For 60 years the aerospace industry has been waiting for this moment, a moment ARCA Space Corporation will offer to the scientific community in August this year by launching the Demonstrator 3 space vehicle: the first space flight of an aerospike rocket engine. Soon we are going to know if the hopes and dreams of generations of aerospace engineers, in their pursuit to create what is supposed to be the most efficient rocket engine in the world, will materialize. We hope to confirm that aerospike rocket engines, which are significantly more fuel efficient than the current engines, are achievable and that they can lead the way to the creation of Single Stage to Orbit rockets, which are more cost efficient and responsive.

The aerospike engine was extensively tested on the ground by NASA and Rocketdyne, and it was a strong contender for the Space Shuttle. It was also part of NASAs VentureStar, a Single Stage to Orbit vehicle. Due to schedule and budget constraints, the Space Shuttle received a classic bell-shaped nozzle engine and the VentureStar was canceled before getting to see an actual flight. Hence, the aerospike engine never saw a space flight to this day. In March 2017 however, ARCA Space Corporation brought this technology back into the publics attention by introducing the Haas 2CA Single Stage to Orbit rocket equipped with the Executor Aerospike linear rocket engine. The Haas 2CA is an orbital launcher aiming to operate on the small satellite market, estimated by Space Works and Eurostat at $5.3 billion over the next decade.

ARCA Space Corporation

The Haas 2CA engine needs to be tested. Ground and vacuum tests are scheduled at ARCA and NASAs JSC/WSTF. However, ARCA wants to gather more data about how the aerospike technology performs in flight before the launch of the Haas 2CA, which is scheduled for 2018 from NASAs Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. This is where the Demonstrator 3 rocket comes in and will continue the tradition of ARCAs previous demonstrator rockets.

Demonstrator 3 will perform a suborbital space flight up to an altitude of 100 km above the New Mexico desert. What is remarkable about this rocket, aside from the aerospike technology, is that we decided to use a super cold engine, by decomposing 70% concentration hydrogen peroxide at a temperature of only 250C. This generates oxygen and water, making it environmentally friendly.

ARCA will launch the Demonstrator 3 rocket in August 2017 from Spaceport America to test the atmospheric exhaust expansion of the aerospike linear engine. ARCA will measure engine thrust variation with increasing altitude using a vast array of sensors placed on board the rocket. The type of fuel tanks that will be installed in the Haas 2CA Single Stage to Orbit Rocket will also be flight tested to pressure and acceleration similar to what is encountered during an orbital flight.

By sending the Demonstrator 3 rocket into space using a super cold engine with only 250C instead of 3500C in the reaction chamber and paired with the aerospike technology, we are going to demonstrate the impressive potential of the aerospike. The Haas 2CA Single Stage to Orbit is just the beginning of a new generation of space vehicles shaped by innovation that will generate lower costs. We are going to answer one of the industrys most asked questions: can an aerospike deliver, in flight, the pressure compensation generated by altitude variation and deliver the expected performance by saving fuel?

ARCA Space Corporation

We want to pick up where NASA left off and prove that this technology is actually the way to go for space flights. We are confident that the aerospike engine combined with composite material fuel tanks and dense fuels will significantly lower the costs for orbital and suborbital launches. We truly believe that the answer for cost reduction of space flight is innovation, not trying to make old technologies a little bit more efficient as this will never generate a significant price drop of space launches but merely small improvements. With this philosophy in mind, we expect to increase the registered value of our company from its current $20 million to at least $200 million by 2019. said Dumitru Popescu, ARCA CEO.

Due to its simplicity and low cost, ARCA is also considering utilizing Demonstrator 3 to begin commercial suborbital flight services as the rocket can carry a payload of 30 kg up to 100 km altitude. The payload will experience low accelerations during the powered flight and will experience around 5 minutes of microgravity.

ARCA Space Corporation

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Why Aren't The Van Allen Belts A Barrier To Spaceflight? Forbes I follow all kinds of information about space and the stars. My brother has only recently started paying attention to these issues, but has been reading some naysayer websites. Because of this, he says he has doubts about the 'truth' of the space ...

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Credit: NASA TV

A Russian Progress supply ship sailed to an automated docking Friday with the International Space Station two days after departing the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, delivering approximately three tons of fuel, spare parts and water to the orbiting outpost and its three-person crew.

Docking of the Progress MS-06 cargo craft to the stations Zvezda service module occurred 1137 GMT (7:37 a.m. EDT) after a radar-guided autopilot approach as the vehicles soared 258 miles (415 kilometers) over the Philippine Sea.

Thank you very much for a reliable vehicle, radioed Fyodor Yurchikhin, commander of the stations Expedition 52 crew.

I would say it was more than a gentle touch, more than anything else, Yurchikhin said of the docking.The cargo vehicle is now in a gentle but very firm embrace with the station now.

Hooks closed to create a firm attachment between the space station and the newly-arrived Progress cargo craft, which is set to stay at the research complex until mid-December, when it will detach and head for a destructive re-entry with a load of trash over the South Pacific Ocean.

Yurchikhin will open hatches leading to the Progress spacecraft later Friday.

The stations crew will unpack equipment inside the Progress MS-06 cargo capsules pressurized cabin in the coming weeks, and automated connections will route propellant from the Progress fuel tanks into reservoirs on the Zvezda service module.

The Progress MS-06 supply ship lifted off Wednesday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan aboard a Soyuz-2.1a launcher, reaching orbit less than nine minutes after blastoff. The Progress began a series of thruster firings to guide its two-day journey to the space station, culminating in Fridays final approach.

The Progress MS-06 spaceship carries around 6,039 pounds (2.7 metric tons) of cargo and supplies to the International Space Station, according to NASA.

The supplies include 3,069 pounds (1,392 kilograms) of dry cargo inside the ships pressurized compartment, 1,940 pounds (880 kilograms) of fuel to refill the stations propulsion system, 926 pounds (420 kilograms) of potable water, and 104 pounds (47 kilograms) of high-pressure oxygen and air to replenish the research labs breathable atmosphere, a NASA spokesperson said.

Four small satellites launched inside the Progress MS-06 spacecrafts cabin for release by cosmonauts on a spacewalk later this year.

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Progress cargo freighter docks with International Space Station - Spaceflight Now

Jason Rhian

June 16th, 2017

Orbital ATK conducted a static test fire of the Launch Abort Motor that is planned for use on Lockheed Martins Orion spacecraft in Promontory, Utah on Thursday, June 15. Photo Credit: Jason Rhian / SpaceFlight Insider

PROMONTORY, Utah With a brief flash of highly-controlled power, Dulles, Virginia-based Orbital ATK, along with NASA and Lockheed Martin successfully conducted a test of a system designed to increase safety and to save lives.

The test was conducted at 100 Fahrenheit and will be followed by a test at 30 F in 2018. Photo Credit: Jason Rhian / SpaceFlight Insider

We at Orbital ATK are very proud to work with NASA and Lockheed Martin on the Orion Launch Abort System, and to provide a motor that is so integral to astronaut safety, said Charlie Precourt, Vice President and General Manager of Orbital ATKs Propulsion Systems Division and former NASA astronaut via a company-issues release. The importance of our crews safety and well-being cant be stressed enough.

The Launch Abort Motor, the primary motor of the Orion spacecrafts Launch Abort System (LAS) would pull Orions Command Module off of its Service Module and the Space Launch System (SLS) super heavy-lift booster that is currently being developed to send astronauts to deep space destinations, such as the Moon, asteroids and Mars.

NASA and Orbital ATK carried out this test to qualify an array of elements that are a part of the Launch Abort Motors design. Some of these include, the thrust profile reduction or TPR grain design, to verify the motor-manifold joint and manifold-nozzle joint performance. This test also served to qualify the motor under high temperature limits (100 degrees Fahrenheit)and to distinguish abort motor induced environments.

The test accomplished all of that in the scant five seconds that the motor was active for.

Thursdays static test fire saw the Launch Abort Motor firmly attached to the test stand at Promontorys T-97 facility. During firing, the Launch Abort Motor exerted an estimated 400,000 pound of thrust in just an eighth of a second. The extreme capabilities that this system is capable of bringing to bear, is important given its role.

In the event of an emergency, either at the pad at Kennedy Space Centers Launch Complex 39B in Florida, or on ascent, the Launch Abort Motorwouldgofrom zero to an estimated 400-500 miles per hour in just two seconds. With an acceleration greater than that of a drag racer, the Launch Abort Motor places some 10Gs on those on board pulling them from whatever had gone off-nominal.

Given its abilities, it should come as little surprise that the Launch Abort Motor burns its solid fuel some 3-4 times faster than a typical motor of this size (according to a statement issued by Orbital ATK).

The Launch Abort Motor measures approximately 17 feet in length and about three feet in diameter.

While this Qualification Motor 1 (QM-1) test is viewed as a key milestone in allowing NASA to regain the ability to send astronauts beyond low-Earth orbit (LEO) it is not the systemsfirst test. In November of 2008, ATK (this test was conducted before Orbital Sciences Corporation and ATK had merged in 2014) conducted the ST-1 Static Test. This was followed by a Pad Abort Launch in May of 2010 and Exploration Flight Test 1 (EFT-1) in December of 2014 (on EFT-1 the Launch Abort Motor was inert).

