Canada Joins NASA's Bid to Build a Space Station Above the Moon...

NASA

NASA Secures First International Partnership for Moon to Mars Lunar Gateway (Press Release)

The following is a statement from NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine on the announcement Thursday by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about Canada’s support for the Gateway lunar outpost and deep space exploration:

“NASA is thrilled that Canada is the first international partner for the Gateway lunar outpost. Space exploration is in Canada’s DNA. In 1962, Canada became the third nation to launch a satellite into orbit with Alouette 1.

“Today, Canada leads the world in space-based robotic capabilities, enabling critical repairs to the Hubble Space Telescope and construction of the International Space Station. Our new collaboration on Gateway will enable our broader international partnership to get to the Moon and eventually to Mars.”
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NASA / CSA

Photo of the Day: Another Major Flight Component Is Ready to Join the SLS' Core Stage Booster for EM-1...

NASA / Jude Guidry

NASA Covers Large SLS Liquid Hydrogen Tank with Foam Insulation (News Release)

Technicians at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans have completed the application of the thermal protection systems on the 149-foot-long liquid hydrogen tank for NASA’s Space Launch System rocket. Now, the tank is being prepared for joining with other major structures to form the rocket's 212-foot core stage.

The stage’s four RS-25 engines will produce 2 million pounds of thrust to help send the rocket to orbit for Exploration Mission-1, the first flight of SLS and the Orion spacecraft that will travel beyond the Moon. The tank is the largest piece of flight hardware to ever be insulated at Michoud. The hardware requires thermal protection due to extreme temperatures it will face during launch and to keep the liquid hydrogen at minus 423 degrees during the flight to space.

Source: NASA.Gov

Remembering Apollo 11: FIRST MAN Wins the Oscar for Best Visual Effects!

Congrats to First Man director Damien Chazelle and his special effects team for winning the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects tonight! The Neil Armstrong biopic took home the Oscar after vying against fellow nominees Christopher Robin, Ron Howard's Solo: A Star Wars Story, Avengers: Infinity War and Steven Spielberg's Ready Player One in this category. Even though First Man lost in Sound Design, Sound Mixing (both to the Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody) and Production Design (to the Marvel comic book flick Black Panther)—the three other categories that it was nominated in—First Man winning for Visual FX is still a great way for Hollywood to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission...which takes place this July. Carry on.

Photo of the Day: Another Image of the SLS Core Stage's "Forward Join" at the Michoud Assembly Facility...

NASA / Jude Guidry

NASA Joins Structures to Form Top of Space Launch System Core Stage (News Release - February 7)

Engineers at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans have completed the “forward join,” connecting structures to form the top part of NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket’s core stage. This first core stage will send Exploration Mission-1, the first integrated flight of SLS and the Orion spacecraft, out beyond the Moon.

The forward join mated three structures shown above: the forward skirt, the liquid oxygen tank and the intertank. This milestone marks the beginning of integration and assembly of the massive, 212-foot-tall SLS core stage, which will include the rocket’s four RS-25 rocket engines, propellant tanks, and flight computers.

Now, NASA and Boeing, the SLS prime contractor, will continue to integrate various systems inside the forward part of the core stage and prepare for structural joining of the liquid hydrogen tank and engine section to form the bottom of the stage. These two parts of the core stage will then be assembled to form the largest stage NASA has ever built.

Source: NASA.Gov

Two SpaceShipTwo Pilots Get Their Wings...

Virgin Galactic

Virgin Galactic Pilots Awarded Commercial Astronaut Wings (News Release - February 7)

In another historic moment for the commercial spaceflight industry, Virgin Galactic was proud today to see its pilots Mark ‘Forger’ Stucky and ‘CJ’ Sturckow, awarded Commercial Astronaut Wings by the U.S. Department of Transportation in recognition of the company’s ground-breaking first spaceflight from Mojave Air and Space Port CA, on December 13th last year.

The ceremony was held at the U.S. Department of Transportation Headquarters in Washington D.C., hosted by U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao.

The awards of the Commercial Astronaut Wings, which have been earned on only two previous occasions in 2004, carried the additional significance of marking the first crewed spaceflight from American soil since the Space Shuttle’s final mission in 2011.

Virgin Galactic’s December 13th test flight saw Forger become the 568th human in space and, along with CJ, the first humans to reach space in a vehicle built for commercial passenger service.

CJ now also becomes the first astronaut to hold both commercial space and Naval Aviator Wings, having flown as a pilot on four NASA Space Shuttle missions to the ISS.

Receiving the wings, Forger commented: “Receiving commercial astronaut wings is an honor for me as it is acknowledgment of a personal achievement. But it goes beyond that, it’s really an acknowledgment of a company achievement of Sir Richard Branson’s vision which was made possible by the conceptual design genius of Burt Rutan, the detailed design of Jim Tighe, Bob Morgan, and numerous other extremely bright and hard-working engineers at Scaled Composites, and then ultimately improved upon, built, and flight tested by the men and women of The Spaceship Company and Virgin Galactic. And these wings are really dedicated to them.”

CJ added: “It was a great flight and I can’t wait to do it again.”

Sir Richard Branson, who accompanied the pilots to the ceremony said: “The U.S. leads the world both in the exploration of space and in creating the conditions for a new space age, where it will operate alongside and in partnership with the private sector. While today’s awards ceremony is, of course, a proud moment for our wonderful pilots and the whole Virgin Galactic team, it is also symbolic of an enabling regulatory framework that allows for innovation while prioritizing safety. It is this which has allowed us to pursue our dreams and which will ultimately underpin our commercial success as we seek to democratise space for the benefit of humankind.”

