Posts Tagged ‘HLV’
Saturday, February 4th, 2012
The Space Launch System (SLS) teams are looking into the potential of finding extra roles for the vehicle, in addition to – or in tandem with – the flagship exploration missions, noting its availabity for Department of Defense (DoD) payloads and even what is known as “Secondary Payloads” – allowing satellites to hitch a ride [...]
Read more... »
Tags: DoD, EELV, Falcon 1, HLV, SLS, SpaceX
Published in Commercial, Featured, SLS/Orion
Monday, January 30th, 2012
Aerojet – famous for being a key element of numerous launch vehicle and satellite propulsion systems – believe their Solar Electric Propulsion (SEP) technology can be positively applied to an Exploration Gateway Platform – which has been touted as a potential – and often favored – approach in NASA’s ongoing studies into a long-term exploration [...]
Read more... »
Tags: Aerojet, Exploration, Gateway, HLV, Orion, SEP, SLS
Published in Featured, SLS/Orion
Tuesday, January 24th, 2012
As NASA managers continue to work through the evaluations into an exploration roadmap for the agency, the end goal of sending humans to Mars is starting to show a level of consistency. Per documentation, the key Design Reference Mission (DRM) evaluations are pointing to the “Flexible Path” approach of visiting a Martian moon, prior to [...]
Read more... »
Tags: FSPS, HLV, Mars, MAV, MTV, Orion, Phobos, SEP, SLS
Published in Featured, Other, SLS/Orion
Sunday, January 22nd, 2012
Kennedy Space Center engineers have begun removing Main Propulsion System (MPS) hardware from the aft of the retired orbiters. The flight-flown hardware – a natural match to the RS-25Ds the SLS will initially fly with – will live on with the monster rocket, as much as some of the orbiter hardware will be focused on [...]
Read more... »
Tags: HLV, MPS, SLS
Published in Featured, Shuttle, SLS/Orion
Friday, January 13th, 2012
NASA’s 15 Space Shuttle Main Engines (SSMEs) are being transported to the Stennis Space Center (SSC), as they transition towards their future role with the Space Launch System (SLS). The highly reliable RS-25Ds – nine of which flew with the last three Space Shuttle missions – will eventually be succeeded by the expendable RS-25E, early [...]
Read more... »
Tags: FRR, HLV, IFA, SLS, SSME, STS-133, STS-134, STS-135, STS-51F
Published in Featured, Shuttle, SLS/Orion
Friday, January 6th, 2012
As the Space Launch System (SLS) teams head into their first full year since the vehicle was finally announced, fascinating – albeit well into the future – Exploration Systems Development (ESD) Design Reference Mission (DRM) options for deep space have been outlined in the SLS Concept Of Operations (Con Ops), options which include ambitious missions [...]
Read more... »
Tags: HLV, Jupiter, Mars, NEO, Saturn, SLS
Published in Featured, SLS/Orion, Unmanned
Wednesday, January 4th, 2012
The Kennedy Space Center is undergoing improvements to its buildings and infrastructure, work which will continue at the spaceport through to 2013. Most of the work is taking place on the 50 year old waterway, which links the Turn Basin to the crawlerway through to both Pad 39A and 39B – the latter of which [...]
Read more... »
Tags: 21st Century, Commercial, HLV, KSC, Orion, Pad 39B, SLS
Published in Commercial, Featured, SLS/Orion
Thursday, December 15th, 2011
With evaluations continuing into NASA’s future crewed exploration aspirations, the foundations behind what should be a definitive roadmap – otherwise known as Exploration Systems Development (ESD) Design Reference Missions (DRM) – are starting to come to light, as outlined in the Space Launch System (SLS) Concept Of Operations (Con Ops) document.
Read more... »
Tags: HLV, ISS, Moon, SLS
Published in Featured, SLS/Orion
Friday, December 2nd, 2011
In a potential marriage of the Space Launch System (SLS) with a central exploration plan, a Boeing-authored presentation has proposed an Exploration Gateway Platform architecture that not only returns man to the lunar surface – via the use of only one SLS launch to a reusable Lunar Lander – but provides a baseline for pathfinders [...]
Read more... »
Tags: HLV, ISS, Moon, SLS
Published in Featured, SLS/Orion
Wednesday, November 30th, 2011
The recently produced Concept of Operations (Con Ops) documentation has revealed the Space Launch System (SLS) will be ready to launch within a week of rollout, around a third of the average pad flow time required for the Space Shuttle. Meanwhile, the SLS Mobile Launcher (ML) has been transported back off Pad 39B following numerous [...]