Lessons learned on ST-1, helped shape certain aspects of the Launch Abort Motors design as was noted by one member of the motors development team.

Orbital ATKs Launch Abort Motor Program Director, Steve Sara, provided a detailed review of the test, as well as some of the modifications made to the design in preparation for its use on Orion. Photo Credit: Jason Rhian / SpaceFlight Insider

There a few things that we learned on ST-1, one is that one of our acoustic gauges got saturated, so the acoustic loads were higher than we had anticipated, Steve Sara, Orbital ATKs Launch Abort Program Manager told SpaceFlight Insider. We also learned about these joints, the joints survived fine on ST-1, but that was a steel manifold, this is a titanium manifold. So we changed materials for the reason of weight savings. Years ago, even before ST-1, we decided to move to a lighter weight manifold so that we could save about 1,300 lbs (590 kilograms).

If everything continues to go as currently planned, the Motors QM-2 test should take place late next year (2018). One member of NASAs astronaut corps, Rex Halheim, who was a part of the crew of the final flight of the Shuttle Program, STS-135, spoke with SpaceFlight Insider about what it was like to watch the test first hand.

I was amazed at just how powerful it was, you expect it to be powerful but, you know, its quite a ways down the hill from us and you see those flames come up (laughs) and I was thinking, this is going to be loud when it gets to me and then BAM it hits you its pretty impressive, Walheim said.

Walheimalsonoted thatthe importance of thetest simply could not be overstated, as it could one day save the lives who fly on SLS and Orion.

We want to test all of the hardware at the ends of the extremes, especially this hardware which is a part of the essential Launch Abort System for us. Whenever you build a new rocket you try to take into account all of the things that could go wrong andhave ways to fix all the failures, but, you want to have something that can get you off the rocket if you have a really bad day and thats our launch abort system. Thats what this abort motor we tested today is for, it pulls us off the Space Launch System if we have a bad day and need to get off the pad or rocket.

As Walheim noted, the test regimen is designed to validate the design under both the high and low end of what the Launch Abort Motor is expected to encounter. The next step is to test the design in lower temps (approximately 30 degrees Fahrenheit).

Inabout 18 months, the three organizations are planning to conductthe QM-2 Launch Abort Motor (this will also take place in Utah), this will be followed by theAscent Abort-2 Flight Test (AA-2) currently slated to take place at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, in 2019.

Tagged: Launch Abort Motor Lead Stories Lockheed-Martin NASA Orbital ATK Orion Promontory Space Launch System Utah

Jason Rhian spent several years honing his skills with internships at NASA, the National Space Society and other organizations. He has provided content for outlets such as: Aviation Week & Space Technology, Space.com, The Mars Society and Universe Today.

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Five Seconds of Fury: Orbital ATK conducts test fire of Launch Abort Motor - SpaceFlight Insider

Robert Zubrin

June 16th, 2017

A new study suggests that the cancer risk on a Mars mission due to galactic cosmic-ray radiation could be double what existing models predict. Image Credit: NASA

According to a publicity campaign launched on behalf of a paper authored by UNLV (University of Nevada, Las Vegas) Professor Frank Cucinotta, the new findings show collateral damage from cosmic rays increases cancer risks for Mars astronauts.

However, an examination of the paper itself shows no analysis of experimental methods or results, because no experiments were done and no data was taken. Rather, the much-ballyhooed paper is a discussion of a computer model that Prof. Cucinotta has created which claims to have the power to predict radiation-induced cancer occurrences. In short, theres no real news.

Furthermore, to the extent that the model in question has any empirical foundation, it is based on irrelevant prior experiments done in which researchers subjected mice to radiation dose rates millions of times greater than astronauts would receive on their way to Mars.

One such example is the illustrative piece of nonsense entitled What happens to your brain on the way to Mars, published on May 2, 2015, in the open-access journal Science Advances.In the paper, a group of radiation researchers claimed that their recent experiment causing memory loss to mice by administering very large doses of galactic cosmic ray (GCR)-like high energy radiation has serious implications for human Mars exploration. According to the authors, similar effects might severely impact astronauts going to Mars, thereby placing the feasibility of such enterprises in serious question.

However, in this typical mouse trial, the victims were given a dose of 30 rads (0.3 Gray) at a rate of 100 rads per minute. On a Mars mission, astronauts would receive a dose of 1 rad per month during the 6-month outbound and return transfers as well as about 0.5 rad per month during 18 months on Mars, for a total of 21 Rads. (1 Gray = 100 rads = 100 cGray. For GCR 1 Gray = 6 Sieverts = 600 rem.) Space dose rates can be found in The Cosmic Ray Radiation Dose in Interplanetary Space Present Day and Worst-Case Evaluationsby R.A. Mewaldt, et al., 2005.

The 4-million fold difference in dose rate between such lab studies and spaceflight is of critical importance. It is a well-known finding of both chemical and radiation toxicology that the effects of large doses of toxins delivered suddenly are entirely different from the effect of the same amount of toxin delivered in very small amounts over a long time span. The difference is that the bodys self-repair systems cannot deal with a sudden dose that they can easily manage if received over an extended period.

For example, if an individual were to drink one shot of vodka per second for 100 seconds, he would die; however, if the same person drank one shot of vodka a month for 100 months, he would experience no ill effects at all. This is about the same ratio of dose rates as that which separates the invalid work reported in the What happens to your brain on the way to Mars paper (1.6 rad per second) from that which would be experienced by astronauts in space (1 rad per month.)

It should also be added that mouse studies are not an accurate predictor of cancer occurrence in humans; e.g., it is possible to induce tumors in mice by rubbing their stomachs. Such treatment is not known to be a hazard to people.

It is true that small amounts of toxins received over a long period can statistically increase a persons risk of ill effects at least according to the hyper-conservative Linear-No-Threshold (LNT) model of toxicology. However, we already have data that shows that the accumulation of slow rates of cosmic-ray radiation received during long-duration spaceflight is not a show stopper for human Mars exploration. GCR dose rates in low-Earth orbit are about half those in interplanetary space.

Therefore, there are a dozen cosmonauts and astronauts Padalka, Malenchenko, Avdeyev, Polyakov, Solovyov, Krikalyov, Titov, Manarov, Foale, Fincke, Pettit, Walz, Kelly, Whitson who have already received Mars mission equivalent GCR doses during extended space missions without any radiological casualties.

Furthermore, since the International Space Station (ISS) is continually manned, whereas Mars missions are only in space for about 40 percent of their mission time, the total GCR dose (measured in person-rems) that the ISS program crews will receive over the next ten years of planned operations is about the same as would be received by a series of five teams of five people each if they were launched to Mars every other year over the same period. Thus, in fact, the ISS program has already accepted the same level of GCR risk for its crews as would be faced by an ongoing human Mars exploration program.

Galactic cosmic radiation is not a show stopper for human Mars exploration and should not be used as an excuse for delay. The space program costs many billions of dollars, which is spent at a real cost to meeting human needs elsewhere. That fact imposes a moral obligation on the program to move forward as quickly and efficiently as possible. It is understandable that radiation researchers should want to justify their funding. However, they should not spread misinformation to promote themselves at such extraordinary expense to the public.

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The views expressed in this Op-Ed are solely those of the author and do not, necessarily, reflect those of SpaceFlight Insider.

Tagged: Cosmic Rays Mars radiation Robert Zubrin The Mars Society The Range

Dr. Robert Zubrin is the founder and President of the Mars Society, an international organization dedicated to furthering the human exploration and settlement of the planet Mars by both public and private means. He is also President of of Pioneer Astronautics, an aerospace R&D company located in Lakewood, Colorado. Formerly a Staff Engineer at Lockheed Martin Astronautics in Denver, he holds a Masters degree in Aeronautics and Astronautics and a Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering from the University of Washington.

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A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, without its payload, is test-fired Thursday at pad 39A at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Credit: SpaceX

The launch of a commercial Bulgarian television broadcast satellite from NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida is set for Monday after SpaceX ran through a mock countdown Thursday and test-fired a previously-flown Falcon 9 rockets Merlin main engines.

The rockets recycled first stage, which first flew on a satellite deployment flight Jan. 14 from California, ignited its nine Merlin 1D main engines at 6:25 p.m. EDT (2225 GMT) Thursday for several seconds while restraints kept the two-stage Falcon 9 firmly grounded at launch pad 39A.

A cloud of exhaust erupted from the launch pads flame trench, and SpaceX later confirmed on Twitter that the so-called static fire test went according to plan.

The static fire is a customary milestone in all of SpaceXs launch campaigns, used as a rehearsal for the companys launch team and as a test of the rockets readiness for flight.

SpaceX pushed back the launch of the BulgariaSat 1 communications satellite two days from Saturday to Monday earlier his week after preparations for the static fire ran behind schedule.

Thursdays test was conducted without a payload on-board the booster, standard practice for SpaceX after a Falcon 9 rocket exploded on a nearby launch pad at Cape Canaveral last September, destroying the launch vehicle and an Israeli-owned communications satellite in the final minutes of the countdown before a hold-down firing.

