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After a little research backwards trough some exsisting concepts I found this article which to me makes sense about using Mars moons as a staging area and jump off point for mars explorers and settlers to defeat the gravity problems encountered with landing supplies directly onto Mars surface..."Martian Moons As Future Space Stations"
Posted by darnell in Asteroids, Blog, Future, Mars, Solar Essay, Space Stations | Any Opinions?
Update: Incorporated sources within post and edited text for clarity.
(Note: Published on Blog Critics)
Mars is a world that has captivated the minds of humanity for thousands of years. While it is not known whether or not this world harbors any resources, this rusty world, after the Moon, will probably become humanities first test on whether or not we can survive off world.
But before humanity can conquer the red planet, they need a cost effective way to transport food, passengers and supplies towards its surface. Hosting as well as launching large shuttles on the planets surface may become burdensome and expensive, especially when one considers the effect of red dust upon mechanical devices.
What Martian colonists need is an inexpensive way to transport goods from the surface to space, and what better way could they obtain this than by turning the Martian moons into space stations?
The Martian moons Phobos and Deimos orbit about 6,000 and 14,500 miles from the surface, respectively, and would lie within easy reach for smaller space craft (especially with Martian gravity being only 38 percent of Earth’s).
Although launch pads hosting large rockets may look appealing on Earth, they would probably be considered a waste on the red planet. Launch pads hosting large rockets would not only have to be constantly cleaned of the red dust, but be enclosed within a powerful warehouse capable of surviving Martian tornadoes. It would be much easier to host smaller shuttle craft that could “ron de vue” with a larger ship via a space station than launching these massive vessels from the surface.
Despite being composed of carbonaceous rock, the orbital periods of the moons make them prime real estate. Phobos orbits Mars about every 7 1/2 hours while Deimos is just over 30, making them accessible (at least with Phobos) several times a day. If constructed properly, larger ships could simply dock near or inside the asteroids and simply await smaller shuttles to transport the necessary goods or passengers to and from the planet.
Also the lunar asteroids close proximity towards their parent world would give them a bird’s eye view of any storms that may potentially delay a launch or prevent a landing on the crimson planet.
Last but not least, by altering the barren asteroids into technological habitats, it would provide a way for Mars to process any metals or minerals harvested from the asteroid belt before being transported to the surface below. This would probably not only reduce costs but also enable them to manufacture stronger materials as well (since it is being done in micro gravity).
After the moon, colonizing Mars will be humanities first taste of conquering another world. But unlike the Moon, future Martian colonists will be unable to depend upon resources in great demand in order to finance their stay on the red planet. Keeping costs down while thriving on Mars will be in the best interests of humanity, and transforming both Phobos as well as Deimos into space stations may aid in that regard.
ESA evolution of spacecraft simulation of launch and docking with ISS...
Another great source of information here more spaceplanehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaceplane info...
Spaceplane guide... Great infomation source IMHO...http://www.aerospaceguide.net/spaceplanes/index.html
Future space vehicles Features Falcon 9 and Dragon crew capsule...http://www.spacefuture.com/vehicles/designs.shtml
Bio of Elon Musk most interesting IMO...http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elon_Musk
SpaceX dragon on wikipedia...http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpaceX_Dragon
I found a different recap of our launch here I hope it adds some insight into our launch..... Millionaire's Private Space Capsule Splashes Down After Successful Maiden Voyage
By Denise Chow
SPACE.com Staff Writer
posted: 08 December 2010
10:43 am ET
This story was updated at 2:33 p.m. ET.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – The first unmanned space capsule built by millionaire rocket maker Elon Musk blasted off on a maiden voyage today (Dec. 8), in a historic milestone for his private spaceflight company SpaceX and the commercial space industry.
SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket, carrying the company's robotic Dragon space capsule, lifted off at 10:43 a.m. EST (1543 GMT) from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Launch Complex 40. The capsule's successful splashdown in the Pacific Ocean more than three hours later made SpaceX the first commercial company to re-enter a spacecraft from low-Earth orbit.