Read more... »
Tags: HLV, ML, SLS
Published in Featured, SLS/Orion
Wednesday, November 16th, 2011
The Space Launch System (SLS) Mobile Launcher (ML) has completed its debut trip to Pad 39B, following a steady journey atop of the Crawler Transporter (CT). While a large amount of testing will be carried out at the pad, the trip down the crawlerway provides engineers with vital data, which can be feed into the [...]
Read more... »
Tags: HLV, ML, SLS
Published in Featured, SLS/Orion
Wednesday, November 9th, 2011
In a full 500 second test firing, the J-2X engine – a key part of the evolved Space Launch System (SLS) – has been put through its paces at NASA’s Stennis Space Center (SSC). Up to three of the powerful engines will power the Upper Stage of the Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle (HLV), in configurations [...]
Read more... »
Tags: HLV, J-2X, SLS, Stennis
Published in Featured, SLS/Orion
Tuesday, November 1st, 2011
The Space Launch System (SLS) Mobile Launcher (ML) will make its debut Crawler Transporter (CT) trip to Pad 39B later this month. Several week’s worth of testing will be conducted – including a visually dramatic fire suppression deluge test – as part of its development towards an eventual role of hosting crewed launches to Mars.
Read more... »
Tags: HLV, ML, Pad 39B, SLS
Published in Featured, SLS/Orion
Tuesday, October 25th, 2011
Teams at the main NASA centers are continuing to build up their involvement in the Space Launch System (SLS), ranging from mission operations in Houston, infrastructure evaluation at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and vehicle design at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). Exploration roadmap details remain under evaluation, although NASA claim the vehicle’s “flexibility” [...]
Read more... »
Tags: HLV, SLS
Published in Featured, SLS/Orion
Tuesday, October 18th, 2011
October’s NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) mission, based at the Aquarius underwater habitat in Key Largo, Florida, is set to begin this week – weather permitting. The 13 day mission will conduct an underwater simulation of protocols which may become part of a crewed mission to a Near Earth Object (NEO).
Read more... »
Tags: EVA, HLV, NEO, Orion, SEV, SLS
Published in Featured, SLS/Orion
Tuesday, October 4th, 2011
The Space Launch System (SLS) is undergoing final refinements – known as trades – on a preferred baseline for the opening flights, with documentation showing a preference to debut the Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle (HLV) with four RS-25s on the core stage, instead of three. Should this become an approved configuration, it would allow for [...]
Read more... »
Tags: HLV, SLS, SSME
Published in Featured, SLS/Orion
Friday, September 30th, 2011
With all cylinders now firing on NASA’s exploration planning effort, the development and early mission schedule for the Space Launch System (SLS) and Orion are starting to fall into place, with dramatic improvements being worked for NASA’s opening crewed Beyond Earth Orbit (BEO) mission with the Orion (MPCV), which is moving to the left by [...]
Read more... »
Tags: HLV, OFT-1, Orion, SLS
Published in Featured, SLS/Orion
Tuesday, September 20th, 2011
NASA managers have further refined their plans to transfer Orbiter and Ground Support Equipment (GSE) Main Propulsion System (MPS) hardware to the Space Launch System (SLS). Known as hardware retention, the plan now calls for Discovery to remain untouched, while Atlantis and Endeavour would donate their “inners” to play a key role in the development [...]
Read more... »
Tags: HLV, MPS, Shuttle, SLS
Published in Featured, Shuttle, SLS/Orion
Wednesday, September 14th, 2011
After several years of trade studies and political arguments, NASA administrator Charlie Bolden finally gave the Space Launch System (SLS) its official public unveiling on Wednesday. As has been known for months, the Heavy Lift Launch Vehicle (HLV) is Shuttle Derived (SD) and will use $10 billion of NASA funding through to its debut launch [...]
Read more... »
Tags: HLV, NASA, SLS
Published in Featured, SLS/Orion
Thursday, September 8th, 2011
NASA and Alliant Techsystems Inc. (ATK) have conducted a full-scale test of a five-segment solid rocket motor – designated Development Motor-3 (DM-3) – at their test facility in Promontory, on Thursday. The configuration is being tested ahead of a potential role with the Space Launch System (SLS), which would utilize two of the boosters during [...]
Read more... »
Tags: HLV, SLS, SRB
Published in Featured, SLS/Orion