Ground crews planned to drain the Falcon 9 of its RP-1 kerosene and liquid oxygen propellants Thursday night, then lower the rocket horizontal and return it to a hangar on the southern perimeter of pad 39A, a historic facility leased by SpaceX from NASA that was originally built in the 1960s for the Apollo moon program.

BulgariaSat 1, already encapsulated inside the Falcon 9s fairing, will be attached to the Falcon 9s upper stage this weekend before the rocket rolls back up the ramp to pad 39A ahead of Mondays launch attempt.

Built by Space Systems/Loral of Palo Alto, California, the BulgariaSat 1 satellite is Bulgarias first communications spacecraft.

BulgariaSat 1, which weighs nearly 9,000 pounds (4 metric tons ) at launch, will broadcast television channels to homes in Bulgaria, Serbia and elsewhere in Europe for BulgariaSat, an affiliate ofBulsatcom, Bulgarias largest digital television provider, during a 15-year mission.

Nearly 12 years in the making, the $235 million satellite project is a big step for Bulgaria, according to Maxim Zayakov, BulgariaSats CEO.

The satellite is a huge thing, Zayakov said in a May 5 interview with Spaceflight Now. Its a big milestone and gives us a chance for regional development as well as throughout Europe, where we have our main coverage. And for the country, definitely, its the first geostationary communications satellite.

Space Systems/Loral arranged for BulgariaSat 1s launch with SpaceX in a turnkey contract with BulgariaSat, and the satellite manufacturer ultimately decided to place the spacecraft on a flight with a reused Falcon 9 first stage booster. SSL will hand over the satellite to BulgariaSat once it is ready for operations in orbit.

SSL and SpaceX started working on a deal to launch BulgariaSat 1 on a previously-flown rocket before the first partially-reused Falcon 9 took off March 30 on a widely-watched mission to deliver an SES communications satellite to orbit. But officials only finalized the agreement after the SES 10 launch, and the parties announced the decision to put BulgariaSat 1 on a previously-flown booster last month.

SpaceX says recovering and re-flying parts of its rockets will cut the cost of space transportation, but customers can expect only minor discounts for the first lot of reused rocket flights as the launch company recoups $1 billion in capital expenditures to allow the Falcon 9s first stages to make multiple flights.

The investment included modifications to the booster, such as aerodynamic grid fins, landing legs, a heat shield, and descent guidance algorithms capable of handling supersonic retro-propulsion. SpaceX also outfitted two barges for rocket landings at sea, and built landing pads at Cape Canaveral and Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

Engineers are working on retrieving the Falcon 9s clamshell-like payload fairing, which jettisons from the rocket in two halves, with the help of a steerable parafoil, but SpaceX has so far not recovered one of the nose cone components undamaged.

SpaceX intends to recover the first stage on Mondays launch on one of its landing platforms stationed in the Atlantic Ocean east of Cape Canaveral, the company said.

Mondays mission is the first of three Falcon 9 flights planned in three weeks from Florida and California.

A static fire of another Falcon 9 rocket at Vandenberg Air Force Base is scheduled as soon as Tuesday, the day after BulgariaSat 1s launch, in preparation for a liftoff June 25 with the second batch of 10 next-generation Iridium mobile voice and data relay satellites.

The next Falcon 9 mission from Kennedy Space Center is set for early July with the Intelsat 35e high-throughout communications satellite.

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Falcon 9 launch scheduled for Monday after hold-down engine firing - Spaceflight Now

Jason Rhian

June 15th, 2017

NASA, Orbital ATK and Lockheed Martin are preparing to conduct the QM-1 static test fire of the Orion spacecrafts Launch Abort Motor at Promontory, Utah, on June 15, at 1 p.m. MDT. Photo Credit: Orbital ATK

PROMONTORY, Utah Orbital ATK and NASA are planning to conduct a static test fire of the Orion spacecrafts Launch Abort Motor. The Qualification Motor 1 test is set to begin at 1 p.m. MDT (3 p.m. EDT / 19:00 GMT) and last for approximately five seconds. SpaceFlight Insider will be on hand providing you with exclusive coverage from the T-97 viewing site about a half-mile away. Tune into our live webcast starting at 12:30 p.m. MDT (2:30 p.m. EDT / 18:30 GMT).

Tagged: Launch Abort Motor Lead Stories NASA Orbital ATK Orion Promontory QM-1 Utah

Jason Rhian spent several years honing his skills with internships at NASA, the National Space Society and other organizations. He has provided content for outlets such as: Aviation Week & Space Technology, Space.com, The Mars Society and Universe Today.

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SFI Live: QM-1 Launch Abort Motor test fire - SpaceFlight Insider

Jerome Strach

June 15th, 2017

Orbital ATKs horizontal integration hangar at Wallops with multiple Antares rockets inside. Photo Credit: Patrick Black / NASA

On the heels of Orbital ATKs successful OA-7 Cygnus cargo run, teams at Virginias Wallops Flight Facility are preparing for the OA-8E mission. The 139-foot (42.5-meter) tall Antaresrocket is slated to take an enhanced Cygnus and several tons of science and cargo to the International Space Station on Sept. 12, 2017.

Kurt Eberly, the program manager for Antares, said that the company would haveOA-8E ready to travel as early as late July and certainly in August if necessary. Regardless of when it does get off the ground, the mission will send 7,385 pounds (3,350 kilograms) of cargo packed inside an enhanced Cygnus spacecraft. Liftoff will take place from Pad 0A at Wallops Island, Virginia.

The OA-8E mission is part of the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) 1 contract. The E signifies the CRS-1 contract extension, enabling NASA to cover space station resupply needs until the CRS-2 contract begins in 2019. Orbital ATK was awarded at least three additional Cygnus flights.SpaceX was also awarded additional flights.

MARS Pad 0A. Photo Credit: Patrick Black / NASA

After OA-8E will be OA-9E, which is currently scheduled to launch in March 2018 atop an Antares 230 rocket. TheAntares rockets for both of these missionscan be seen in the companys horizontal integration facility.

The last Cygnus mission, OA-7, launched atop an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida. While the spacecraft can be sent to space using either launch vehicle, there are currently no more plans for Orbital ATK to use the Atlas V.

Eberly said that by improving the performance of Antares, utilizing the pair ofRD-181 engines, Orbital ATK is expected to achieve 13percent higher thrust with 10 seconds ofadditional specific impulse (ISP). This should net 2025 percent more mass to be delivered to orbitresulting in increased payload delivered to the ISS.

It is expected that, by OA-11E, Orbital ATKshould be able to achieve its designed mass of 7,716 pounds (3,500 kilograms) of cargo andprobably beyond in the CRS-2 missions.

For Antares second stage, there is a large Castor 30XLmotor which is manufactured by the Propulsion Systems Division of Orbital ATK located in Utah.

Dale Nash, executive director at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) on WallopsIsland, indicated that Pad 0A should be ready for OA-8E by end of July.

Nash briefed themedia that with the last Antares launch, in October 2016, the rocket lifted off quickly and, as a result, therewas much less damage to the launch pad, thereby improving turnaround times between launches to about 30 days.

Wallops has a fairly wide open azimuth between 38 to 60 degrees inclination which the ISS is right in the sweet spot for that, Nash said, talking about the advantages of Wallops over Cape Canaveral. Additionally, he said that there are far fewer scheduling conflicts at the Wallops Flight Facility and less chance ofgetting bumped.

Moreover, improvementsto the design of Cygnus itself, including strengthened internal infrastructure and an improved powersupply, allows for better support of science payloads. Additionally, procedural protocolsallowing for later cargo insertion into the Cygnus have proven to have significant advantagesallowing for easier accommodation of NASA cargo requests.

On June 12, 2017, Orbital ATK and NASA gave members of the media, including SpaceFlight Insider, a review of the current operations of Wallops Flight Facility Pad 0A and the nearby horizontal integration hangar.

Tagged: Antares Cygnus Lead Stories NASA OA-8E Orbital ATK Wallops Flight Facility

Jerome Strach has worked within the Silicon Valley community for 20 years including software entertainment and film. Along with experience in software engineering, quality assurance, and middle management, he has long been a fan of aerospace and entities within that industry. A voracious reader, a model builder, and student of photography and flight training, most of his spare time can be found focused on launch events and technology advancements including custom mobile app development. Best memory as a child is building and flying Estes rockets with my father. @Romn8tr

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Orbital ATK OA-8E Cygnus cargo mission slated for late summer - SpaceFlight Insider

Credit: TsENKI TV/Roscosmos

A Russian Progress supply ship packed with several tons of crew provisions and fuel lifted off Wednesday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on a two-day trip to the International Space Station.

The Progress MS-06 cargo and refueling freighter launched at 0920:13 GMT (5:20:13 a.m. EDT), or 3:20 p.m. local time at the Baikonur Cosmodrome. The unpiloted cargo craft rode into orbit on a Soyuz-2.1a rocket, a modernized version of Russias venerable booster.

The Soyuz blasted off from Launch Pad No. 31 at Baikonur on a nearly nine-minute journey into orbit, soaring through overcast skies before deploying the Progress MS-06 spacecraft from its third stage. Moments after separating from the rocket, the supply ship extended its power-generating solar panels and navigation antennas, setting up for a series of thruster firings to approach the space station Friday.

