Video highlights of XCOR’s recent trip from Roswell to Mojave.
AUTHOR
Doug Messier
May 3, 2012, Mojave, CA: XCOR’s innovative piston pump technology took a ride from Roswell, NM to Mojave, CA in April 2012.
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Two bills are up for a vote today in the Hawaii State Legislature concerning a spaceport and a lunar development park.
CST-100 drop test. (Credit: Boeing)
HOUSTON, May 3, 2012 (Boeing PR) — Boeing [NYSE: BA] successfully completed the second parachute drop test of the company’s Crew Space Transportation (CST)-100 spacecraft on May 2 at the Delamar Dry Lake Bed near Alamo, Nev. The test demonstrated the performance of the entire landing system.
An Erickson Air Crane helicopter lifted the CST-100 test article to about 14,000 feet and initiated a drogue parachute deployment sequence that was followed by deployment of the main parachute. The capsule descended to a smooth ground landing, cushioned by six inflated air bags.
NASA's COLBERT Treadmill
Washington, DC (NSS PR) — On Thursday, May 3, Stephen Colbert will be presented with the National Space Society’s 2012 Space Pioneer Award for Mass Media on his popular show, The Colbert Report, on the Comedy Central cable network. The award will be presented by Apollo XI astronaut Buzz Aldrin, a member of the NSS Board of Governors and friend of Colbert’s.
“We are very pleased to present this award to Colbert in recognition of his unceasing promotion of space tourism, space development, NASA programs, and the use of private enterprise for better access to space, all of which are supported by the National Space Society,” said Paul E. Damphousse, NSS Executive Director. “By frequently interviewing astronauts, space entrepreneurs and scientists on his program, he has demonstrated that it is possible to inform the public on serious space topics in a comedic setting.”
Washington D.C. (CSF PR) – The Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s Suborbital Applications Researchers Group (SARG) announced today the formation of the SARG Ambassadors Program, and opened enrollment. The SARG Ambassadors Program allows interested scientists and educators around the nation to help spread the word about the uses of next-gen commercial reusable suborbital vehicles for research and education.
SIERRA NEVADA CORPORATION ANNOUNCES FLORIDA INTEREST Lt. Governor Jennifer Carroll to Recognize Near-Term Employment Potential WHAT: Announcement of interest in establishing a variety of capabilities in Florida by Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) Space Systems, a Colorado-based designer and manufacturer of advanced spacecraft, space vehicles and spacecraft subsystems for commercial and government customers. Sierra Nevada Corporation is developing a commercial orbital crew vehicle to transport astronauts and critical cargo to and […]
Jeff Foust has gotten Virgin Galactic CEO George Whitesides to clarify remarks he made last week in Qatar about the status of SpaceShipTwo’s engine status. Things aren’t nearly far along as it appeared:
Last Thursday the Wall Street Journal (via Zawya Dow Jones) reported from Doha, Qatar, that SpaceShipTwo engine development was nearly complete. “Within a month or two, we expect we’ll have an engine we can put in the [spacecraft] vehicle,” Virgin Galactic president and CEO George Whitesides said. That would put them on a path towards beginning powered flight tests by late this year and beginning commercial service by the end of this year. (In a brief conversation Saturday in Washington, where he was on a panel at the USA Science and Engineering Festival, Whitesides told me that the motor that will be ready for SpaceShipTwo soon will be a “starter” motor for short-duration powered tests, not the full motor.) [My emphasis]
Really? Seven and a half years after launching the program, they only have a “starter” motor for short duration test flights that will begin at the end of the year. On what basis does that give Virgin confidence that they can start commercial service by the end of 2013? I don’t get it.
SpaceX issued a statement this morning: At this time, a May 7th launch appears unlikely. SpaceX is continuing to work through the software assurance process with NASA. We will issue a statement as soon as a new launch target is set. The next possible launch date is May 10. Published reports indicate that the next date after that would be May 19. We’ll update this as news becomes available.