10:52 a.m. EST (1552 GMT), Dragon jettisoned the Falcon 9's second stage and began circling Earth.
"Dragon is in orbit," a launch controller said.
"Great day here at SpaceX," SpaceX director of marketing Emily Shanklin said. "Looks like we had a great flight."
The successful liftoff occurred after an earlier launch attempt at 9:06 a.m. EST (1406 GMT) this morning was aborted just under three minutes before launch, due to a false computer alarm.
The mission was the first flight test of the Dragon capsule and the second launch of a Falcon 9 rocket. It lasted a little over 3 hours, ending with the Dragon spacecraft re-entering Earth's atmosphere and splashing down in the Pacific Ocean 500 miles (nearly 805 kilometers) off the coast of Mexico. Shortly after splashdown, SpaceX officials reported that the operation had been a success. [INFOGRAPHIC: Inside Look at SpaceX's Dragon Capsule]
"This would represent an important milestone in the history of space, heralding the dawn of a new era where private companies can now bring back spacecraft from orbit," Musk told SPACE.com before launch. "Successful recovery of Dragon would also bode very well for future astronaut transport."
The Hawthorne, Calif.-based SpaceX, short for Space Exploration Technologies, was founded by Musk, who also co-founded the online payment system Paypal, in 2002. Musk is also the CEO of Tesla, an electric car company.
In the spectacular morning launch, the Falcon 9 rocket carried the Dragon space capsule on its ascent into low-Earth orbit. The capsule separated from the rocket's second stage and made two orbits of the Earth while demonstrating various operations, including telemetry, navigation and maneuvering abilities.
The launch was originally scheduled for Dec. 7, but was delayed 24 hours to give technicians time to investigate two cracks that were found on the second-stage engine nozzle extension of the Falcon 9 rocket.
SpaceX engineers worked overnight to trim the cracked section of the nozzle extension, and tests that were performed throughout the day Tuesday showed that the repairs had been successful.
Earlier this week, Musk told MSNBC that he predicts the chances of success for this test flight to be about 60 percent. With the success of Dragon's first test flight, SpaceX has become the very first commercial company to launch and re-enter a spacecraft from low-Earth orbit – a significant milestone for the young but burgeoning private spaceflight industry.
SpaceX's Falcon 9 rockets stand about 180 feet (nearly 55 meters) tall and are 12 feet (3.6 meters) wide, according to SpaceX descriptions. The Dragon capsule and its unpressurized trunk are just over 20 feet (6 meters) long and have an interior cabin that is just over 10 feet (3 meters) wide at its widest point.
The Dragon space capsules are named after the song Puff the Magic Dragon by the group Peter, Paul and Mary, because many critics considered it to be impossible, SpaceX officials have said. SpaceX's Falcon 9 and smaller Falcon 1 rockets are named after the Millennium Falcon, the fictional "Star Wars" spaceship of choice for the character Han Solo.
Today's test flight was also the first by any company under NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program, which is designed to stimulate the development of private vehicles capable of carrying cargo and crew to the International Space Station.
As part of the COTS deal, NASA has provided SpaceX with $278 million for successful demonstration tests of a vehicle and hardware capable of ferrying cargo to the space station.
Separately, SpaceX has a fixed $1.6 billion contract with NASA to use its Dragon spacecraft for cargo delivery flights to the International Space Station, following the retirement of the agency's space shuttle fleet. SpaceX plans to fly its Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule on at least 12 unmanned missions to deliver supplies to the space station through 2016.
NASA has also inked a $1.9 billion deal with the Virginia-based spaceflight company Orbital Sciences Corp. to provide eight cargo flights to the International Space Station using its unmanned Cygnus spacecraft and Taurus 2 rockets. The first flights of those craft are expected in 2011.
SpaceX will follow up this demonstration with a series of other test flights, each with increasingly more complex mission objectives. If the standards of the COTS program are met, SpaceX could begin carrying cargo to and from the space station as early as next year.
Eventually, SpaceX hopes to win a contract to one day ferry astronauts to and from station – though the Dragon capsule has yet to be man-rated to carry human passengers into space.
