The Mayhem of Docking Adapter Standards
This article is a great rundown of how we got to this point, with far too many acronyms and docking systems.
And here’s the megafeed of everything I’ve been doing.
This article is a great rundown of how we got to this point, with far too many acronyms and docking systems.
SpaceX posted an absolutely fantastic time-lapse video of IDA-2 being removed from Dragon’s trunk. IDA-2 is set for installation bright and early tomorrow morning (6:30 AM Eastern).
Next up, on-orbit servicing and repairs.
While the majority of this SpaceNews article by Jeff Foust is focused on Congressional wrestling over how much money Europa Clipper should receive, there are a few other tidbits of interest.
NASA selected six companies, as part of the NextSTEP program, to develop ground prototypes of deep space habitats, and the Centaur could live on as a wet workshop. Orbital ATK pushed OA-5 to late September. SpaceX landed yet another stage on the ASDS, and have up to 9 more launches planned for 2016.
Lighter structures mean more payload. More durable structures mean more reuse. There have been several rumors about BFR using composites, and this certainly points in that direction.
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One of the programs that could be affected is the one funding development of the AR1, BE-4, and ACES. Blue Origin isn’t going to stop their work on the BE-4, because that’s paramount to their own ambitions, but the AR1 work could be hit hard.
NASA’s Commercial Crew Twitter account tweeted a time-lapse video of the crew access arm and white room being lifted to the top of the tower at SLC-41.
Good rundown of SpaceX’s remaining 2016 manifest by Peter B. de Selding of SpaceNews. After a great launch and landing last night, SpaceX is planning for 9 more launches this year.
This would be a smart move for Blue Origin if and when it comes about. I’d be interested if they’d jettison the fairings (with recovery), or use a hinged, clamshell-style design that would remain attached to the booster on its way back down.
I’ve talked about AF-M315E and other greener hydrazine alternatives fairly often over the past few months. This is an industry-wide push that shows no signs of slowing down—even water-based systems are in the works.
They’re citing launch site testing and ISS scheduling as the cause for the delay, but it sort of feels like we’re not getting the whole story here.
NASA has selected 6 partners—Bigelow, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Orbital ATK, Sierra Nevada, and NanoRacks (working with SSL and ULA)—to develop full-sized ground prototypes for deep space habitats. Other than it being the same old insiders club as always, there are some cool bits in here.
Moon Express gained government approval for their upcoming mission to win the Google Lunar X Prize. And I go on a rant about artificial gravity and how NASA shrugs it off as unnecessary.
Great rundown over on reddit of what Shotwell talked about during her keynote at SmallSat today. Most exciting part: the first Raptor engine shipped to McGregor for testing.
The crew access arm at SLC-41 is due to be installed sometime this week, Pad 39A work is continuing, and Falcon Heavy is delayed until “early 2017.”
The mere existence of ARM on NASA’s #JourneyToMars roadmap is an admission of just how flawed that roadmap is in its current state.
There are a few obvious reasons the Air Force would go with a sole-source contract. This isn’t a big deal or a surprise, at all.
The changes associated with artificial gravity are not as much about the changes to the still-on-paper (at best) spacecraft, and more about the changes to the NASA roadmap.