The End of the Shuttle Era!

A perfect landing to end an era with going by what was reported by the Daily Mail of the United Kingdom. The 135th mission of the shuttle fleet.

Main gear touchdown was at 5:57am with wheels stop about a minute later.

Shuttle sommander Christopher Ferguson radio back to Mission Control in Houston, Texas "Mission complete, Houston." "Job well done, America" was the reply.

Being the type of rascal that I am, Mission Control had to have been reading from a script. They should have just said "Job well done, Atlantis" and be done with it that way.

I have to question those in Washington DC who speak with fork tongue. Out of one side of their mounth, the fools say they are for further space exploration. Then out of the other side, they starve NASA of the funds to keep Manned Spaceflight operational.

There should have been someone to stand up against the current and told President George Bush that we should keep flying the shuttle until its replacement is DECLARED OPERATIONAL!

Maybe in another timeline that happened - but not in ours. Boeing, Space X, and the others will eventualy come online while in the meantime, Russia soaks the United States for every penny it can get out of us to haul a astronaut up to the International Space Station.

This state of affairs is just plain wrong in my opionion.

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Ref.

1. Daily Mail. "Home at last: Atlantis makes historic final landing as Nasa's 30-year shuttle programme comes to a glorious end" July 21, 2011. ( http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2017122/Atlantis-landing-Nasas-30-year-space-shuttle-programme-comes-end.html ). images from same news article.

Space-X Gets FAA License for Re-Entry Operations!

U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, which oversees commercial space transportation as well as regular aviation matters, granted SpaceX (Space Exploration Technologies) the one-year license on November 22, 2010.

In the Space.com article, it was mentioned that the FAA has issued 200+ license for commercial launches, but this is the first approval for a commercial re-entry operation.

This allows SpaceX to now test its Dragon space capsule (that is launched by SpaceX Falcon 9 booster into low-earth orbit). This will officially the the first attempt by a commercial company to recover a spacecraft from orbit.

First attempt to fly the Dragon space capsule and recover it will take place as early as December 7, 2010.

If this demo mission is successful, then SpaceX will begin making regular cargo-delivery missions to the International Space Station (ISS). Their fixed-price contract is quoted as having a value of $1.6 billion. The first missions will be unmanned.

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Ref. Space.com "SpaceX Receives FAA License to Return Private Spaceships From Earth Orbit" By Mike Wall. November 23, 2010. (http://www.space.com/news/spacex-faa-license-private-spaceship-reentry-101122.html).

The NASA Authorization Act of 2010

The following is copied entirely from the Commerce, Science, & Transportation website. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (Ranking Member) and Senator John D. Rockefeller IV (Chairman).

Begin quote.

The bill would authorize NASA appropriations for FY 2011-2013 with the same top-line budget values as the President’s request to Congress. The bill would support an overall growth in science, aeronautics, and space technology and define a long-term goal for human space flight to expand a permanent human presence beyond low-Earth orbit. Key objectives of this goal would include full utilization of the International Space Station (ISS), determining the ability of humans to live in space for extended periods of time, maximizing the role of space exploration and technology in current and future missions, advancing knowledge and inspiring young people into higher education, and building upon international partnerships.

Human Space Flight. The bill would:

*Couple human space flight efforts to national and global needs and challenges;

Provide a sustainable exploration program to incorporate new technologies and in-space capabilities;

*Require immediate development of a heavy-lift capability and continued support of an exploration crew vehicle to be capable of supporting missions beyond low-Earth orbit starting in 2016; and

*Support a sound performance and cost framework by maximizing use, where possible, of the workforce, assets, and capabilities of the Space Shuttle, Constellation, and other NASA programs.

Space Technology. The bill would:

*Invest in exploration technologies and robotic capabilities that are tied to the overall exploration framework and support U.S. innovation and competitiveness.

Commercial Cargo and Crew. The bill would:

*Continue to support commercial cargo development and provide additional funds to meet launch infrastructure requirements and accelerate development activity; and

*Expand the Commercial Crew Development Program in 2011 for concept development and supporting activities, while requiring a number of studies to ensure effective oversight of the potential initiation of a commercial crew capability procurement program no earlier than 2012.

