Just Dying to Go to Mars
I love the idea of going to Mars. Of course, I have no idea how any nation or any company would pay for such an adventure. …
Orion: On Our Way to Mars Again
In the midst of a series of technical glitches which delayed the planned launch of the Orion capsule by a Delta IV rocket on Thursday, NASA Administrator Charles Bolden is reported to have told NBC News, “We’re now on the way to Mars, and that’s what’s most important.” Uh, no. First of all, we’re not anywhere close to being on our way to Mars…
Orion: Hard to Get All Tingly Over NASA’s New Capsule
NASA is preparing to launch its new Orion capsule on Thursday, December 4. It will be the first test launch of the spacecraft, which is being billed as kind of a big deal because it represents the agency’s first major step toward regaining an inhouse manned spaceflight capability — something it has not had since the end of the Space Shuttle program…
Antares and SpaceShipTwo: A Wake Up Call for Lots More Test Flights
I remember reading back in 2008 that Virgin Galactic would soon begin flight testing its SpaceShipTwo spaceplane. I recall reading there would be at least 50 test flights before there would be any thought of the vehicle carrying passengers, other than its two test pilots. I thought, “Hmm, 50 flights… that seems reasonable.” I figured that should…
The Antares Rocket Failure: So What’s Wrong With 40-Year Old Russian Engines?
The cause of Tuesday’s Antares 130 launch failure is not known. The builder and owner of the rocket, Orbital ATK, will lead an investigation of the accident, and it will be assisted by NASA and the FAA. All that is known for sure at this point was tweeted by Orbital ATK: “There has been a vehicle anomaly. The vehicle suffered a catastrophic…
Tens of Billions of Dollars for Asteroid Roping?
If you want a good example of what’s wrong with the US space program, take a good look at the Space Launch System rocket NASA is developing. In 2011, NASA estimated the cost of developing this human-rated, heavy-lift vehicle, along with the Orion crew capsule and launch facility upgrades, at $18 billion through 2017. The latest estimate by…
NASA’s Commercial Crew Vehicles: Practical But Not Sexy
The two Commercial Crew Transportation Capability (CCtCap) contracts awarded to Boeing and SpaceX by NASA on September 16 should come as no big surprise to anyone familiar with both the agency’s conservative culture and its relatively small annual budget of just under $18 billion. Boeing received $4.2 billion to continue with development…