INFOGRAPHIC: Inside Look at SpaceX's Dragon Capsule
Gallery: Photos of the Dragon Space Capsule, Dragon Video
Top 10 Private Spaceships Becoming Reality
You can follow SPACE.com Staff Writer Denise Chow on Twitter @denisechow. Visit SPACE.com for complete coverage of SpaceX's debut Dragon spacecraft launch.
I am new to this board I am glad to see this site and hopefully I can add some value here And a board mark as well
Welcome jellogan and thanks for your post. When I first created these boards I wasn't sure who was going to show up here on Ihub or which org was going to step forward and take the spotlight. Although the writer for the Commercial Spaceflight Federation is still promising to show up and take part in creating an interactive discussion board, his duties as a lobbyist seem to be taking up a lot of his time. I think that is understandable with all the lack of direction we presently have with the present administration.
Since SpaceX seems to be the company that is standing out and moving forward, that board seems to be slowly becoming the gathering spot for those who are following ELON.
I would be very pleased if would join us and repost on this board. We could use all the help can get right now to keep everyone informed on the events.
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.aspx?board_id=17005
I look forward to hearing from you again.
WATCH THE SPACEX F9 WEBCAST HERE:
http://www.spacex.com/webcast.php
Demonstration Flight Of Falcon 9 Rocket Set For Wednesday
http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2010/dec/HQ_M10-170_Falcon_9_Launch.html
Good morning everyone. First time poster here. Thought I would drop in and say hello! Can't wait to see the progress of this board.
Thanks for the post. I saw it right after you posted it. I read the article right away then got a bit irritated about the article. It would seem that Space.com is grasping for articles lately.
That's so old stuff it took me back a few years. lol
I used to believe in the rogue planet because it would account for the rather uniform Era's here on Earth.
The one argument against it that has swayed me over the years was it's probable mass. My favorite planet to watch is Jupiter.
I love to watch the moon's. The other thing I find amazing about it is it's inferred glow. Because of it's mass, Jupiter emits more heat than it absorbs.
The article states the planet would be very cold. But to double the mass of Jupiter would be to double it's heat output. There's an unknown point where the mass of a planet expells enough heat to blow away it's gases and a point where the gravity holds those gases to the planet and heats up to finally ignite into a brown dwarf. Either way a planet twice the size of Jupiter, at 1 light year, would stand out like a beacon in inferred if not visable light.
I must say this is a great forum I have ever visited. I love to read topic that are informative and actually have good content. Thank you for sharing your experiences and I look forward to reading more.I also like the perspective you brought to this subject. Its like you have an insight that most people haven't seen before. Keep it up.
thought you might like this...
http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/lpsc2010/LPSC_3_01_10_finalx.pdf
was researching msgi PR yesterday can ended up here..
thoughts???
There is a lot of money to be made if we can find smaller start up
public pinksheet firms who are dealing with this program in the long run it is a matter of finding them prior to any others...
I know I am spelling this wrong but look for enviromental impact
reviews at Cecil Field Jax Fla.. it will open your eyes to a whole new level.. I did when I was researching qasp nothing came of that research but did get my mind on this for sure.. glty
brwtrpilot
Really glad to see someone else was paying attention here on Ihub.
Thanks for the post.
SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket Reaches Earth’s Orbit on First Flight
June 04, 2010, 3:05 PM EDT
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By Chris Dolmetsch
June 4 (Bloomberg) -- Space Exploration Technologies Inc., one of the companies at the center of President Barack Obama’s plans for NASA, launched a new rocket designed to take cargo and astronauts to the International Space Station.
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 took off on its first test flight at about 2:45 p.m. local time from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. It reached the Earth’s orbit about nine minutes later. The company’s first rocket, the Falcon 1, took four attempts before it reached orbit in September 2008.
Falcon 9 is designed to compete with launch vehicles such as the Atlas and Delta from United Launch Alliance, a joint venture of Boeing Co. and Lockheed Martin Corp. SpaceX, led by PayPal Inc. co-founder Elon Musk, plans to use the rocket to carry into orbit its Dragon spacecraft, which is intended to take cargo to the orbiting outpost after the space shuttles are retired and may later ferry U.S. astronauts.