International Space Station. The bill would:

*Extend the ISS to at least 2020 to support international and commercial collaboration and growth, research, and technology development to maximize the scientific return on the significant investment in the ISS;

*Establish an independent non-profit to work with NASA to fully develop the ISS U.S. segment as a National Laboratory; and

*Require an assessment of ISS requirements for parts and equipment needed to ensure its full functionality through 2020.

Shuttle Retirement and final “Launch on Need” Mission. The bill would:

*Authorize an additional Shuttle flight, contingent on a safety review, to provide necessary support for the extension of the ISS.

Science and Aeronautics. The bill would:

*Protect a balanced portfolio for NASA, including full funding of aeronautics and Earth and space science.

Education. The bill would:

*Support new education initiatives, such as teacher training programs, to reinforce NASA’s role in developing a workforce with strong science, technology, engineering, and mathematics skills; and

*Increase the investment in NASA EPSCoR (Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research) and NASA Space Grant program.

Rescoping and Revitalizing Institutional Capabilities. The bill would:

*Require NASA to examine alternative management models for NASA’s workforce, centers, and capabilities, while enforcing short-term prohibitions on major center displacements and reductions-in-force until the study is completed.

end quote.

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Ref. July 15, 2010. (http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=Legislation&ContentRecord_id=8d7c1465-f852-4835-ba84-25faf56bbb36&ContentType_id=03ab50f5-55cd-4934-a074-d6928b9dd24c&Group_id=6eaa2a03-6e69-4e43-8597-bb12f4f5aede).

Nuclear Power Spaceship to Fly to Mars - Russia Hopes!

Russia wants to build a new nuclear-powered spaceship for prospective manned space missions to the planet Mars and other more distant planets. So states Anatoly Perminov - Russian space chief stated on October 29th.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has backed the project and is urging the government to find the money needed to back the project.

These remarks were posted on the Russian space agency website. Perminov said that the nuclear spaceship preliminary design work could be done by 2012. It would take an additional 9-10 years to build the spacecraft and cost 17 billion rubles, which equal to about $600 million US dollars. The nuclear reactor that will be on this ship would be in the Megawatt power range. And the engines to be powered by this reactor would be a electric rocket engine. So says Igor Lisov who is a Moscow-base expert on the Russian space program.

"The project is aimed at implementing large-scale space exploration programs, including a manned mission to Mars, interplanetary travel, the creation and operation of planetary outposts." So stated Anatoly Perminov on the website.

The AP/Yahoo news article then went into the odd comparsion of Russian still using the 40-year old Soyuz design that are still used to send crews up to the International Space Station(ISS). Despite the older technology, Russia will take on a greater role in space exploration in the coming decade. Since NASA is planning on retiring the shuttle soon - and this will cause NASA to rely on the Russians and their Soyuz to travel up to the ISS until the Orion capsule is operational.

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Ref. Yahoo new (October 29, 2009) by Vladimir Isachenkov of AP. "Russia hopes nuclear ship will fly humans to Mars"

(http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091029/ap_on_sc/eu_russia_nuclear_spaceship).

image of Star Trek Enterprise starship USS Enterprise (http://www.fanpop.com/spots/star-trek-enterprise/images/3999066/title/nx-01-enterprise)

It's Official - Moon Return is a No Go

In an article by the Washington (AP), the White House panel on NASA's return-to-the-moon plan will not happen at current funding levels. Current NASA's budget is $18 billion per year. It would require an additional $3 billion to go back to the moon by 2020.

And thats with retiring the shuttle in 2010 and shutting down the International Space Station in 2015 (which would be very stupid since we just spent the better part of 20 years building the damn thing!).

The panel suggested the following, "Space exploration would work better by including other countries and private for-profit firms." They also suggested that if NASA continues its current moon plans, in order to save money, it should kill plans to make a smaller Aries I rocket to carry astronauts and go right to the bigger Aries V."

$7.7 billion have already been spent on the Aries I so far and a test of its first stage is about to take place soon. A test launch may even happen by Halloween.

