about 20 feet and building a new 100-foot-tall superstructure atop it.

"The teams at the Stennis Space Center are doing a great job preparing the B-2 facility," said John Rector, SLS Stages Green Run test manager at Marshall. "We're on track to begin testing there in 2016. It's an exciting time for NASA as we establish a new national capability for future space exploration." Demolition work began on several test stand levels late last summer. Structural restoration has begun. Work is to be completed in time for delivery of the SLS core stage in 2016, with installation and testing to follow.

Source : www.nasa.gov

 

[orb]

Space Politics: Bolden: the path to Mars requires commercial crew and SLS, but not the Moon

The Space Review: Drawing the battle lines for NASA’s 2014 budget

The Space Review: Bolden Defends Commercial Crew, Asteroid Mission, Cuts to Planetary and Education

Parabolic Arc: Bolden: Congress to Blame for Extended Reliance on Russian Crew Transport

 

[orb]

Aviation Week: Continued Sequestration Will Short-Circuit SLS

 

[N_Molson]

NASA : SLS Monthly Highlights (April 2013)

Content :

- NASA Budget Proposal Lays Out Asteroid Retrieval Mission
- Spaceflight Partners: Avans Machine, Inc.
- Hot-Fire Tests Steering the Future of NASA’s Space Launch System Engines
- SLS Boosters Reach Program Milestone

NASA : SLS Monthly Highlights (May 2013)

Content :

- Adapter ‘Flips’ for Progress toward 2014 Exploration Flight Test
- SLS Booster Center Segment Delivered to Utah Test Bay
- Spaceflight Partners: Votaw Precision Technologies
- Deputy Administrator Garver Visits NASA’s Gulf Coast Facilities
- A-1 Test Stand Houses First Full Engine in Nearly a Decade

 

[Codz]

A new NASA astronaut class of eight has been selected. Four men and four women, with five currently in the various branches of the military.

Victor J. Glover, 37, lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy. According to NASA, he is an F/A-18 pilot who holds degrees from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Calif., and currently serves as a Navy Legislative Fellow in Congress.

Tyler N. (Nick) Hague, 37, lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Air Force. He is a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy and MIT, and works for the Department of Defense.

Christina M. Hammock, 34, holds a graduate degree from North Carolina State University. She works in American Samoa as station chief for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Nicole Aunapu Mann, 35, major in the U.S. Marine Corps. She's also an F/A 18 pilot.

Josh A. Cassada, Ph.D, 38, is a former naval aviator and a physicist. He is currently a co-founder and CTO for Quantum Opus, which deals with quantum optics research.

Anne C. McClain, 34, major in the U.S. Army. She's a graduate of West Point, as well as the United Kingdom's University of Bath and the University of Bristol. She's also an OH-58 helicopter pilot.

Jess U. Meir, Ph.D, 35. She's a graduate of Brown University, and earned her doctorate from the Scripps Institute of Oceanography. She works as an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School.

Andrew R. Morgan, M.D., 37, major, U.S. Army, is an experienced emergency physician and flight surgeon.

http://www.nasa.gov/astronauts/2013astroclass.html

http://www.space.com/21599-nasa-astronaut-class-2013-pictures.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/19/s...nauts-gives-parity-to-men-and-women.html?_r=0

 

[Urwumpe]

Actually - all seem to be affiliated with government organisations. Scripps is also US Navy, if I remember correctly.

 

[Codz]

Actually - all seem to be affiliated with government organisations. Scripps is also US Navy, if I remember correctly.

Only five are active military, and Scripps is part of UC San Diego.