If the radar-guided automated rendezvous goes according to plan, the Progress MS-06 cargo freighter is scheduled to dock with the space stations Zvezda module at 1142 GMT (7:42 a.m. EDT) Friday.

The Soyuz-2.1a rocket featuresredesigned third stage propellant tanks and a digital flight control computer, upgrades introduced to Russias workhorse launcher over the last decade.

Designated Progress 67P in the space stations sequence of crew and cargo vehicles, the Russian resupply mission will reach the research outpost nearly halfway through the visit of a SpaceX Dragon capsule that delivered nearly 6,000 pounds (2,700 kilograms) of experiments and equipment June 5.

The Progress MS-06 spaceship carries around 6,039 pounds (2.7 metric tons) of cargo and supplies to the International Space Station, according to NASA.

The supplies include 3,069 pounds (1,392 kilograms) of dry cargo inside the ships pressurized compartment, 1,940 pounds (880 kilograms) of fuel to refill the stations propulsion system, 926 pounds (420 kilograms) of potable water, and 104 pounds (47 kilograms) of high-pressure oxygen and air to replenish the research labs breathable atmosphere, a NASA spokesperson said.

Four small satellites launched inside the Progress MS-06 spacecrafts cabin for release by cosmonauts on a spacewalk later this year.

The Progress MS-06 supply ship will remain at the space station until December, when it will undock with a load of trash and re-enter the atmosphere for a destructive plunge over the South Pacific Ocean.

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Robotic Russian resupply freighter on the way to space station - Spaceflight Now

Jun.13.2017 / 10:24 AM ET

Science writer Charles Q. Choi is a contributor to Space.com. His work also appears in such publications as Scientific American, The New York Times and National Geographic.

Fusion-powered rockets the size of only a few refrigerators could one day help propel spacecraft at high speeds to nearby planets or even other stars, a NASA-funded spaceflight company says.

Another use for such fusion rockets is to deflect asteroids that might strike Earth and to build manned bases on the moon and Mars, the researchers say.

Rockets fly by hurling materials known as propellants away from them. Conventional rockets that rely on chemical reactions are not very efficient when it comes to how much thrust they generate, given the amount of propellant they carry, which has led rocket scientists to explore a variety of alternatives over the years.

An option now used in spacecraft is the ion drive, which generates thrust by using electricity to accelerate electrically charged ion propellants. Ion drives are far more efficient than chemical rockets but are limited by the amount of electricity they can harvest via solar panels or generate using radioactive materials.

Related: Superfast Spacecraft Propulsion Concepts

Instead of chemical rockets or ion drives, scientists have also suggested using fusion rockets propelled by the same nuclear reactions that power stars. These rockets would not only be efficient but also generate vast amounts of electricity.

However, so far, no one has built a fusion reactor that generates more energy than it consumes. Moreover, the fusion reactors that are under development are huge, making them difficult to hoist into space.

But now, researchers funded by NASA are developing small fusion rockets.

"It's technology that enables really interesting robotic and human missions to Mars and Pluto, and it is also potentially a way of getting into interstellar space," said Michael Paluszek, president of Princeton Satellite Systems in Plainsboro, New Jersey.

The large fusion reactors under development today, such as the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), usually strive to generate hundreds of megawatts of power. In contrast, Paluszek and his colleagues at Princeton Satellite Systems are designing reactors meant to produce only a dozen megawatts or so. This humbler goal results in a smaller, lighter reactor that is easier to build and launch into space "for practical robotic and human missions," Paluszek said.

In addition, these small fusion reactors are much cheaper than larger devices. Paluszek noted that, whereas modern fusion experiments might cost $20 billion, a prototype fusion rocket the researchers plan to develop should cost just $20 million. So far, they have received three NASA grants to fund the project, he said.

The aim for the fusion drives is to get about 1 kilowatt of power per 2.2 lbs. (1 kilogram) of mass. A 10-megawatt fusion rocket would, therefore, weigh about 11 tons (10 metric tons).

"It would probably be 1.5 meters [4.9 feet] in diameter and 4 to 8 meters [13 to 26 feet] long," Paluszek said.

Related: Will This 'Impossible' Motor Take People to Other Planets?

Nuclear fusion requires extremely high temperatures and pressures to force atoms to fuse, a process that converts some of the mass of the atoms into energy. The fusion reactors that Princeton Satellite Systems is developing uses low-frequency radio waves to heat a mix of deuterium and helium-3, and magnetic fields to confine the resulting plasma in a ring. (Deuterium is made of hydrogen atoms that each have an extra neutron; helium-3 is made of helium atoms, each of which is missing a neutron; and plasma is the state of matter found in stars, lightning bolts, and neon lights.)

As this plasma rotates in a ring, some of it can spiral out and get directed from the fusion rocket's nozzle for thrust. "We can get very high exhaust velocities of up to about 25,000 kilometers per second [55.9 million mph]," Paluszek said.

The large amounts of thrust this fusion rocket may deliver compared to its mass could enable very fast spacecraft. For instance, whereas round-trip crewed missions to Mars are estimated to take more than two years using current technology, the researchers estimated that six 5-megawatt fusion rockets could accomplish such missions in 310 days. This extra speed would reduce the risks of radiation that astronauts might experience from the sun or deep space, as well as dramatically cut the amount of food, water, and other supplies they would need to bring with them.

Related: Warp Speed Won't Get Us to the Stars, but This Just Might

In addition, the fusion reactors could also help generate ample electricity for scientific instruments and communications devices. For instance, whereas NASA's New Horizons mission took more than nine years to get to Pluto and had little more than 200 watts of power to work with once it arrived, broadcasting about 1,000 bits of data back per second, a 1-megawatt fusion rocket could get a robotic mission to Pluto in four years, supply 500 kilowatts of power and broadcast more than 1 million bits of data back per second, Paluszek said. Such a mission could also carry a lander to Pluto and power it by beaming down energy, he added.

"With the amount of power fusion rockets can provide, you can think of science that can't be done now with other technologies, such as powering a lander to drill through the ice on Jupiter's moon Europa," Paluszek said.

A 10-megawatt fusion rocket could also deflect an asteroid about 525 feet (160 m) in diameter coming at Earth, spending about 200 days to travel there and 23 days nudging it off course, Paluszek said. Fusion rockets could even enable an interstellar voyage to the nearest star system, Alpha Centauri, although the trip might take 500 to 700 years, he said. (Alpha Centauri lies about 4.3 light-years from the sun.)

Related: Gallery: Visions of Interstellar Starship Travel

Previous research suggested this kind of fusion rocket in the 1960s, but the designs proposed for them would not stably confine the plasmas, Paluszek said. About 10 years ago, reactor designer Sam Cohen figured out a magnetic-field design "that could make stable plasmas," Paluszek explained.

One drawback of the kind of nuclear reactor that Princeton Satellite Systems is developing is that radio waves do not penetrate deeply into plasma. "We're limited to something like 1 meter [3.3 feet] in diameter," Paluszek said. To generate large amounts of power with this strategy, the researchers have to rely on multiple reactors.

Another pitfall is that, while this fusion reactor generates less deadly neutron radiation than most fusion reactors under development, it still does produce some neutrons, as well as X-rays. "Radiation shielding is key," Paluszek said.

In addition, helium-3 is rare on Earth. Still, it is possible to generate helium-3 using nuclear reactors, Paluszek said.

Princeton Satellite Systems is not alone in pursuing small fusion reactors. For instance, Paluszek noted that Helion Energy in Redmond, Washington, also intends to fuse deuterium and helium-3, while Tri Alpha Energy in Foothill Ranch, California, aims to fuse boron and protons.

"Fusion can enable new and exciting science missions that are too expensive and difficult to do with today's technology," Paluszek said.

The researchers have not yet demonstrated fusion with their device, but aim to do so by 2019 to 2020. Paluszek detailed his company's research June 3 at The Dawn of Private Space Science Symposium in New York.

Follow Charles Q. Choi on Twitter @cqchoi. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook, and Google+. Original articleSpace.com.

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Are These Little Rockets the Future of Spaceflight? | NBC News - NBCNews.com

As much as we want to travel outside our planet and explore the deep realms of space, theres one big problem that has been hindering our progress: speed. Or more specifically, the need for extreme speed.

With our current technologies, the farthest our astronauts can travel to is Mars. Such trip typically takes two to three years to be completed from Earth to Mars, and back to Earth. For our astronauts, that means two to three years of exposure to harmful cosmic radiation and the hazards of microgravity. And that simply isnt acceptable. By funding a New Jersey-based spaceflight company called Princeton Satellite Systems, NASA is hoping that can soon change.

Princeton Satellite Systems is said to be developing a miniature version of a fusion reactor that weighs just 11 tons, measures less than 5 feet (1.5 meters) in diameter, is only 13 26 feet (4 8 meters) long, and is capable of generating around 1 kilowatt of power per 2.2 pounds (1 Kilogram) of mass.

Fusion reactors work by fusing or combining two hydrogen nuclei to form helium, meaning, they make use of the same chemical reaction that stars, including our Sun, constantly undergo to generate enormous amounts of energy. Unfortunately, as powerful as fusion reactors are envisioned to be, no one has yet figured out how to build one that generates more energy than what is required to produce that energy, considering that extremely high temperatures and pressures are needed for fusion of atoms to take place. Additionally, the fusion reactors being developed are quite big, which make them impractical to bring into space.

