SpaceX is targeting Thursday, October 1 at 9:17 a.m. EDT for a Falcon 9 launch of 60 Starlink satellites from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Falcon 9’s first stage previously supported launch of Crew Dragon’s first flight to the International Space Station with NASA astronauts onboard and the ANASIS-II mission. Following stage separation, SpaceX will land Falcon 9’s first stage on the “Of Course I Still Love You” droneship, which will be stationed in the Atlantic Ocean. One of Falcon 9’s fairing halves supported two previous Starlink launches.
The Starlink satellites will deploy approximately 1 hour and 1 minute after liftoff.
SpaceX is targeting Monday, July 20 for Falcon 9’s launch of the ANASIS-II mission, which will lift off from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The primary launch window opens at 5:00 p.m. EDT, or 21:00 UTC, and closes at 8:55 p.m. EDT, or 00:55 UTC on July 21.Falcon 9’s first stage previously launched Crew Dragon to the International Space Station with NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley on board.
Following stage separation, SpaceX will land Falcon 9’s first stage on the “Just Read the Instructions” droneship, which will be stationed in the Atlantic Ocean. The ANASIS-II spacecraft will deploy about 32 minutes after liftoff. Per the customer’s request, live coverage will end shortly after first stage landing.You can watch the launch webcast here, starting about 15 minutes before liftoff.
Currently traveling at some 105 million kilometres from Earth, the Airbus-built Solar Orbiter (SolO) is en route for an encounter to uncover the secrets of our closest star.
While humankind has been studying the Sun for hundreds of years, the research is limited because data was always collected from distances more or less equal to the star’s separation from Earth, according to Ian Walters, Airbus’ SolO Project Manager.
“Solar wind takes about two to four days to get from the Sun to Earth, and in that time, it transforms completely,” he explained. “We can better correlate what is seen with what is felt from the Sun if we can get up close. That’s the point of the Solar Orbiter mission…and it’s never been achieved before.”
Solar Orbiter was launched in February in a joint mission of the European Space Agency and the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Travelling closer to the Sun than its nearest planet – Mercury – SolO will make comprehensive measurements of the nascent solar wind.
Beating the heat
For the spacecraft and its 10 instruments to survive extreme temperatures of up to 600 deg. Centigrade, Airbus designed a protective heat shield with openings for SolO’s five telescopes to peek through during the trek.
According to Walters, the most critical heat protection technology is the Stand-off Radiator Assembly (SORA) – a set of radiators sitting on the spacecraft’s side that is always in shadow, enabling them to quickly transfer heat from the instruments into space. SORA’s thermal straps are made from pyrolytic graphite, which is five times more conductive than copper wire but flexible like paper.
To avoid any molecular contamination that could compromise imagery from the telescopes, Airbus also built Solar Orbiter to levels of cleanliness far exceeding any other spacecraft built in the UK to date. Every item on SolO has been heated to over 120 degrees to make sure no gases are emitted in the vacuum of space.
Predicting solar events
Data from Solar Orbiter can help make significant improvements to everyday life, particularly when it comes to predicting solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CME) – the expulsions of plasma and its accompanying magnetic field from the sun, which can have a major impact on Earth.
“In 1859, one such episode took down the world’s telegraph network,” Walters said. “A similar event today would severely disrupt our power grids, mobile phone towers, navigation systems and many other critical technologies.”
He added: “If we could predict the CME was coming our way, we’d have about two days’ notice for emergency government committees to be activated and react, instead of the few minutes’ notice we receive today.”
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla., March 26, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The successful March 26 launch of the U.S. Space Force’s sixth and final Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) military communications satellite aboard a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket marked the 500th flight of Aerojet Rocketdyne’s RL10 upper-stage engine.
The RL10, which powers the ULA Atlas V Centaur upper stage, is one of several Aerojet Rocketdyne propulsion products supporting the mission. Aerojet Rocketdyne propulsion can be found on both the rocket and the AEHF-6 satellite. Built by Lockheed Martin, the AEHF satellites provide secure, jam-proof communications, including nuclear command and control, to U.S. and allied forces.
“This launch marks an important milestone for Aerojet Rocketdyne and for the country,” said Eileen Drake, Aerojet Rocketdyne’s CEO and president. “The RL10 has supported a majority of the nation’s most important national security and scientific missions, including all of the AEHF satellites which provide communication links that are critical to our warfighters.”
The Atlas V in the 551 configuration is the most powerful vehicle in the Atlas V family, featuring five Aerojet Rocketdyne AJ-60A solid rocket strap-on motors, each generating 348,500 pounds of thrust. Designed specifically to provide extra lifting power to the Atlas V, the AJ-60A is the world’s largest monolithic solid rocket motor ever flown.
The AEHF-6 satellite, meanwhile, is outfitted with three different types of Aerojet Rocketdyne thrusters for attitude control, orbital station keeping and maneuvering. These include 12 MR-103G and six MR-106E monopropellant thrusters; and four, 5-kilowatt-class XR-5 Hall-effect electric thrusters and associated power processing systems.
