WASHINGTON (NASA PR) — Today, we pay tribute to a pioneering American; an explorer, a patriot and an individual who, with ‘one small step,’ achieved an impossible dream. Family, friends and colleagues of Neil’s gathered to reflect on his extraordinary life and career, and offer thanks for the many blessings he shared with us along the way. His remarkable achievements will be forever remembered, and his grace and humility will […]
AUTHOR
Doug Messier
Apollo 11 Astronauts Michael Collins, left, and Buzz Aldrin talk at a private memorial service celebrating the life of Neil Armstrong, Aug. 31, 2012, at the Camargo Club in Cincinnati. Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon during the 1969 Apollo 11 mission, died Saturday, Aug. 25. He was 82. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Carol Armstrong, wife of Neil Armstrong, and Piper Van Wagenen, one of 10 grandchildren, are seen during a memorial service celebrating the life of Neil Armstrong, Friday, Aug. 31, 2012, at the Camargo Club in Cincinnati. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
Piper Van Wagenen, one of Neil Armstrong’s 10 grandchildren, is seen during preparation of a memorial service celebrating the life of Neil Armstrong, Friday, Aug. 31, 2012, at the Camargo Club in Cincinnati. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)
International Space Station
Jim Oberg reports that NASA is preparing to approve year-long stays aboard the International Space Station, a move that would open up tourism seats aboard Soyuz transport vehicles:
NASA will shortly announce plans to double the mission duration of some astronaut expeditions to the International Space Station, NBC News has learned. Beginning as early as 2015, some of the astronauts and cosmonauts sent into orbit will remain there not the usual six months, but for a full year.
Neil Armstrong’s family has released information about the memorial service on Friday morning in Cincinnati. A private service will begin at 11 a.m. EDT No media will be allowed inside Still photos will be taken during the service by NASA photographer Bill Ingalls and posted later at neilarmstonginfo.com Attendees will include NASA Administrator Charles Bolden and former Apollo 8 lunar module pilot Bill Anders Plans are underway to conduct a […]
The family of Neil Armstrong has added the AIAA’s Neil Armstrong Scholarship Fund to the list of charitable funds to which donors can contribute in honor of the late Apollo 11 commander, who passed away on Saturday at the age of 82. The full list is below. The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Neil Armstrong Scholarship Fund AIAA Foundation 1801 Alexander Bell Drive Suite 500 Reston, VA 20191 www.aiaa.org […]
The Boeing Company performs a jettison test of its forward heat shield, which will protect the parachutes of the company’s CST-100 spacecraft during trips to and from low Earth orbit. (Credit: Boeing)
Kennedy Space Center, Fl. (NASA PR) — The Boeing Company recently completed a jettison test of its forward heat shield, which will protect the parachutes of the company’s CST-100 spacecraft during future missions to and from low Earth orbit. The forward heat shield jettison will start the parachute deployment sequence and provide a safe landing for the capsule and its crew members. The test was part of Boeing’s work supporting its funded Space Act Agreement (SAA) with NASA’s Commercial Crew Program (CCP) during Commercial Crew Development Round 2 (CCDev2).
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Following the failure of a Proton rocket earlier this month, Khrunichev published figures on its launches and success rate for the past five years to correct what it saw as erroneous information circulating in the media.
The data and analysis below is based on that information. I have added success rate percentages, rewritten Khrunichev’s information to make it more readable, and added my own analysis.
The overall picture is one of a company struggling with quality control on its own upper stages, with the resulting loss of about 10 percent of its launches.
A dart-shaped test vehicle that is used to simulate Orion’s parachute compartment descends above the skies of the U.S. Yuma Army Proving Ground in Arizona. Engineers were testing the maximum pressure Orion’s chutes might face when returning from exploration missions. (Credit: NASA)
HOUSTON (NASA PR) — NASA Tuesday successfully completed another parachute test of its Orion spacecraft high above the skies of the U.S. Yuma Army Proving Ground in southwestern Arizona. The test examined the maximum pressure Orion’s parachutes might face when returning from exploration missions.
Orion will be the most advanced spacecraft ever designed and carry astronauts farther into space than ever before. It will provide emergency abort capability, sustain astronauts during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space.
NYACK, N.Y. (SFF PR) — Today, the Republican Party released its 2012 platform, which included a provision entitled “America’s Future in Space: Continuing This Quest.” The non-partisan Space Frontier Foundation issued the following statement in response:
NASA seems to be one Big Government program many Republicans love. The GOP platform criticizes the federal government as “bloated, antiquated and unresponsive to taxpayers” but has nothing but hackneyed praise for NASA, and doesn’t even mention the increasing role of the private sector. The authors of this platform must imagine they still live in the Cold War of the 1960s, when only governments launched payloads and people into space.
Mitt Romney. (Credit: Gage Skidmore)
The Republican Platform — a document that lays out what the party stands for in the upcoming Presidential election — includes a brief passage on the nation’s space program. The section is largely focused on NASA and the need to maintain American leadership in this area for the purposes of competitiveness, technological progress, and national security. There is no mention of commercial space nor any specific proposals on programs and initiatives. Nor does it contain any criticism of the Obama Administration.
This vagueness is largely in line with Mitt Romney’s approach to space, which has been to attack the Obama Administration as disastrous while offering no specifics on what he would change.
Read the space section below.