This is what will differentiate the work being done by Princeton Satellite Systems. Instead of building the usual large fusion reactors that aim to produce hundreds of megawatts of power, they are opting to build miniaturized versions that are designed to generate only about a dozen megawatts of power. Its not just easier to build, in a manner of speaking; it will cost way less too. Just imagine, a large fusion reactor will cost $20 billion; a mini version, on the other hand, will only cost $20 million.

As described in an article by Space.com, Princeton Satellite Systems mini fusion reactor will involve heating a mix of deuterium and helium 3 using low-frequency radio waves, confining the plasma generated within magnetic fields, then directing it out of the engines nozzle to create a powerful thrust.

According to Princeton Satellite Systems president Michael Paluszek, the thrust generated can provide speeds of up to 25,000 kilometers per second (or 55.9 million miles per hour). At such velocities, space travel can significantly be shortened. For instance, a trip to Mars will be reduced to just a 310-day trip. That means less exposure to deadly radiation, and less supplies needed for the trip too. If used for a robotic mission to Pluto, it will only take four years instead of nine years, which is how long it took NASAs New Horizons mission. Paluszek even says that a 10-megawatt fusion rocket could be used to deflect asteroids that can potentially cause widespread damage to our planet.

Princeton Satellite Systems initiative doesnt come without its challenges, of course. For starters, helium 3 is quite rare, which means theres an additional step needed for the reaction to work, that is, produce helium 3 first either via nuclear reactors, or space mining. Theres also the matter of the reactor producing deadly neutron radiation. Even if the amount is minimal, it will still require some kind of shielding, which means more additional work. Theres also the need to use multiple reactors because apparently, radio waves cant penetrate too deep into plasma.

Everything else considered, the researchers are aiming to demonstrate a working prototype by 2019 or 2020. Were quite sure NASA and all other space and astronomy enthusiasts are hoping that Princeton Satellite Systems will deliver on their intent to help fast-track space missions to Mars and other target destinations.

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Could Teeny Fusion Rockets Propel The Future Of Spaceflight? - Wall Street Pit

Jason Rhian

June 14th, 2017

NASA, Orbital ATK and Lockheed Martin are preparing to conduct the QM-1 static test fire of the Orion spacecrafts Launch Abort Motor at 1 p.m. MDT June 15 at Promontory, Utah. Photo Credit: Orbital ATK

PROMONTORY, Utah On Thursday, June 15, 2017,NASA, Orbital ATK and Lockheed Martinare slated to carry out the first of three qualification ground tests (QM-1) of the Launch Abort Motor being developed for use on the space agencys Orion spacecraft.

The test will last for a mere five seconds and will test out several of the motors performance aspects. Photo Credit: Orbital ATK

The vertical ground test firing is slated to take place at 1 p.m. MDT (19:00 GMT) at Orbital ATKs test facility locatednear Promontory, Utah.

In the event of an emergency either at the launch pad or during ascent, Orion is fitted with a Launch Abort System or LAS that would pull Orions Command Module away from the vehicles Service Module as well as the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket it is attached to.

The 17-foot (5.2-meter) tall Launch Abort Motor set to be tested is the main motor in the escape system and has a diameter of about three feet (1 meter). It has a manifold that has four nozzles and turns the flow of the flames to create a pulling motion.

Thursdays test is scheduled to last for only about five seconds. But,it will be an impressive five seconds with themotor reaching400,000 pounds (1,800 kilonewtons) of thrust in just one-eighth of a second, sending plumes some100 feet (100 meters) into the desert sky.

During an actual abort scenario, either on the launch pad or up to 300,000 feet (91,000 meters) in altitude during the vehicles climb toward orbit, the motor would pull the Orion spacecrafts Command Module away from whatever event would require a hasty retreat away from the launch vehicle and spacecraft.

For this test, the abort motor was fitted onto a specially-designed vertical test stand with the nozzles pointed skyward. When activated, the plumes of fire and smoke will shoot into the sky.

The motor is currently on the test stand, which has temporary thermal panels between the motors four legs tobetter regulatethermal conditioning, which was initiated Sunday, June 11. The panels will be removed a few hours before thetest. Once this has occurred, Orbital ATKs engineers will erect the heat shield acoustic array above the motor and perform final instrument checks for the test firing, according to a statement provided to SpaceFlight Insider by Orbital ATK.

This is the first static fire test that validates the ballistic performance of the abort motor operational propellant grain design, Steve Sara, Orbital ATKs Launch Abort Motor program director told SpaceFlight Insider. It also verifies the motor performance under the high temperature design limits as well as design changes since the development test performed in 2008.

If everything continues to go as NASA and its family of contractors plan, SLS will conduct its maiden flight from Kennedy Space Centers Launch Complex 39B in 2019. It will send an Orion spacecraft on a circumlunar journey designed as a shakedown flight beforesending crews aloft on the rocket in 2023.

NASA looked into the possibility of having a crew fly on the 2019 inaugural flight of SLS, as part of a directive from NASAs Acting Administrator Robert Lightfoot. The space agency, however, opted to maintain the current path it wason as there were too many logistical and technological elements that would not support a human flight under that timeline.

An Orion spacecraft has already conducted one uncrewed flight, atop a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket on Exploration Flight Test 1 in December of 2014.

Those wishing to watch the test can go to a public viewing sitealong State Road 83 North (about 20 miles west of Corinne, Utah).

Video courtesy of Wired

Updated at2 p.m. EDT to clarify the maximum altitude the Launch Abort Motor can be used during ascent.

Tagged: Launch Abort Motor Lead Stories Lockheed-Martin NASA Orbital ATK Orion Promontory Space Launch System

Jason Rhian spent several years honing his skills with internships at NASA, the National Space Society and other organizations. He has provided content for outlets such as: Aviation Week & Space Technology, Space.com, The Mars Society and Universe Today.

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Orbital ATK poised to test Orion Launch Abort Motor - SpaceFlight Insider

Artists concept of the XS-1 spaceplane before releasing its expendable upper stage. Credit: Boeing

A reusable suborbital spaceplane the size of a business jet being developed by Boeing and the Defense Departments research and development arm could be launching and landing at Cape Canaveral in 2020, officials said after the defense contractor won a competition last month to design and test the vehicle.

Designed for rapid reusability, the XS-1 spaceplane will take off vertically like a rocket without a crew deploy an upper stage after traveling beyond the edge of space, then return to landing on a runway for inspections and reuse.

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, selected Boeing to finish designing the spaceplane last month. Boeing beat competitors Northrop Grumman and Masten Space Systems to win the $146 million contract.

Boeing and DARPA are developing the spaceplane in a cost-sharing public-private partnership arrangement, but Boeing did not disclose how much it is spending on the program.

When operational after a series of suborbital and orbital test flights, the XS-1 and its expendable upper stage could place satellites weighing up to 3,000 pounds (1,360 kilograms) into low Earth orbit several hundred miles above the planet.

The XS-1 would be neither a traditional airplane nor a conventional launch vehicle but rather a combination of the two, with the goal of lowering launch costs by a factor of ten and replacing todays frustratingly long wait time with launch on demand, said Jess Sponable, DARPA program manager, in a press release. Were very pleased with Boeings progress on the XS-1 through Phase 1 of the program and look forward to continuing our close collaboration in this newly funded progression to Phases 2 and 3 fabrication and flight.

The Defense Department envisions the Experimental Spaceplane, or XS-1, program as an option for rapid call-up to replace a lost military or commercial satellite, available to launch within days instead of the months or years needed today.

An end goal for the XS-1 program is to launch 10 times in 10 days, with recurring operating costs as little as $5 million per flight, including the disposable upper stage, according to DARPA.

Boeing calls its XS-1 test vehicle the Phantom Express, a winged craft the size of a business jet that will launch to the edge of space and release an expendable upper stage, which would fire to inject the missions payload into orbit. The reusable first stage would turn around and fly back to the launch site.

Rick Weiss, a DARPA spokesperson, said Cape Canaveral will be the base for Phantom Express test flights and launch operations. He did not say which launch pad the spaceplane will use.

The spacecraft booster would return to land at one of two runways on Floridas Space Coast: Kennedy Space Centers Shuttle Landing Facility, a three-mile-long landing strip, or the Skid Strip at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

Phantom Express is designed to disrupt and transform the satellite launch process as we know it today, creating a new, on-demand space-launch capability that can be achieved more affordably and with less risk, said Darryl Davis, president of Boeing Phantom Works.

Boeing officials said the Phantom Express would employ operation and maintenance principles similar to modern aircraft.

The U.S. Air Forces X-37B space plane, similar in appearance to the XS-1 but different in function, is also built by Boeing.

The Phantom Express booster stage would be powered by a single Aerojet Rocketdyne AR-22 engine, a version of the space shuttle main engine, burning liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen propellants.

Boeing originally partnered with Blue Origin, the space company founded by Amazon.coms Jeff Bezos, as an engine provider for the XS-1 program, but later switched to an Aerojet Rocketdyne engine, according to Cheryl Sampson, a Boeing spokesperson.