The Atlas V also uses Aerojet Rocketdyne reaction control thrusters on the Centaur upper stage, as well as pressure vessels provided by ARDÉ, an Aerojet Rocketdyne subsidiary. The rocket launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, and the AEHF-6 satellite is on its way to its operating location in geostationary orbit.
In addition to the Atlas V, the RL10 also powers the upper stage of ULA’s Delta IV Heavy rocket. The RL10 has helped place hundreds of military, civil and commercial satellites into Earth orbit and has sent spacecraft to explore every planet in our solar system. The RL10’s proven reliability over more than five decades of service has made it the upper-stage engine of choice for three new rockets under development, including ULA’s Vulcan Centaur, Northrop Grumman’s OmegA, and NASA’s Space Launch System.
About Aerojet Rocketdyne: Aerojet Rocketdyne, a subsidiary of Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings, Inc. (AJRD), is a world-recognized aerospace and defense leader that provides propulsion systems and energetics to the space, missile defense and strategic systems, and tactical systems areas, in support of domestic and international customers.
SpaceX’s Dragon capsule arrived at the International Space Station on March 9, 2020 and was docked at 3:25 a.m. PDT while flying over 262 statute miles over the Pacific Northwest. The spacecraft was then installed on the Harmony module for the duration of its four-week stay at the orbiting laboratory.
Filled with approximately 4,500 pounds of supplies and payloads, Dragon launched aboard a Falcon 9 rocket on March 6, 2020 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The Dragon spacecraft that supported the CRS-20 mission previously supported the CRS-10 mission in February 2017 and the CRS-16 mission in December 2018. Dragon is the only spacecraft currently flying that’s capable of returning significant amounts of cargo to Earth.
Teams at Stennis Space Center prepare for core stage hot-fire testing ahead of Artemis I lunar mission
Boeing [NYSE: BA] today delivered the core stage of NASA’s first Space Launch System (SLS) deep space exploration rocket, moving it out of the NASA Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans to the agency’s Pegasus barge.
The event marks the first time a completed rocket stage has shipped out of Michoud since the end of the Apollo program. SLS Core Stage 1 is the largest single rocket stage ever built by NASA and its industry partners.
The rollout follows several weeks of final testing and check-outs after NASA’s declaration of “core stage complete” during a December 9 Artemis Day celebration at Michoud.
NASA will transport the SLS core stage to its Stennis Space Center in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, in the next few days for “Green Run” hot-fire engine tests later this year. After inspection and refurbishing for launch, the stage moves to Kennedy Space Center in Florida. At Kennedy, the core stage will be integrated with the Interim Cryogenic Upper Stage (ICPS) and NASA’s Orion spacecraft for the uncrewed Artemis I mission around the moon – the first launch of a human-rated spacecraft to the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972.
“The Boeing SLS team has worked shoulder-to-shoulder with NASA and our supplier partners to face multiple challenges with ingenuity and perseverance, while keeping safety and quality at the forefront,” said John Shannon, Boeing SLS vice president and program manager.
SLS is the world’s most powerful rocket, evolvable and built to carry astronauts and cargo farther and faster than any rocket in history. Its unmatched capabilities will deliver human-rated spacecraft, habitats and science missions to the moon, Mars and beyond as part of NASA’s Artemis program.
“We are applying what we’ve learned from development of the first core stage to accelerate work on core stages 2 and 3, already in production at Michoud, as well as the Exploration Upper Stage that will power NASA’s most ambitious Artemis missions,” said Shannon.
Space Launch System Core stage 1 rollout from Michoud Assembly Facility to NASA’s Pegasus barge; for Green Run test. MSF20-0002 Series. Leanne Caret_President and CEO of Boeing Defense, Space & Security.
– Boeing and Virgin Galactic enter strategic partnership to transform commercial space travel and mobility
– Latest investment to date by Boeing HorizonX Ventures organization
Boeing [NYSE: BA] is investing $20 million in Virgin Galactic, a vertically integrated human spaceflight company. The companies will work together to broaden commercial space access and transform global travel technologies.
“Boeing’s strategic investment facilitates our effort to drive the commercialization of space and broaden consumer access to safe, efficient, and environmentally responsible new forms of transportation,” said Brian Schettler, senior managing director of Boeing HorizonX Ventures. “Our work with Virgin Galactic, and others, will help unlock the future of space travel and high-speed mobility.”
To date, Virgin Galactic has invested $1 billion of capital to build reusable human spaceflight systems designed to enable significantly more people to experience and utilize space. In July, the company announced its intent to become a publicly-listed entity via a business combination with Social Capital Hedosophia Holdings Corp. The Boeing investment will be in return for new shares in Virgin Galactic and is therefore contingent on the closing of that transaction, which is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2019, and any such investment will be in the post-business combination company.