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Ref. Yahoo.com (http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Obama-space-panel-says-moon-apf-2656818175.html?x=0&.v=4).

photo of Aries I on launch pad rendering. I do not remember where I came across this picture so cannot credit it correctly.

The Skylon / Sabre is coming

This is something that I have been wanting to post about for a few weeks now since I first read about it in Aviation Week & Space Technology (December 8, 2008. pgs 56-58). Work has been progressing on a new hybrid rocket technology that if successful – can lead to a full-scale development of a single-stage-to-orbit (SSTO) reusable launch vehicle.

News from Reaction Engines, a company that was developed 19 years ago for the design and building of a reusable launch vehicle known as the “Skylon.” They got their feet wet while working on the aborted Hotol (Horizontal takeoff and landing) vehicle. A joint BAE Systems venture with Rolls-Royce SSTO spaceplane project that was canceled in 1988. The true promise of the HOTOL was in its RB545 air-breathing hybrid rocket engine. Alan Bond, who worked on that project and is now a managing director of Reaction Engines for their improved engine design known as SABRE (synergic air-breathing engine). “We learned an enormous amount from Hotol, and that has enabled us to look at a new vehicle of this complexity in its entirety. Hotol is therefore the foundation on which Reaction Engines is built.”

Quoting from the AW&ST article: “Skylon is designed to routinely and repeatedly carry large payloads to low-Earth orbit, with each vehicle capable of some 200-plus missions. Although designed to take 26,450 pounds (12 tons) to equatorial low Earth orbit (LEO), or up to 19,400 pounds to the International Space Station (ISS) from an equatorial launch site.” Reaction Engines believes that with aircraft-like turn around times between missions, it will reduce resupply costs to around 1/50th that of comparable conventional launch vehicles.

The Skylon is to be built out of composite structures and other innovative design features, including a fiber-reinforced ceramic aeroshell. But the real key to Skylon will be the Sabre engines. They will power the sleek spaceship from a standing start on the runway up to orbit. Before with the Hotol, they had some engine installation issues that in the end killed off Hotol. That was because the engines were mounted in the tail which made that vehicle impossible to control. The Skylon design solves this problem by moving the engines to mid-body, mounted on stub wings close to the payload and center of gravity of the spacecraft. The wingspan for the Skylon is 80 feet and from the illustration included with the article, one can see the Hotol roots for the design. Or to think of it in another way – the Skylon is something George Lucas's Star Wars team would have come up with for the planet Naboo.

The liquid hydrogen-fueled Sabre burns atmospheric oxygen from take-off (300 knots at least) through Mach 5 plus and up to an altitude of 16 nautical miles (30 kilometers). At this point in the flight profile, the air is too thin and thus the engines switch to on board oxygen supplies for the final acceleration to Mach 25 and on into orbit. Returning to Earth, the engines can be reactivated to assist with a power descent and landing. Landing speeds will be more manageable in the 130 knot range, even with a full payload Mr. Bond reports.

While there have been other air-breathing scramjets before, Sabre has a different oxygen extraction process. Sabre is more closely related to liquid-air-cycle (LACE) that use the cooling capacity of cryogenic liquid hydrogen fuel to liquefy the incoming air. LACE however requires high fuel flow rates because of the large quantity of coolant used in the condensation process. Plus there was the technical challenges of dealing with clogging in the condenser from frozen carbon dioxide, argon, and water vapor as the limiting factors to LACE technology.

Mr. Bond went one to talk about a related technology known as ACE (air collection engine) that is similary compromised. Sabre gets around the LACE/ACE problems by only cooling down the air to the vapor boundary (at around 80K) and avoiding liquefaction. This then allows the use of a relatively conventional high-pressure turbo compressor and avoids the requirement for an air-condenser as well as saving a large amount of cooling flow.

Now the Rolls Royce engine RB545 is also similar, but uses high-pressure hydrogen to cool the air directly. But it has a problem at high Mach numbers by making the metal in the pre-cooler brittle. To get around this snag, Reaction Engines interposes a helium loop between the incoming air and the hydrogen system. The helium system is used to drive the air compressor, and enables nore heat-resistant alloys to be used in the pre-cooler.