We conducted trade studies with Blue Origin in the first phase of the program, Sampson wrote in an email to Spaceflight Now. Boeing selected the Aerojet Rocketdyne engine for this next phase as it offers a flight proven, reusable engine to meet the DARPA mission requirements.

Aerojet Rocketdyne said it will provide two engines for the XS-1 program with legacy shuttle flight experience to demonstrate reusability, a wide operating range and rapid turnarounds.

The engines will be designated as AR-22 engines, Aerojet Rocketdyne said in a press release. Technicians at NASAs Stennis Space Center in Mississippi, where Aerojet Rocketdyne assembles and tests rocket engines, will create the AR-22 engines from parts left over from early versions of the shuttle main engine, the company said.

As one of the worlds most reliable rocket engines, the SSME is a smart choice to power the XS-1 launch vehicle, said Eileen Drake, Aerojet Rocketdyne CEO and president. This engine has a demonstrated track record of solid performance and proven reusability.

The Phantom Express booster stage will have advanced, lightweight composite cryogenic tanks to hold the super-cold propellants feeding the AR-22 engine. Hybrid metallic-composite wings and control surfaces on the spaceplane will be fitted with third-generation thermal protection to withstand the rigors of hypersonic flight and re-entry temperatures of more than 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit (1,100 degrees Celsius), according to DARPA and Boeing.

Other technologies on the spaceplane launch system would include an autonomous range safety destruct mechanism and other components designed for autonomous flight, including some developed for DARPAs Airborne Launch Assist Space Access, or ALASA, program, officials said.

The ALASA program intended to launch small 100-pound (45-kilogram) satellites on a lightweight rocket fired from the belly of an F-15 fighter jet. DARPA canceled the program, which it also developed with Boeing, in 2015 after running into problems testing the rockets mix of nitrous oxide and acetylene fuel, a monopropellant cocktail that would have eliminated the need for the launcher to carry an oxidizer.

Phase 2 of the XS-1 program will encompass the design, construction and testing of a technology demonstration vehicle through 2019, DARPA said. The AR-22 engine will be test-fired on the ground 10 times in 10 days to verify it is ready for flight tests.

Phase 3 objectives include 12 to 15 flight tests, currently scheduled for 2020, DARPA said in a statement. After multiple shakedown flights to reduce risk, the XS-1 would aim to fly 10 times over 10 consecutive days, at first without payloads and at speeds as fast as Mach 5.

Then test flights will reach speeds as fast as Mach 10, DARPA said, and deliver a demonstration payload into low Earth orbit with a mass between 900 pounds (408 kilograms) and 3,000 pounds (1,360 kilograms).

Weiss said DARPA currently envisions a liquid-fueled upper stage for the XS-1 program, and artists concepts show the upper stage riding on top of the spaceplanes fuselage. The DARPA spokesman said the agency is open to other types of upper stages, which would be provided by Boeing.

DARPA said it will release selected data from the XS-1 tests to other commercial launch providers interested in adopting the programs reusable, rapid-turnaround concepts.

Were delighted to see this truly futuristic capability coming closer to reality, said Brad Tousley, director of DARPAs Tactical Technology Office, which oversees XS-1. Demonstration of aircraft-like, on-demand, and routine access to space is important for meeting critical Defense Department needs and could help open the door to a range of next-generation commercial opportunities.

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Follow Stephen Clark on Twitter: @StephenClark1.

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Boeing, DARPA to base XS-1 spaceplane at Cape Canaveral - Spaceflight Now

Heather Smith

June 14th, 2017

Dynetics, Inc. is to build the universal stage adapter for NASAs SLS rocket. Image Credit: NASA

NASA has announced that the applied science and information technology company Dynetics, Inc. of Huntsville, Alabama, has been awarded a $221.7 million prime contract to develop and build a universal stage adapter (USA) for the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket.

The adapter will serve to connect NASAs Orion spacecraft to the exploration upper stage (EUS) of the Block 1B Crew variant of the SLS while also providing additional cargo space for the rocket. The partnership is with the Glenn Research Center in Ohio.

Dynetics will design, develop, test, evaluate, produce, and deliver the first universal stage adapter for the second integrated mission Exploration Mission-2 (EM-2) of the SLS and Orion. The mission will be the first test flight with crew aboard NASAs new deep space exploration systems. The SLS will have three different launch blocks. USA and EUS will be placed on top of the SLS core stage and solid rocket boosters for the Block 1B and other future configurations.

We are extremely proud to be selected as the prime contractor for the NASA Space Launch Systems Universal Stage Adapter. This contract will build on Dynetics expertise in the space industry which includes developing low-cost, full-scale advanced booster cryogenic liquid oxygen demonstration tank and manufacturing, designing and testing propulsion components and systems for the SLS core and upper stages, said Robert Wright, Dynetics program manager.

An artists rendering of NASAs Space Launch System (SLS) evolution: SLS Block 1 Crew, Block 1B Crew, Block 1B Cargo, and Block 2 Cargo. Image Credit: NASA

Dynetics will also coordinate their plans with RUAG Space USA, ZIN Technologies, Dynamics Concepts, Inc., Craig Technologies, Tuskegee University and Paragon Tec. Wright said that the partnerships will bring vast levels of experience and knowledge together while developing flight hardware for deep space missions.

The contract performance period will be 11 years, which includes a four-year base period that begins on August 1, allowing NASA to order up to six additional adaptors for missions beyond EM-2.

Other payloads such as habitats, deep-space exploration spacecraft, and CubeSats can be housed inside the USA.

The adapter will stand 32.4 feet (9.9 meters) tall and will measure 27.6 feet (8.4 meters) in diameter at its largest point. It will provide environmental control to payloads during ground operations, launch, and ascent while also accommodating the electrical and communications between the EUS and Orion. The maximum payload internal volume area will be up to 10,100 cubic feet (286 m3).

The focus of the EM-2 mission surrounds the EUS and four RL-10 engines that will propel Orion into a trans-lunar injection, which is a higher elliptical orbit around Earth. Another orbit will take place between 500 and 19,000 nautical miles (926 km to 35,188 km) above Earth. Once the orbits are completed, the EUS will separate from the Orion spacecraft, and the payload(s) selected for the mission in the USA will be released. The payloads will then fly on their own and conduct their individual missions.

After the USA is assembled and tested, it will be delivered to Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The USA will travel by barge from Decatur, Alabama, down the Tennessee River and Tombigbee Waterway to the Gulf of Mexico and then towardsouth Florida to Kennedy Space Center.

Dynetics is also the subcontractor for manufacturing and transportation for the SLS core stage pathfinder vehicle.

According to Dynetics, the SLS Block 1B rocket with the adapter is scheduled to launch sometime in the early 2020s.

An expanded view of the 70-metric-ton Block 1B Crew showing the Universal Stage Adapter position on NASAs Space Launch System (SLS). Image Credit: NASA

Tagged: Dynetics NASA Orion Space Launch System The Range

Heather Smith's fascination for space exploration started at the tender age of twelve while she was on a sixth-grade field trip in Kenner, Louisiana, walking through a mock-up of the International Space Station and seeing the space potty (her terminology has progressed considerably since that time) she realized at this point that her future lay in the stars. Smith has come to realize that very few people have noticed how much spaceflight technology has improved their lives. She has since dedicated herself to correcting this problem. Inspired by such classic literature as Anne Franks Diary, she has honed her writing skills and has signed on as The Spaceflight Groups coordinator for the organizations social media efforts.

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The Private Sector Is More Involved Than Ever In Spaceflight. Is ... Forbes Is NASA becoming obsolete now that we have increasing private sector involvement in space? This question was originally answered on Quora by C Stuart ... and more »

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The Private Sector Is More Involved Than Ever In Spaceflight. Is ... - Forbes

Paul Knightly

June 13th, 2017

A new study suggests that the cancer risk on a Mars mission due to galactic cosmic radiation could be double what existing models suggest. Image Credit: NASA

A new study by researchers at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) suggests the cancer risk for astronauts on a mission to Mars could be higher than expected. The results of the study were published in the May issue of Scientific Reports and show the risk is effectively doubled compared with previous models.

The study builds off of previous research that has suggested prolonged exposure to galactic cosmic radiation can cause cancer, cataracts, circulatory diseases, acute radiation illness, and effects to the central nervous system. While protons are primarily responsible for the absorbed radiation doses in the study, significant contributions were also noted from heavier ions, low energy protons and helium particles, and neutrons.

Exploring Mars will require missions of 900 days or longer and includes more than one year in deep space where exposures to all energies of galactic cosmic ray heavy ions are unavoidable, Francis Cucinotta, the lead author of the study explained in a press release by UNLV. Current levels of radiation shielding would, at best, modestly decrease the exposure risks.

Cucinotta has a background in studying the effects of the radiation environment of space.

Current radiation risk models assume DNA mutation and damage are the primary cause of cancer, which assumes all cells are impacted by cosmic rays over a short period of time. The new study examined how cancer risk is affected by how healthy, bystander cells are impacted by cells heavily damaged by cosmic rays. The results indicated at least a two-fold increase in cancer rates compared to current risk models.

Galactic cosmic ray exposure can devastate a cells nucleus and cause mutations that can result in cancers, Cucinotta said. We learned the damaged cells send signals to the surrounding, unaffected cells and likely modify the tissues microenvironments. Those signals seem to inspire the healthy cells to mutate, thereby causing additional tumors or cancers.