December’s spaceflight was the latest and most significant achievement in the Virgin Galactic flight test program. The company is now preparing for further test flights as it moves steadily towards a full commercial passenger service from Spaceport America, New Mexico.

Source: Virgin Galactic

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Virgin Galactic


Virgin Galactic

SLS Update: The Core Stage Booster Is Finally Starting to Take Shape...

NASA / Boeing

Yesterday, Boeing released the video below revealing that the forward join was completed on the top three components of the Space Launch System's (SLS) first core stage booster at NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, Louisiana. The forward skirt, liquid oxygen tank and innertank were combined to form the top half of the 212-foot-tall rocket stage. What remains to be done is the aft join...which involves combining the liquid hydrogen tank with the engine section that will house four space shuttle-era RS-25 engines. The aft and forward sections will then be attached to form the giant booster of the SLS.

Once construction is done, the core stage booster will be transported via barge to the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi to conduct a series of "green run" tests to ensure that everything on the mammoth rocket is functioning properly. It is after the completion of the green run campaign that the core stage will be refurbished before being sent to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida to undergo launch preps for next year's Exploration Mission-1. The inaugural flight of SLS, which will send the Orion capsule on an unmanned journey to the Moon, is targeted for no earlier than June of 2020.

America's rocket rises as #Boeing workers assemble the top of the @NASA_SLS core stage - completing the forward join major milestone for its first flight around the moon. FULL STORY: https://t.co/1nq7wVDEwR #SpaceUSA pic.twitter.com/2FGazE2hPA

— Boeing Space (@BoeingSpace) February 8, 2019

Photos of the Day: Remembering My Trip to Kennedy Space Center!

Just thought I'd share these pictures that I took during my trip to NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida...which occurred 10 years ago today! I flew to Orlando on February 7, 2009, and made the 11-mile trip from my hotel to Cape Canaveral the next day (and the day after that) to finally see the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) and Launch Complex 39 in person. Needless to say, I totally geeked out when I saw the VAB's imposing structure in the distance, as I drove across the bridge that spanned the Indian River and led to the KSC Visitor Complex a few miles away. And I geeked out even more when I saw space shuttle Discovery sitting quietly on the pad (and enshrouded by the Rotating Service Structure, which no longer exists at the site) at Launch Complex 39A—ready to embark on flight STS-119 a month later.



I look forward to visiting KSC again next year (hopefully)...to visit the space shuttle Atlantis exhibit and of course, seeing the Space Launch System standing tall at Launch Complex 39B as it gears up for Exploration Mission-1. Happy Friday!

LINK: Additional photos I took during my 2009 trip to NASA's Kennedy Space Center

SpaceShipTwo Update: VSS Unity's Legacy Is Now Protected by the Smithsonian...

Virgin Galactic

Spaceflight Rocket Motor donated to the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum (News Release)

Richard Branson joined Virgin Galactic and The Spaceship Company (TSC) staff and guests today at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington D.C., to announce that the hybrid rocket motor which powered SpaceShipTwo, VSS Unity, to space for the first time on December 13th last year, has been donated to the museum. The rocket motor was unveiled during the ceremony and will be exhibited in the museum’s planned, new commercial space flight gallery to be called ‘Future of Spaceflight.’

Designed and built by TSC, Virgin Galactic’s sister manufacturing organisation, the motor has been confirmed by Guinness World Records as the Most powerful hybrid rocket to be used in manned flight – a title which will be shared by both companies.

“The SpaceShipTwo rocket motor is a fitting addition to the National Air and Space Museum’s collection,” said Ellen Stofan, John and Adrienne Mars Director of the National Air and Space Museum. “It does not just represent technical achievement. It is sure to also inspire our visitors by demonstrating what can be achieved through entrepreneurial innovation.”

Weighing in at approximately 3,000 pounds, with 320kN of thrust and a burn duration of around 60 seconds, the motor created sufficient energy to propel VSS Unity to space at almost three times the speed of sound.

TSC, based in Mojave, CA, will be supplying Virgin Galactic with all rocket motors required to meet its test and commercial flight requirements, both for VSS Unity and for the SpaceShipTwo fleet which will follow – those vehicles also built by TSC for Virgin Galactic.

The donated rocket motor, or more accurately, the Case-Throat-Nozzle (CTN) assembly, is an integral part of SpaceShipTwo’s hybrid propulsion system – a design which seeks to combine the simplicity of a solid rocket motor with the controllability of a liquid engine – meaning SpaceShipTwo’s rocket motor can be shut down quickly and safely at any point during flight. The hybrid propulsion system has very few moving parts, resulting in a simple, robust design for human spaceflight application.

Announcing the donation, Richard Branson said: “We’re proud to be making history as we work towards launching the world’s first commercial space line, and today we could not be more delighted to donate a piece of that history to the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum for its wonderful new exhibition. The desire to explore space has been an inspiration since time began and, in recent decades, an incredible catalyst for innovation. I hope our donation will also play a small part in inspiring the thousands of visitors as they pass through the new gallery in years to come.”

George Whitesides, CEO of The Spaceship Company and Virgin Galactic, said: “To see this rocket go from concept, to production, through ground test, and finally into space, and then be accepted to the world’s most respected aerospace museum is a well-deserved recognition for the spaceship propulsion team.”

Enrico Palermo, President of The Spaceship Company said: “This motor and its development process is a perfect example of what can be achieved when talented people come together to work on their dreams. TSC looks forward to building more rocket motors and the fleet of SpaceShipTwo’s, watching them provide the power to open space and change the world for good.”

Source: Virgin Galactic

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Virgin Galactic


Virgin Galactic


Virgin Galactic