Air collection is done through a two stage conical shock inlet with “a translating center-body to maintain shock-on-lip conditions.” Reaction Engines told AW&ST “We sized the inlet for around Mach 5. We take-off with the max throat area and move the center body forward at Mach 1.5 to form an oblique shock wave. The center body also moves forward for reentry to close off the engine inlet. Excess air is spill out via bypass ducts where it is controlled by nozzle guide vanes and mixed with surplus hydrogen before being reheated in ramjet fashion to recover the momentum lost through the capture shock system at Mach 3 – 4. “The bypass system is used to match the variable captured air flow to the engine demand and “in air-breathing mode fuel consumption will be much better than in rocket mode.” Mr. Richard Varvill chief engineer/technical director for Reaction Engines. To go from Mach 5 onwards, Mr. Varvill added: “We start the liquid oxygen turbo pump and run the engine down to a lower thrust and dump air delivery overboard. A valve is switched to bleed air out, and we start to replace flow of air into the combustion chamber with liquid oxygen. The hydrogen flow continues (in a 6:1 rocket mode).”

Right now, Reaction Engines is waiting on funds to launch into full scale development. In the meantime, they are focusing on testing and verifying the key technologies at its laboratories at Culham Science Center. Along with the heat-exchanger technology, Reaction Engines also is working on the frost control technique developed and prefected in the company's cryogenic wind tunnel. Mr. Alan Bond stated that the Sabre is not possible without frost control. Now the frost control is used in the pre-cooler heat exchanger which reduces the temperature of air entering the engine from a peak of around 1,000 degrees C at Mach 5 to about -140C prior to compression. Although no appreciable moisture exists at the higher altitudes beyond 6.5 nautical miles, the system is needed at low altitudes where atmospheric moisture would otherwise instantly clog the heat-exchanger matrix with frost as it precipitates directly from vapor.
The helium loop exchanger (HX3) is made from silicon carbide(SiC) and delievers a constant inlet temperature to the air compressor's main turbine. SiC was chosen because of the oxygen-rich character of the exhaust from the pre-burner and the high temperatures in the heat exchanger.

Following some shakedown tests to begin with the new year, Reaction Engines will be getting some of their funding from the British National Space Center and partly by the ESA (European Space Agency) over the next three years.

In conclusion, Mr. Alan Bond told the AW&ST reporter, “We've never seen it as a development that a single company would do. We'd like the industry to develop it and sell it around the world to the space launch market. This could happen under a public/private parnership with maybe a 30-year payback time. If someone gave us the money today it would be about 9.5 years to the start of production.”

Ref. AW&ST Dec. 8, 2008 article “Positive Reaction. Upcoming pre-cooler tests hold key for air-breathing hybrid rocket technology.” by Guy Norris/Abingdon, England. Pag 56-58.

Here is Reaction Engines website with a review of the Skylon vehicle ( http://www.reactionengines.co.uk/skylon_overview.html and http://www.reactionengines.co.uk/skylon_vehicle.html and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reaction_Engines_Skylon ).

Senator Barack Obama's Space Policy

Presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama of Illinois has provided his most detail position yet on Space Policy. He wrote to the Democratic leadership stating that “America needs to renew its commitment to NASA and to provide sustained, stable direction with an honest budget and sufficient resources for success across all of its critical missions: human spaceflight, science, and aeronautics research.”

It was also reported that he supports the extension of the authority to buy seats on future Soyuz spaceflights for the U.S., Canadian, European, and Japanese astronauts after it suppose to end in 2011. Obama also supports funding more shuttle missions to the International Space Station and close the gap in time between the end of shuttle and first flight of the Ares/Orion system.

(Ref Sept 29, 2008 issue of Aviation Week & Space Technology, Washington Outlook by John M. Doyle. )
Note: It has been reported on other news sites that Presidential candidate John McCain also has voiced his ojbections to the Manned Space Flight gap that will follow the retirement of the shuttle.