Cucinotta saidthe studys findings underline the need for more research into the effects of cosmic ray exposures under Mars mission constraints. Much of the existing body of research has focused on cosmic ray exposure on long duration missions within Earths geomagnetic sphere, such as extended flights on the International Space Station.

Cucinotta also said this raises a moral question of sending astronauts to Mars with such a high cancer risk.

Waving or increasing acceptable risk levels raises serious ethical flags[] if the true nature of the risks [is] not scientifically understood, Cucinotta said.

Tagged: cancer Cosmic Rays human spaceflight Mars The Range University of Nevada

Paul is currently a graduate student in Space and Planetary Sciences at the University of Akransas in Fayetteville. He grew up in the Kansas City area and developed an interest in space at a young age at the start of the twin Mars Exploration Rover missions in 2003. He began his studies in aerospace engineering before switching over to geology at Wichita State University where he earned a Bachelor of Science in 2013. After working as an environmental geologist for a civil engineering firm, he began his graduate studies in 2016 and is actively working towards a PhD that will focus on the surficial processes of Mars. He also participated in a 2-week simluation at The Mars Society's Mars Desert Research Station in 2014 and remains involved in analogue mission studies today. Paul has been interested in science outreach and communication over the years which in the past included maintaining a personal blog on space exploration from high school through his undergraduate career and in recent years he has given talks at schools and other organizations over the topics of geology and space. He is excited to bring his experience as a geologist and scientist to the Spaceflight Insider team writing primarily on space science topics.

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Study suggests increased cancer risk on Mars missions - SpaceFlight Insider

Derek Richardson

June 12th, 2017

The re-entry of the second Cygnus spacecraft in 2014. Photo Credit: NASA

Burning up in a blaze of glory, Orbital ATKsOA-7 Cygnus cargo ship re-entered Earths atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean on June 11, 2017, ending its nearly two-month-long flight.

The spacecraft, which spent some six weeks attached to the International Space Station, delivered more than 7,300 pounds (3,300 kilograms) of supplies to the outpost and, after unberthing last week, performed a fire experiment.

The S.S. John Glenn, as it was named, launched to the station atop an Atlas V rocket on April 18, 2017. After a four-day trek to the outpost, it was berthed by the then Expedition 51 crew.

Once attached, the crew began transferring the cargo, which included various experiments and hardware, such as a new plant growth facility, biology samples, and more. There were also more than 30 CubeSats inside for future deployment from the Kibo module airlock.

After being loaded with trash and unneeded equipment, the spacecraft was detached from the outpost at 9:10 a.m. EDT (13:10 GMT) on June 4. The unberthing came more than a month earlier than originally planned. The schedule for the current Expedition 52 crew opened up when the launch of the CRS-11 Dragon capsule was by postponed by several days.

According to Spaceflight101, station managers on the ground seized the opportunity to have the crew detach the OA-7 spacecraft in early June because crew operations for the rest of the month and into July were expected to be fairly busywith experiments to conduct as well as cargo and crew crafts coming and going.

Cygnus did not immediately de-orbit, however, as it had a fire experiment called SAFFIRE-III to perform. The experiment occurred remotelyas to not endanger the space station crew.

The SAFFIRE experiments are the largest flame studies conducted in space. They are designed to better understand flame propagation on various materials in a bid to design safer spacecraft.

For this experiment, a cotton-fiberglass sample, identical to the one forSAFFIRE-I in 2016, was set ablaze. For this run, however, two fans were set atdifferent speeds to measure how airflow can influence flame propagation in zero gravity.

The experiment was performed only hours after departing the space station, at 5:17 p.m. EDT (21:17 GMT). Over the next several days, video and other data from the study were downlinked.

Three more SAFFIRE experiments are being developed to follow up on the results from the first three. According to NASA, the series will focus on the creation and spread of toxic combustion gases.

In the days before Cygnus deorbit burn, two pairs of Lemur-2 CubeSats were deployed. These Spire Global satellites will join its larger constellation of ship-tracking and remote sensing satellites. The four are expected to remain in orbit for at least two years.

Cygnus performed three orbit-lowering maneuvers on June 10 to set itself up for its deorbit the following day. Then, at 12:37 p.m. EDT (16:37 GMT), a final 5.5-minute deorbit burn was performed by its BT-4 engine, setting it up for re-entry over the Pacific Ocean and away from major shipping lanes.

Although its mission was almost accomplished, the spacecraft had one more experiment on board called RED-Data2.The study consisted of three soccer-ball-sized capsules designed to survive re-entry, but they are not recoverable.

RED-Data2 has two objectives. The first is totrack vehicle parameters including its location, acceleration, temperature, pressure, etc to allow for a full digital reconstruction of Cygnus atmospheric breakup. This will help engineers better understand how large objects break apart during re-entry. The second is to test new heat shield material.

There are three capsules, each with a different material: a lightweight Conformal Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator called C-PICA, aConformal Silicone Impregnated Refractory Ceramic Ablatorcalled C-SIRCA, anda modification to the Avcoat shield that will be used by Orion.

With the OA-7 mission completed, Orbital ATK is now shifting its focus toward the OA-8E mission, which is currently targeting launch atop an Antares rocket in September.

Cygnus is unberthed and readied for release on June 4, 2017. Photo Credit: NASA

Tagged: Cygnus International Space Station Lead Stories OA-7 Orbital ATK SAFFIRE-III

Derek Richardson has a degree in mass media, with an emphasis in contemporary journalism, from Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas. While at Washburn, he was the managing editor of the student run newspaper, the Washburn Review. He also has a blog about the International Space Station, called Orbital Velocity. He met with members of the SpaceFlight Insider team during the flight of a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 551 rocket with the MUOS-4 satellite. Richardson joined our team shortly thereafter. His passion for space ignited when he watched Space Shuttle Discovery launch into space Oct. 29, 1998. Today, this fervor has accelerated toward orbit and shows no signs of slowing down. After dabbling in math and engineering courses in college, he soon realized his true calling was communicating to others about space. Since joining SpaceFlight Insider in 2015, Richardson has worked to increase the quality of our content, eventually becoming our managing editor.

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OA-7 Cygnus re-enters Earth's atmosphere after 2-month mission - SpaceFlight Insider

Curt Godwin

June 12th, 2017

The Soyuz 2.1a, set to launch Progress MS-06, can be seen rolling out to the pad. Photo Credit: Roscosmos

Progress MS-06, Russias first supply delivery to the International Space Station (ISS) in nearly four months, is closing in on its targeted launch date of June 14, 2017.

The uncrewed missionis set to lift off at 5:20 a.m. EDT (09:20 GMT) from Site 31/6 at Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan and will deliver approximately 5,400 pounds (2,450 kilograms) of cargo to the orbiting outpost.

Russias Progress freighter is an uncrewed variant of the crewed Soyuz vehicleand is capable of fully autonomous flightand will automatically dock with the Russian segment of the ISS once it arrives. However, unlike the Soyuz, no part of Progress is designed to survive re-entry at the end of its mission.

The Soyuz 2.1a israised to the vertical position after rolling out to the pad. Photo Credit: Roscosmos

Among the supplies and consumables, Progress MS-06 will be carrying some 1,554 pounds (705 kilograms) of propellant, 110 pounds (50 kilograms) of oxygen, and 926 pounds (420 kilograms) of water.

Upon reaching orbit, the cargo craftwill embark on a two-day, 34-orbit rendezvous profile with the space station and is expected to spend about sixmonths attached to the outpost. Docking with the Zvezda service module is expected to take place at 7:42 a.m.EDT (11:42 GMT) on June 16.

The spacecraft will make use of the same upgraded avionics and navigation hardware flown on Soyuz MS-04.Outfitted with a more modern suite of digital communications and radar systems, the MS series will be able to maintain communications with Russian mission control in Moscow through nearly 70 percent of an orbit. It will do this by utilizing the Luch-5 relay satellites rather than relying on ground stations over Russian territory.

Additionally, the Kurs-NA docking system has received a substantial upgrade, providing greater efficiency during docking sequences.

Progress MS-06 or 67P, as it is classified by NASA will launch atop a Soyuz 2.1a rocket,which is an upgraded version of the venerable Russian launcher thathas seen decades of successful use.

The Soyuz family has been a workhorse of the Soviet and Russian space programs since 1966, tallyingmore than 1,700 launches in the past 50 years. The launcher family has seen flights from Russian/Soviet launch sites as well as from Arianespacesfacilities in French Guiana in South America. This particular variant is capable of lofting more than 15,480pounds (7,020kilograms) to a low-Earthorbit.

Composed of a core surrounded by four strap-onliquid-fueled boosters, the first stage of the rocket is an iconic design immediately recognizable by its distinctive lookof the four boosters as they taper to meet the core stage.

Making use of slightly different versions of the same family of Russian-designed and manufactured engines, the core sports a single RD-108A, while each booster utilizes an RD-107A. Both engine typesare powered by a single turbopump assembly feeding liquid oxygen (LOX) and highly refined kerosene (RG-1) into four independent combustion chambers.