SpaceX’s vessels are part of Obama’s new strategy for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, which calls for the agency to develop systems capable of taking humans to Mars while helping entrepreneurs build vessels to carry astronauts to the space station.
NASA in 2008 awarded the Hawthorne, California-based company and Orbital Sciences Corp. $3.5 billion in contracts to deliver cargo to the station through 2016.
An earlier attempt to launch today was scrubbed seconds before ignition when the rocket put itself into safe mode after experiencing a “shutdown condition,” SpaceX said on its website.
--Editors: Mark Schoifet
To contact the reporter on this story: Chris Dolmetsch at cdolmetsch@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Mark Silva at msilva34@bloomberg.net.
Great to have you. Once things settle down a bit I'll be doing a lot more work on these boards. Should have some guest speakers also.
Welcome pilot, it's nice to see someone exploring our new Health and Sciences group. Still a lot of work to be done.
#3 just wanted to say hi.. and plz iggy the spelling errors
public education in the 80ies. anyway want to get excited..
dig around in the enviro impact studies in Jax fla.. on one of the
fields.. and then look at some of the folks who are getting the reports.. oh the Field starts with a C.....
have fun
brwtrpilot
Forums Of Interest
Lagrange City
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.aspx?board_id=17002
SpaceX
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.aspx?board_id=17005
Commercial Spaceflight Federation
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.aspx?board_id=17006
Bigelow Aerospace
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.aspx?board_id=17004
SPACEdot (interactive descussion)
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/board.aspx?board_id=17003
Welcome Everybody. Were still under contruction, but feel free to browse, post comments or ask questions.
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Washington, D.C. – The Commercial Spaceflight Federation is pleased to announce that the Next-Generation Suborbital Researchers Conference (NSRC) held in Orlando, Florida, this week set records for the number of presentations, sponsors and attendees. The annual conference brings the research and education communities together with suborbital vehicle providers and government funding agencies to explore the [...] Washington, D.C. – The Commercial Spaceflight Federation is pleased to announce that the Next-Generation Suborbital Researchers Conference (NSRC) held in Orlando, Florida, this week set records for the number of presentations, sponsors and attendees. The annual conference brings the research and education communities together with suborbital vehicle providers and government funding agencies to explore the exciting new era of suborbital spaceflight. CSF is a proud co-sponsor of the event, which was attended by about 350 people. NSRC organizing chairman Dr. Alan Stern of Southwest Research Institute stated, “When we first conceived the idea for NSRC, many people were skeptical that such a meeting would generate much interest. Some even thought the research and education communities were simply not interested in suborbital science. But just as in 2010, people have voted with their feet and come to NSRC by the hundreds. And once again we heard an amazing variety of proposals to exploit the capabilities of next-gen suborbital spaceflight — in fact, the number of presentations by researchers and educators increased 40 percent over last year.” Stern added, “Clearly, many people are very interested in the capabilities that next-gen suborbital can provide to the research and education communities.” Bretton Alexander, president of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, stated, “The interest from researchers in these new commercial suborbital spacecraft was immediately apparent at this week’s Florida conference. The excitement in the air was contagious. It’s becoming increasingly clear that scientists and educators can’t wait to put payloads and experiments onboard these vehicles.” In addition to featuring more than 120 presentations spread among 20 technical sessions, this year’s NSRC also featured four discussion panels, a press conference, presentations or booths by 25 sponsors, and a public evening presentation by Virgin Galactic CEO George Whitesides. “This year’s NSRC, like 2010’s, has been a galvanizing event for both the suborbital industry and the space research and education communities, demonstrating that the level of researcher and educator interest in next-gen suborbital is dramatically growing,” added Stern. “In response to the high turnout at NSRC in Orlando, we are today announcing that NSRC-2012 will take place in the San Francisco area next February 27-29, and will be hosted by NASA Ames Research Center. I’m looking forward to that already!” About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation # # # |
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Washington, D.C. – The Commercial Spaceflight Federation welcomes the support of more than 50 former NASA astronauts, scientists, educators, and industry CEOs and leaders who sent a letter to Congress yesterday urging full funding of the Commercial Crew Program as critical to America’s leadership in space. Washington, D.C. – The Commercial Spaceflight Federation welcomes the support of more than 50 former NASA astronauts, scientists, educators, and industry CEOs and leaders who sent a letter to Congress yesterday urging full funding of the Commercial Crew Program as critical to America’s leadership in space. The letter states, “We are writing to urge you to fully fund NASA’s plan to use commercial companies to carry crew to the Space Station because it is critical to the health of the Nation’s human spaceflight efforts,” adding, “We include 14 former NASA astronauts, 5 former NASA senior executives, 13 educators and nonprofit leaders, and 24 space industry leaders from a wide variety of firms and institutions, both large and small.” The letter adds, “By hiring American businesses, NASA’s Commercial Crew to Space Station program also generates thousands of high tech American jobs across states ranging from Florida, to Alabama, to Texas, to California, to Virginia, to Colorado, to Nevada, and to Maryland, rather than sending these jobs overseas to Russia to build Soyuz capsules and rockets.” “It has been very gratifying to see the support for Commercial Crew from a broad cross-section of the community, ranging from former Apollo and Shuttle astronauts to scientists and former NASA Center Directors,” stated John Gedmark, Executive Director of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation. Notable signatories include former Apollo-era NASA astronauts such as Owen Garriott (Skylab 3, STS-9) and Rusty Schweickart (Apollo 9); former NASA Johnson Space Center Director Gerry Griffin, who also served as Deputy Director of NASA Kennedy Space Center and NASA Dryden Flight Research Center; former NASA Ames Center Director Scott Hubbard, who also served as a Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB) member; former NASA Associate Administrator for Science Alan Stern; former FAA Associate Administrator Patti Grace Smith; and former Columbia Accident Investigation Board member John Logsdon. To view the full letter, please visit http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewnews.html?id=1509 About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation # # # |
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Funded agreements announced for 8 to 17 flights on suborbital vehicles Funded agreements announced for 8 to 17 flights on suborbital vehicles Washington, D.C., Monday, February 28, 2011 – Three scientists, including a former NASA executive, will become some of the first scientists to fly on a commercial spacecraft — and they will fly multiple times — under the terms of two funded agreements announced between the nonprofit Southwest Research Institute and two commercial spacecraft providers, Virgin Galactic and XCOR Aerospace. The Southwest Research Institute (SwRI), a nonprofit research institute with annual revenue exceeding $500 million, will purchase a total of 8 to 17 scientific research flights on two vehicles – Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo and XCOR Aerospace’s Lynx Mark I – to fly both scientists and scientific payloads to the upper atmosphere and space. The scientists selected for the flights are Dr. Alan Stern, Dr. Dan Durda, and Dr. Cathy Olkin, and the science payloads will include biomedical, microgravity science, and astronomical imaging projects. All three scientists selected have trained for suborbital spaceflight aboard zero-G aircraft, in NASTAR centrifuges and aboard Starfighter F-104 jet fighters in the last year. Dr. Stern, the former head of the Science Mission Directorate at NASA, stated, “We at SwRI are very strong believers in the transformational power of commercial, next-generation suborbital vehicles to advance many kinds of research. We also believe that by putting scientists in space with their experiments, researchers can achieve better results at lower costs and a higher probability of success than with many old-style automated experiments.” George Whitesides, President and CEO of Virgin Galactic said, “This agreement signals the enormous scientific potential of the Virgin spaceflight system. Virgin Galactic will be able to offer researchers flights to space that are unprecedented in frequency and cost. Science flights will be an important growth area for the company in the years to come, building on the strong commercial success already demonstrated by deposits received from over 400 individuals for Virgin’s space experience.” XCOR Aerospace’s COO, Andrew Nelson, stated, “When someone issues a commercial contract with their own money, this means something,” and XCOR’s chief executive officer, Jeff Greason, added, “I look forward to the pioneering work this partnership will achieve.” Commercial Spaceflight Federation Executive Director John Gedmark added, “This is a historic moment for spaceflight — a scientific research institution is spending its own money to send its scientists to space. I expect that these scientists will be the first of many to fly to space commercially. As the scientific community realizes that they can put payloads and people into space at unprecedented low costs, the floodgates will open even wider.” Dr. Dan Durda, one of the Southwest Research Institute scientists selected to fly, said, “We’re another step closer to the era of routine ‘field work’ in space research. More and more researchers will soon fly with their own experiments in space, and do it regularly