Video Caption: Less than a week after the successful completion of the 650 meter down range flight on August 9, Masten successfully conducted the third and final flight of its recent Entry Descent & Landing test campaign for NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)**. Reaching an altitude of 476.4 meters and translating 750 meters down the test range at the Mojave Air and Space Port. The flight, controlled by Masten’s native […]
AUTHOR
Doug Messier
By Douglas Messier
Parabolic Arc Managing Editor
Vladimir Nesterov, director general of the Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center, has resigned following the failure of a Proton rocket to place two communications satellites in their proper orbits last week, Russian media sources report.
Nesterov resigned on Wednesday, a day after President Dmitry Medvedev held a meeting to reprimand Russian space officials over the latest launch failure. Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin also severely criticized the Khrunichev boss on Monday.
The hypersonic X-51A Waverider vehicle, designed to fly at Mach 6 for five minutes, failed in flight on Tuesday due a flaw in a control fin. The U.S. Air Force has issued the following statement:
“The X-51A Waverider successfully launched from an Air Force B-52 bomber over Point Mugu Naval Air Warfare Center Sea Range Aug. 14 at approximately 11:36 a.m. PST.
The X-51 safely separated from the B-52 and the rocket booster fired as planned. However after 16 seconds, a fault was identified with one of the cruiser control fins. Once the X-51 separated from the rocket booster, approximately 15 seconds later, the cruiser was not able to maintain control due to the faulty control fin and was lost.
Mitt Romney. (Credit: Gage Skidmore)
Mitt Romney was campaigning earlier this week in Florida, where he made some rather cryptic remarks about America’s space program that might be attributed to an overly tight necktie had he been wearing one:
“I’ve got a promise for you guys. There are better days ahead when we get a better leader in Washington. This is still the greatest nation on Earth. I know there are people around the world who are always critical of America, have something negative to say, say our greatest days are in the past. Baloney. We just won more Olympic medals than any other nation on Earth. You also just saw we just landed on Mars and took a good look at what’s going on there. And I know the Chinese are planning on going to the Moon and I hope they have a good experience doing that and I hope they stop in and take a look at our flag that was put there 43 years ago.”
Now, let’s go through this step by step.
MOSCOW (Khrunichev PR) — At the State Research and Production Space Center Khrunichev, bench tests are being conducted on the first stage of the light-class KSLV-1 rocket. After completing the tests the company’s specialists will prepare the product for shipment to South Korea’s space center Naro where the rocket KSLV-1 will undergo pre-launch preparations. The shipment of the rocket to South Korea is scheduled for August 2012. The third launch […]
Dream Chaser shuttle. (Credit: Sierra Nevada Corporation)
SIERRA NEVADA COMMERCIAL CREW PROGRAM
Overview
Company: Sierra Nevada Corporation
Location: Louisville, Colo.
Spacecraft: Dream Chaser
Type: Lifting body
Crew Capacity: 7
Launch Vehicle: Atlas V (United Launch Alliance)
CCiCAP Funding (if all milestones met): $212.5 million
CCiCAP Term: 21 months
Previous CCDev Funding: $125.6 million (Sierra Nevada), $6.7 million (ULA)
Total CCDev and CCiCAP Funding (if all milestones met): $338.1 million (Sierra Nevada), $6.7 million (ULA)
CCiCAP Milestones
SNC has 10 milestone to meet during the 21-month base period. The company received what amounted to half an award that is significantly less than the ones provided to Boeing ($460 million) and SpaceX ($440 million). The 2.5 awards approach was a result of an agreement between NASA and Congress.
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (NASA PR) — The “Mighty Eagle,” a NASA robotic prototype lander, is soaring high again for a series of tests being conducted at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.
Lynx mockup. (Credit: Douglas Messier)
Florida Today reports that XCOR will establish its Lynx production facilities and an operational base on the Florida Space Coast, most likely at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center:
The California company expects to create 152 jobs with this operations and manufacturing business, which it will announce at 10 a.m. on Aug. 23 at the Astronaut Encounter Theater at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.
[…]
Space Florida, the state’s space economic development group, has committed to investing up to $3 million in XCOR. And in late July, Brevard County commissioners approved $182,400 in incentives to help the company open a facility at KSC’s Shuttle Landing Facility. According to the company, the project would include hangar and flight operations, vehicle manufacturing, engine assembly and space tourism elements.