Although both the RD-107A and RD-108A are based on the same design, their outputis somewhat different. The boosters each provide 188,500 pounds-force (838.5 kilonewtons) of sea-level thrust totaling 754,000 pounds-force (3,354 kilonewtons) of supplemental powerduring their two minutes of operation; the core stage provides a bit less at 178,100 pounds-force (792.5 kilonewtons).

The Soyuzs second stage, also known as the Blok-I, is powered by the Russian-made RD-0110. Like its larger RD-107A/108A cousins, the RD-0110 has four combustion chambers into which is fed LOX and RG-1 from a single turbopump system. The smaller RD-0110 provides nearly 67,000 pounds-force (298 kilonewtons) of vacuum thrust and has been in production for more than 57 years.

Finally, the upper stage for the Progress MS-06 launch will be the Russian Fregat. It is powered by a lone S5.92 engine burning a mixture of nitrogen tetroxide and unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine. It produces 4,460 pounds-force (19.85 kilonewtons) of vacuum thrust and is responsible for placing the spacecraft into a proper orbit.

The launch will be covered live on NASA TV.

The Progress MS-06 spacecraft beforebeing encapsulated in its protective payload fairing. Photo Credit: Energia

Tagged: Baikonur Cosmodrome International Space Station Lead Stories Progress MS-06 Roscosmos Soyuz-2

Curt Godwin has been a fan of space exploration for as long as he can remember, keeping his eyes to the skies from an early age. Initially majoring in Nuclear Engineering, Curt later decided that computers would be a more interesting - and safer - career field. He's worked in education technology for more than 20 years, and has been published in industry and peer journals, and is a respected authority on wireless network engineering. Throughout this period of his life, he maintained his love for all things space and has written about his experiences at a variety of NASA events, both on his personal blog and as a freelance media representative.

Originally posted here:

Progress MS-06 spacecraft set for supply run to ISS - SpaceFlight Insider

June 12, 2017 by Chris Bergin

ATerrier-Improved Malemute sounding rocket is set to provide people on the mid-Atlantic coast with a luminescent cloud light show. However, several attempts have been scrubbed, including one on Monday night. The sounding rocket set for launch from Wallops Flight Research Facility will help NASA test a new system that supports science studies of the ionosphere and aurora. Sounding Rocket Launch:

The launch has been delayed a few times, first due to unacceptable weather and the most recent on Sunday night due to a boat in the range. Mondays attempt was also scrubbed due to cloud cover over the ground stations tasked with observing the deployment of the payload.

The Terrier-Malemute launch vehicle which will launch this mission is a high-performance two-stage vehicle used for payloads weighing less than 400 pounds.

The first stage booster consists of a Terrier MK 12 Mod 1 rocket motor with four 340 square inch fin panels arranged in a cruciform configuration. The Terrier booster has an overall diameter of 18 inches.

For a payload weight of 200 pounds, the longitudinal acceleration during the boost phase is 26gs. The second stage propulsion unit is a Thiokol Malemute TU-758 rocket motor which is designed especially for high altitude research rocket applications. The external diameter of the Malemute is 16 inches.

The average thrust is 9,604 pounds. The maximum thrust level is approximately 14,200 pounds which results in a maximum longitudinal acceleration during second stage burning of 32gs for a 200 pound payload.

Liftoff weight of the Terrier-Malemute launch vehicle, less payload, is approximately 3260 pounds. This vehicle is usually rail launched and can be accommodated at most established launch ranges.

However, Wallops is its usual launch site a spaceport that is best known for its launches of Orbital ATK rockets, with the next scheduled to be the launch of the Antares rocket with the OA-8 Cygnus spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS). The previous Cygnus was launched from the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) on a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V.

During the flight of a two-stage Terrier-Improved Malemute sounding rocket, 10 canisters about the size of a soft drink can will be deployed in the air, 6 to 12 miles away from the 670-pound main payload.

The canisters will deploy between 4 and 5.5 minutes after launch forming blue-green and red artificial clouds. These clouds, or vapor tracers, allow scientists on the ground to visually track particle motions in space.

The development of the multi-canister ampoule ejection system will allow scientists to gather information over a much larger area than previously allowed when deploying the tracers just from the main payload.

Ground cameras will be stationed at Wallops and in Duck, North Carolina, to view the vapor tracers.

Clear skies are required at one of the two ground stations for this test.

The vapor tracers are formed through the interaction of barium, strontium and cupric-oxide. The tracers will be released at altitudes 96 to 124 miles high and pose no hazard to residents along the mid-Atlantic coast.

The blue-green and red vapor tracers may be visible from New York to North Carolina and westward to Charlottesville, Virginia.These clouds, or vapor tracers, allow scientists on the ground to visually track particle motions in space.

The total flight time for the mission is expected to be about 8 minutes. The payload will land in the Atlantic Ocean about 90 miles from Wallops Island and will not be recovered.

(Images via NASA).

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Weather frustrates Wallops launch of sounding rocket with light show - NASASpaceflight.com

File photo of the damaged strongback tower at Complex 40 shortly after the Sept. 1 Falcon 9 rocket explosion. Credit: Stephen Clark/Spaceflight Now

Construction crews at Cape Canaverals Complex 40 launch pad are busily repairing and upgrading the facility after a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket exploded there last year, with the pads return to service scheduled before the end of the summer, clearing the way for final preparations for the triple-core Falcon Heavys maiden flight late this year.

Once pad 40 is ready for launches again, SpaceX will have two active pads in Florida to help the company ramp up its launch rate. All of SpaceXs Falcon 9 flights from Florida since a rocket explosion at pad 40 on Sept. 1 have taken off from pad 39A, an Apollo- and shuttle-era launch complex at NASAs Kennedy Space Center.

The resumption of launches from pad 40 will allow SpaceX to complete modifications of nearby pad 39A for the Falcon Heavy. Officials rushed pad 39A into service earlier this year for Falcon 9 flights last years explosion left pad 40 unusable.

Investigators traced the rocket explosion, which occurred during fueling before a pre-launch hold-down firing, to a high-pressure helium tank on the Falcon 9s second stage.

Falcon 9 rocket flights resumed in January from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, and launches from pad 39A began Feb. 19 with a space station resupply mission.

The state of Florida is contributing $5 million through Space Florida, an economic development agency focused on the aerospace industry, to help pay for upgrades at pad 40. The money was approved at a Space Florida board meeting June 1 to go toward an improved flame trench and enhanced acoustic suppression capability at pad 40, Dale Ketcham, Space Floridas chief of strategic alliances, wrote in an email to Spaceflight Now.

SpaceX is expected to outfit pad 40 for a higher launch rate once the facility is back in service, using lessons learned at pad 39A, which can support launches in as little as every two weeks in its current configuration.

Once pad 40 is operational, SpaceX plans to relocate all of its East Coast launches there while construction crews return to pad 39A to ready it for the inaugural test flight of the Falcon Heavy rocket, a triple-body booster that will lift off on the power more than 5 million pounds of thrust from 27 Merlin 1D engines.

The heavy-lifter is made of three Falcon 9 first stage boosters bolted together, plus a single-engine upper stage. SpaceX says it can loft 63.8 metric tons (140,660 pounds) of payload to low Earth orbit, a regime several hundred miles above Earth, or 26.7 metric tons (58,860 pounds) to geostationary transfer orbit, a popular higher-altitude destination for commercial communications satellites.

Those figures assume SpaceX disposes of the Falcon Heavys boosters, but officials plan to land two of the side-mounted stages at Cape Canaveral following the maiden flight. The center core will land on a recovery platform downrange in the Atlantic Ocean.

The recovery maneuvers require the Falcon Heavy to keep a reserve of kerosene and liquid oxygen propellants, reducing the weight of satellites it can carry into orbit.

SpaceX chief executive Elon Musk tweeted Thursday that the three Falcon Heavy first stage boosters should be shipped to Florida in two or three months, with the maiden flight approximately one month later. If that schedule materializes, launch could happen as soon as September.

But that is likely a best case scenario, assuming preparations to configure pad 39A for the Falcon Heavy go perfectly.

The two side boosters on the first Falcon Heavy rocket will be reused Falcon 9 first stages, according to SpaceX.

A series of countdown rehearsals are also on tap, and the Falcon Heavys 27 main engines will be test-fired at pad 39A before SpaceX clears the rocket for liftoff, providing an opportunity for engineers to tune the launcher and ground systems.

Meanwhile, SpaceXs rapid-fire launch cadence continues with a flight next Saturday, June 17, with Bulgarias first communications satellite. The launch from pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center at 2:10 p.m. EDT (1810 GMT) will use a previously-flown Falcon 9 first stage booster recovered after a liftoff from California in January.

SpaceX will attempt to recover the first stage again on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean.

A batch of 10 next-generation Iridium communications satellites will blast off on another Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base on June 25 at 4:24:59 p.m. EDT (2024:59 GMT), followed on July 1 by a Falcon 9 launch from Florida at 7:35 p.m. EDT (2335 GMT) with the Intelsat 35e broadband relay craft.

Both of those missions will fly with entirely new launch vehicles.

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Follow Stephen Clark on Twitter: @StephenClark1.

Originally posted here:

SpaceX aims to restore damaged launch pad to service by end of summer - Spaceflight Now