NASA’s Mission Operations Directorate (MOD) are preparing for involvement in an underwater simulation of protocols which may become part of a manned mission to a Near Earth Object (NEO). The tests will be carried out during October’s NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) mission, which will be based at the Aquarius underwater habitat in Key [...]

NASA’s Human Architecture Team (HAT) is actively working on a roadmap towards evolvable demonstrations of Propellant Depots – with a potential goal of setting up an “interplanetary highway” to enable low cost exploration. With proposals being sought, industry sources point to a small, 30 metric ton capacity, Centaur derived depot as an initial leading candidate.

The efforts relating to the debut launch of Orion – otherwise known as the Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) – on a “multi-hour” test flight are ramping up, as managers discuss the preliminary objectives, which may include a “human capable” version of the spacecraft being tested. A launch date of July, 2013 has been set, with [...]

A new schedule, created by NASA, has provided a “preliminary, budget restricted” manifest which places the first flight of the fully evolved Space Launch System (SLS) in the year 2032. The information includes details on the chosen configuration and hardware, but provides a depressing schedule, with a flight rate of just one mission per year, [...]

With Discovery now enjoying a month-long vacation inside the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), following her rollover on Wednesday, the long-term future for the Orbiter Processing Facilities (OPFs) will be heavily focused on attracting the new fleet of commercial vehicles, as the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) transitions into a multi-purpose spaceport.

Following an intense week of executive level reviews, a decision has been made on the configuration for NASA’s new launch vehicle. With NASA administrator Charlie Bolden agreeing to a configuration which is heavily derived from the retiring Space Shuttle, an official announcement is likely to be made on July 8, coinciding with the Shuttle’s final [...]

A decision on the configuration of the Space Launch System (SLS) Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle (HLV) is just weeks away, as final evaluations take place into a “staged evolution of a single heavy launcher”, after NASA’s leadership rejected the two-phase approach, which would have resulted in an open competition for the Beyond Earth Orbit (BEO) [...]

Uncertainty over the configuration of the Space Launch System (SLS) Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle (HLV) may soon come to a close – at least for the interim – with a plan solidifying for using a 70mt Shuttle Derived (SD) HLV to perform a handful of flights, while another “open competition” for the main “Phase 2″ [...]

Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) head Elon Musk revealed their latest launch vehicle on Tuesday, the Falcon Heavy. Effectively three Falcon 9 core stages strapped together, the new vehicle – set to debut as soon as 2013 – will be the most powerful US rocket to have launched since the Saturn V was built for the [...]

With a Shuttle Derived (SD) Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle (HLV) still leading the way via ongoing evaluations into the configuration of the Space Launch System (SLS), an evolvable vehicle – which can be delivered on time and on cost – is undergoing final refinements. It is understood that the only real competitor at this stage [...]

In an interview with NASASpaceflight.com, Mission Operations Directorate (MOD) Director Paul Hill spoke of his pride for the MOD community, whilst outlining his vision for the future as NASA prepares to transition into a new post-Shuttle era of Commercial opportunities and a return to manned exploration outside of Low Earth Orbit (LEO).

Planning for the launch of a Block I Orion via a Delta IV Heavy is continuing, with recommendations for a “Joint Test and Mission Operations Team” comprised of Lockheed Martin and NASA-Mission Operations Directorate (MOD) personnel for the test flight. Orion – also now known as Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) – is scheduled to be [...]

A preliminary NASA report, outlining plans for developing a Space Launch System (SLS) in response to the NASA Authorization Act of 2010, has put its weight behind a Inline Shuttle Derived (SD) Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle (HLV). However, the report to lawmakers complained it would not be able to build the vehicle based on the [...]

The Orion vehicle’s return to life is starting to pick up the pace, with planning for an unmanned test flight as early as 2013, along with discussions into the schedule for the manned debut of the vehicle. Key questions revolve around joint government and contractor responsibility for the test flight, while the manned debut may [...]

A final round of potential Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle (HLV) options – which will allow the NASA leadership to choose the design of the Space Launch System (SLS) as early as April, 2011 – has been created by The Human Exploration Framework Team (HEFT), which is coming to the end of its current architecture design phase.

All three orbiters are set to donate their Space Shuttle Main Engines (SSMEs) to the Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle (HLV) program, following their final flights. A Program Requirements Control Board (PRCB) meeting recommended the orbiters should instead gain Replica Shuttle Main Engines (RSMEs) – previously scrapped nozzles installed via an adaptor – for when the [...]

The Direct movement – a group of professionals and non-professional engineers that created an architecture alternative to Constellation’s Ares vehicles – are ready to transition their movement, following the redirection of NASA’s future by lawmakers, which calls for a Space Launch System (SLS) based around a Shuttle Derived (SD) Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle (HLV), which [...]

Crawler Transporter 2 (CT-2) has successfully relocated the giant Ares I Mobile Launcher (ML) to its new location at the East Parksite. Although the ML’s future remains extremely bleak – now Ares I has been cancelled via the passing of the NASA Senate Bill in Congress this week – it will be hooked up to [...]

Following a marathon day of debates and the extended wait for a recorded vote, the Senate Bill (S. 3729) has been passed by lawmakers by a ratio of 3 to 1. Modifying the heavily criticised path laid out by President Obama, Congress passed the bill which will allow for the ultimate transition towards commercial access [...]