NASA selects Aerojet to develop Space Launch System Advanced Booster

Aerojet, a manufacturer of rocket and missile propulsion based in California, has been awarded by NASA to develop engineering demonstrations and risk reduction concepts that will be used for future advanced boosters for the agency’s Space Launch System (SLS).

As one of the companies contracted for a NASA Research Announcement (NRA), Aerojet is tasked to enhance affordability, reliability and performance of an advanced booster for a future version of the SLS heavy-lift spacecraft.

The Space Launch System’s vehicle will take NASA’s Orion rocket and other payloads farther than ever before. The 70-metric-ton version of SLS will use two five-segment solid rocket boosters identical to the boosters that aided in powering the space shuttle to orbit. The expected 130-metric-ton version needs an advanced booster with more thrust to evolve the current SLS.

Aerojet will work on improving technical maturation of a liquid oxygen and kerosene oxidizer-rich staged-combustion engine, as well as reducing any risk that may arise. To achieve this, the company will need to fabricate a representative full-scale 550,000-pound thrust class main injector and thrust chamber. Aerojet’s will also require preparation to conduct a series of tests measuring performance and demonstrating combustion stability.

Aside from Aerojet, other companies that were also contracted by NASA to develop the SLS advanced booster include ATK Launch Systems Inc., Dynetics Inc., and Northrop Grumman Corporation Aerospace Systems. These new initiatives will perform and analyze advanced booster concepts and hardware demonstrations during an approximate 30-month period.

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NASA sends new tracking and data relay satellite into space

On Wednesday, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) launched yet another Tracking and Data Relay Satellite -- the agency’s 11th TDRS. The new satellite will be used for communications with the International Space Station and to transmit more images from the Hubble Telescope.

Presently, the new TDRS has the letter K designation (TDRS-K), but once its commences operations it will be named TDRS-11. The satellite, which was sent into orbit by ULA’s Atlas V rocket, will reach its intended 22,300-mile-high orbit in around two weeks. Once the satellite is in place, testing will begin and continue for the next few months.

NASA expects to have at least seven TDRS satellites all working simultaneously in orbit at all times. The TDRS-K makes the eighth satellite at the current time. The agency also scheduled the launch of TDRS-L next year. The very first TRDS was sent into orbit in 1983 and was recently retired along with the fourth.

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NASA’s satellite launch postponed due to an Atlas V rocket defect

The launch of the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS-K) of NASA has been suspended because the technicians need to replace a faulty rocket component. The launch, initially scheduled on the 29th of January at Cape Canaveral, is now set next Wednesday, January 30th at 8:48 PM.

NASA said that during tests, the Ordnance Remote Control of the Atlas V produced faulty signals before connections were made to the explosive devices used to detach the booster from the rocket’s upper stage, Centaur. Now, ULA is shipping a replacement from its manufacturing facility in Decatur, Alabama, and once the new rocket part is installed, new tests will be conducted in the rocket’s vertical processing tower.

The TDRS-K satellite constellation of NASA will promote continuous communication between the ground and spacecraft in low Earth orbit, which includes the Hubble Space Telescope and International Space Station. The new satellite is the first of three in an upgraded fleet built by The Boeing Co. NASA said that the first two missions will cost $715 million, including modifications to ground networks.

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Foursquare, NASA team up again to deliver Curiosity Explorer Badge to users

NASA and location-based social networking website Foursquare have once again collaborated to provide users with a special, rover-themed badge. The new Curiosity Explorer Badge will be made available for users who like NASA on Foursquare, and check-in at any NASA science museum, visitor center or planetarium.

This is not the first time NASA created a badge for its users. In 2010, when Foursquare and NASA first teamed up, users were provided with the NASA Explorer Badge as a way of honoring the first check-in of astronaut Doug Wheelock from the International Space Station. Wheelock then became the first one ever to check-in from space using Foursquare. The NASA Explorer Badge marked the launch of NASA and Foursquare partnership, together with NASA’s Foursquare page. However, the badge has since expired.

The Curiosity Explorer badge celebrates the check-in of the Curiosity rover from Mars back in October. The new badge exhibits a cartoonish interpretation of the Curiosity rover on the Red Planet, with a number of stars sparkling in the background.

As of the moment, the Curiosity rover is just a couple of months into its planned 23-month mission on Mars. The rover is expected to survey some of the Red Planet’s most riveting locations, including Mount Sharp, which will be Curiosity’s chief focus

With the new Curiosity Explorer badge, users can keep track of the rover as it checks in at specific locations, all while beaming tips and photos back down to Earth. NASA said that the badge will also come with a special message:

“Get out your rock-vaporizing laser! You’ve explored your scientific curiosities just like NASA’s Curiosity rover on Mars. Stay curious and keep exploring. You never know what you’ll find.”

Since its collaboration with Foursquare, NASA has been giving users the chance to explore the universe. NASA also provides tips and official national space program information to its users on a regular basis.

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Russia plans on investing 2.1 trillion rubles for space industry until 2020

Russia is currently preparing to allocate 2.1 trillion rubles (about $70 billion) under a state program for the development of the country’s space industry from 2013 until 2020, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said during a government meeting on Thursday.

“The total volume of funding is quite significant: 2.1 trillion rubles, including extrabudgetary sources,” the Prime Minister added.

The new program is designed to guarantee that Russia retains its position as the top global space power, while also supporting it defense capability and boosting social and economic development.

“The program will enable our country to effectively participate in forward-looking projects, such the ISS [International Space Station], the study of the Moon, Mars and other celestial bodies in the solar system,” Medvedev said.

Skolkovo space cluster Director for Development Dmitry Paison told the RIA Novosti that the program provides the foundation for other space-related programs in Russia.

“It comprises the Federal Space Program, the Federal Special Program for the Development of the Glonass System, the program for the development of space launch centers and the non-classified part of the program for the technical modernization of the industry,” Paison added.

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Yamal 402 rocket launch goes wrong

On Saturday, the Thales Alenia Space-built Yamal 402 satellite failed to reach its orbit after the Proton rocket carrying the bird encountered a problem during the fourth and final burn. The US-based International Launch Services and Russia’s Khrunichev State Research and Production Space Center have already begun investigating why the Proton Breeze M’s upper stage engine’s final burn ended four minutes early, and then separated from the Yamal 402.

The Yamal communications satellite was developed for Moscow-based Gazprom Space Systems. Thales is currently looking for a solutions to salvage the spacecraft. Gazprom has been using SES Astra’s 1F satellite since August of last year, awaiting the Yamal 402’s launch into orbit. According to reports, the failed communications satellite was built to service the Middle East, Africa, and Europe.

 

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Eutelsat launches 21B satellite

French-based satellite communications company Eutelsat has successfully launched its 21B satellite into orbit, replacing the 21A at the 21.5° East location. According to the company, Eutelsat 21B will be ready for commercial operations by the middle of December while the 21A will be moved to serve a different location.

 

Photo source Space Fellowship

 

The new satellite, which was built by Thales Alenia Space took off via an Ariane 5 rocket from French Guiana last Saturday evening. Eutelsat 21B carried 40 Ku-band transponders which will deliver wide-beam coverage across North Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and Central Asia. It will also provide high-power beam for all the regions excluding Europe.

According to Thales Alenia Space, the new satellite was designed to carry 50 percent more capacity than Eutelsat 21A. According to Eutelsat Chief Executive Michel de Rosen, the 21B vessel is part of the company’s expansion plan aimed at increasing commercial flexibility and overall resources. The new satellite is also the first of seven that will be launched by the satellite company by mid-2015.

 

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