enough to allow the important advances that come with iterative investigations. I’m looking forward to that future and helping it become a reality.” The announcements come as more than 300 scientists, educators, engineers, and students are registered to attend the Next-Generation Suborbital Researchers Conference which began today in Orlando, Florida at the University of Central Florida, to discuss the topic of scientific applications of commercial suborbital spacecraft. The conference runs through March 2nd. About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation The mission of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is to promote the development of commercial human spaceflight, pursue ever-higher levels of safety, and share best practices and expertise throughout the industry. The Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s member companies, which include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, spaceports, suppliers, and service providers, are creating thousands of high-tech jobs nationwide, working to preserve American leadership in aerospace through technology innovation, and inspiring young people to pursue careers in science and engineering. For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org or contact Executive Director John Gedmark at john@commercialspaceflight.org or at 202.349.1121. # # #
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The 2011 Next-Generation Suborbital Researchers Conference begins today in Orlando, Florida. The conference promises to be a watershed gathering for researchers, educators, and industry/government, as a forum to discuss utilizing new commercial suborbital vehicles for research and education. The 2011 Next-Generation Suborbital Researchers Conference begins today in Orlando, Florida. The conference promises to be a watershed gathering for researchers, educators, and industry/government, as a forum to discuss utilizing new commercial suborbital vehicles for research and education. Registration is available at the door, and the conference will last from February 28 to March 2. Please visit http://nsrc.swri.org/ for more information. The Commercial Spaceflight Federation is a co-sponsor of the conference. Commercial Spaceflight Federation Executive Director John Gedmark will be delivering a keynote address to the conference attendees at 11 am on February 28, and the Federation will also be moderating a panel on “Payload Integration” at 10:30 am on March 1. For the entire conference, over 120 presenters—a 40% increase over 2010—will discuss everything from flight test progress to planned experiments in 7 different research fields to training and roles for research and educator payload specialists. In total, the meeting will feature 20 sessions, 4 discussion panels, a press conference, presentations or booths by 20 sponsors, and a public night presentation by Virgin Galactic CEO George Whitesides. The meeting will also include invited talks by experts in diverse fields that include microgravity sciences, atmospheric science, space life sciences, planetary science, education, and crew training. |
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The X PRIZE Foundation, a member of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, announced this week “the official roster of 29 registered teams competing for the $30 million Google Lunar X PRIZE, an unprecedented competition to send a robot to the Moon that travels at least 500 meters and transmit video, images, and data back to the [...] The X PRIZE Foundation, a member of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, announced this week “the official roster of 29 registered teams competing for the $30 million Google Lunar X PRIZE, an unprecedented competition to send a robot to the Moon that travels at least 500 meters and transmit video, images, and data back to the Earth.” The X PRIZE Foundation noted that, “Recently, NASA, the U.S. civil space agency, announced that it will purchase data related to innovative lunar missions from six Google Lunar X PRIZE teams, with contracts worth as much as $10 million each.” This is a demonstration of the power of public-private partnerships in space exploration and discovery. X PRIZE Foundation chairman and CEO Peter Diamandis noted the progress made in the competition to date, stating, “Teams have purchased launch vehicles, they are well into their design process, and we have even seen NASA recognize the value of this competition by purchasing data from several competitors. I want to congratulate the teams that have registered. We are excited to see what they will accomplish in the coming years.” Tiffany V.C. Montague, Manager of Google Space Initiatives, stated, “From the Wright brothers’ first flight to the Lewis and Clark expedition, the most successful and revolutionary discoveries often come from small, entrepreneurial teams. At Google, we share with this global group of innovators a passion for tackling tough technological and scientific challenges, and we wish them the best of luck as they begin the mission phase.” For more information, visit the Google Lunar X PRIZE website at: http://www.googlelunarxprize.org/. |
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The 2011 Next-Generation Suborbital Researchers Conference will be held in Orlando, Florida 28 February through 2 March. That’s less than two weeks away!