This investment brings together two companies with extensive experience in the space industry. Virgin Galactic is a pioneer of commercial human space flight and is the first and only company to have put humans into space in a vehicle built for commercial service, having built and flown a Mach 3 passenger vehicle. Through its manufacturing and development capabilities, Virgin Galactic can design, build, test, and operate a fleet of advanced aerospace vehicles. Boeing has unsurpassed experience transporting people to orbit and building and operating large structures in that challenging environment. A part of every U.S. manned space program, Boeing serves as NASA’s prime contractor for the International Space Station (ISS) and is preparing the new, reusable, Starliner space capsule for launch to the ISS.
“This is the beginning of an important collaboration for the future of air and space travel, which are the natural next steps for our human spaceflight program,” said Sir Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Galactic. “Virgin Galactic and Boeing share a vision of opening access to the world and space, to more people, in safe and environmentally responsible ways.”
Boeing Defense, Space & Security President and CEO Leanne Caret, said “the unique expertise of our companies stretches from points all around the world to the deepest reaches of space. Together we will change how people travel on Earth, and among the stars, for generations to come.”
George Whitesides, CEO of Virgin Galactic, noted: “we are excited to partner with Boeing to develop something that can truly change how people move around the planet and connect with one another. As a Virgin company, our focus will be on a safe and unparalleled customer experience, with environmental responsibility to the fore.”
Additional information on specific projects to be pursued will be shared in the future.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Federal Aviation Administration said on Tuesday it had convened a multi-agency Technical Advisory Board to review Boeing’s proposed software fix on the grounded 737 MAX.
The board consists of experts from the FAA, U.S. Air Force, NASA and Volpe National Transportation Systems Center that were not involved in any aspect of the Boeing 737 MAX certification. The board’s recommendations will “directly inform the FAA’s decision concerning the 737 MAX fleet’s safe return to service.”
The plane was grounded worldwide in mid-March after two Boeing 737 MAX crashes in October and March killed 346 people.
Boeing, which has yet to formally submit the software fix to the FAA for approval, did not immediately comment Tuesday on the new review.
Some in Congress have urged the FAA to conduct an independent review into the anti-stall system at the center of investigations into two deadly plane crashes before allowing the planes to resume flying.
The board known as TAB will assess Boeing’s proposed fix to the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS), the FAA said.
“The TAB is charged with evaluating Boeing and FAA efforts related to Boeing’s software update and its integration into the 737 MAX flight control system. The TAB will identify issues where further investigation is required prior to FAA approval of the design change,” the FAA said.
The world’s largest planemaker, facing its worst crisis in years and the worldwide grounding of its top-selling jetliner, has said its software upgrade and associated pilot training will add layers of protection to prevent erroneous data from triggering MCAS.
The system activated in the Ethiopian Airlines crash in March and also during a separate Lion Air crash in Indonesia in October.
There are a number of other reviews ongoing, including a blue-ribbon committee appointed by Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao looking at the FAA’s aircraft certification process.
Federal prosecutors, the Transportation Department’s inspector general and lawmakers are investigating the FAA’s certification of the 737 MAX 8 aircraft.
A separate joint review by 10 governmental air regulators started last week and is expected to last about 90 days, but the FAA has said that a decision on ungrounding the plane is not contingent on that review being completed.
(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Nick Zieminski)
(Bloomberg)
— It’s all-electric like a Tesla. It’s priced like a Ford Fiesta. It’s
one of the oddest-looking vehicles you’ve ever seen — and it may just
redefine the commuter car.
As
General Motors Co. prepares to shut the plant near Toronto that got
car-making started in Canada more than a century ago, a new model is
taking shape in a tiny production facility in Vancouver’s outskirts.
Meet the Solo — a one-seater vehicle made by Electra Meccanica Vehicles Corp. that costs $15,500. By December, 5,000 will be zipping around the streets of Los Angeles, with an additional 70,000 to be delivered over the next two years across the West Coast. Electra Meccanica may have a market value of just $80 million, yet it has $2.4 billion in pre-orders. The stock almost doubled in New York Wednesday.
NASA and Boeing teams lifted critical Space Launch System (SLS) test hardware into place at Marshall Space Flight Center.
“I wish all of America could be here to see this. It’s history in the making, and we’re honored to be part of it,” said Paul Wright, Boeing Test & Evaluation Senior Manager for SLS.
A test version of the largest section of core stage hardware, the Boeing-built liquid hydrogen tank (LH2), will undergo months of structural testing to validate design and manufacture of this SLS core stage element.
The 150,000 pound liquid hydrogen tank test article is structurally identical to the flight version of the tank that will comprise two-thirds of the core stage and hold 537,000 gallons of liquid hydrogen cooled to minus 423 degrees Fahrenheit. Dozens of hydraulic cylinders in the 225-foot-tall test stand will push and pull the tank, subjecting it to the same stresses and loads it will endure during liftoff and flight.
The flight version of the LH2 tank is undergoing final fitting at New Orleans’ Michoud Assembly Facility. The fitting prepares the article for stacking with the engine section, called aft join. The top half of the core stage, called forward join, will then be mated with the aft join in final assembly. Engines are then attached and the core stage will be shipped to NASA’s Stennis Space Flight Center for smoke and fire testing in the refurbished B2 test stand, where Apollo’s Saturn V stages were tested.