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Space Technology Office to Support High-Payoff Programs Including Centennial Challenge Prizes, Commercial Suborbital Science, and Parabolic Flights Space Technology Office to Support High-Payoff Programs Including Centennial Challenge Prizes, Commercial Suborbital Science, and Parabolic Flights Washington, D.C., Tuesday, February 15, 2011 – The Commercial Spaceflight Federation today welcomed the strong support for space technology investments in the new NASA FY2012 proposed budget, including such high-profile programs as Commercial Reusable Suborbital Research, Centennial Challenges, and NASA’s commercial parabolic flight program. CSF President Bretton Alexander stated, “Consistent with the NASA Authorization Act of 2010, these investments in space technology R&D represent a renewed focus by NASA on innovation, which is the seed corn of American economic competitiveness. Between 2005 and 2009, NASA’s technology programs were cut more than 50%, and we applaud NASA’s plan to reverse this decline. Robust funding for technology R&D will help ensure that the United States remains a global leader in space.” Specific technology programs that are part of the new NASA budget include: - NASA’s Commercial Reusable Suborbital Research (CRuSR) program, funded at $15 million per year, which will give scientists and students access to conduct research using low-cost commercial suborbital vehicles. - NASA’s Centennial Challenges Program, funded at $10 million per year, which offers incentive prizes in the mold of the $10 million Ansari X PRIZE to spur innovation in diverse areas of space technology. - NASA’s Facilitated Access to the Space Environment for Technology Development and Training (FAST), funded at $2 million per year, a commercial parabolic flight program to conduct research and technology development on “zero gravity” aircraft. - Other exciting NASA technology programs, including: Cryogenic Propellant Transfer and Storage, In-Space Propulsion, Space Power Generation and Storage, Nuclear Systems, Lightweight Materials and Structures, Human-Robotic Systems, Autonomous Systems, Next-Generation Life Support, Adaptive Entry Systems, and In-Situ Resource Utilization. CSF Executive Director John Gedmark stated, “These will be some of NASA’s most high-profile, exciting programs. They are what the nation needs to generate new technology breakthroughs and precisely the kind of programs that will inspire the next generation to go into fields of science and engineering.” NASA’s decision to increase technology funding follows a letter released last September by a group of 14 Nobel Laureates to Congress that emphasized the importance of technology investment, stating: “Innovative technology development must once again become a high priority at NASA…. We urge that NASA’s total technology investment be increased.” CSF Executive Director John Gedmark concluded, “Yesterday’s technologies are not sufficient to keep America in first place in the global race for economic competitiveness. Technology innovation is what got America to the moon in the 1960s, and we need a renewed focus on technology to drive NASA forward in the 21st century. NASA and private industry can work together to find innovative technological solutions to today’s spaceflight challenges.” About the Commercial Spaceflight Federation The mission of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation (CSF) is to promote the development of commercial human spaceflight, pursue ever-higher levels of safety, and share best practices and expertise throughout the industry. The Commercial Spaceflight Federation’s member companies, which include commercial spaceflight developers, operators, spaceports, suppliers, and service providers, are creating thousands of high-tech jobs nationwide, working to preserve American leadership in aerospace through technology innovation, and inspiring young people to pursue careers in science and engineering. For more information please visit www.commercialspaceflight.org or contact Executive Director John Gedmark at john@commercialspaceflight.org or at 202.349.1121. # # # |
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Commercial Crew Will Eliminate Reliance on Russia, Save Money for the US Taxpayer, and Tap Private-Sector Innovation to Create New Jobs |
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