Space Operations:After More Than Two Years in Orbit,US Space Force X-37B Lands at Space Shuttle Landing Facility

On 12 November 2022,a US Space Force Boeing X-37B spacecraft landed at NASA Kennedy Space Center's Space Shuttle Landing Facility.Its mission,labeled Orbital Test Vehicle-6 (OTV-6),lasted a programme-record 908 days-or about 2.5 years.Some of the payloads were classified,while others were disclosed.The spacecraft,resembling a smaller version of the Space Shuttle,is believed to be one of two the Space Force owns and had formerly belonged to the US Air Force.Indeed,it still bore the Air Force lettering.The X-37B's secretive missions have grown longer with each launch.An Atlas V rocket has served as the launch vehicle.* This time,the OTV-6 featured the introduction of a service module,described as being a ring attached to the rear of the vehicle.The service module detached from the OTV before landing because of the aerodynamic forces affecting the OTV upon re-entry to the Earth's atmosphere.It will be disposed of in accordance with environmentally sound best practices,ensuring that space junk will not be left behind.* Among the disclosed experiments were the Naval Research Lab's Photovoltaic Radio Frequency Antenna Module,which harnesses solar rays above the atmosphere,seeking to transmit power to the Earth as RF microwave energy.The US Air Force Academy sent the FalconSat-8,developed with the Air Force Research Laboratory.It provides hands-on space operator training to USAFA cadets before their commissioning as officers in the Space Force. NASA sent two experiments on OTV-6.These were the Materials Exposure and Technology Innovation in Space-2 (METIS-2),which carried thermal coatings for testing;printed electronic materials;and candidate radiation shielding materials.After 908 days in space,these will be compared to ground simulations,validating and improving the precision of space environment models.NASA also sent a study of the effects of long-duration space exposure on seeds,in order to guide space crop production on interplanetary missions and permanently inhabited bases in space. Said Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Fritschen,Department of the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office X-37B Program Director: The X-37B continues to push the boundaries of experimentation,enabled by an elite government and industry team behind the scenes.The addition of the service module on OTV-6 allowed us to host more expriments than ever before.* The undisclosed payloads would have perhaps tested the rapid deployment of space assets such as intelligence collection systems or satellite warfare components.For example,short notice could have been given of a Space Force need and the rapid deployment of it on the X-37B carried out.* Upon landing,technicians in biohazard-type suits safed the X-37B.* Boeing (BA) #usspaceforce #x37b #nasa #spaceshuttle #boeing #navalresearchlab #airforceresearchlab

The Orion Spacecraft for Artemis I Is on the Move on This Week @NASA – O...

Priming NASA's Artemis I for Launch to the Moon

Orion/Artemis Programs Update:Orion Capsule and European Service Module for Artemis 1 Mission Completed

The Orion crew module for the uncrewed Artemis 1 Mission slated for 2020 has been completed,Vice President Mike Pence announced on 20 July 2019.Speaking at the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at Kennedy Space Center,Florida,Mr. Pence was joined by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis,NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine,Apollo 11 Lunar Module Pilot Buzz Aldrin,KSC Director Robert Cabana,Lockheed Martin CEO Marilyn Hewson,and Rick Armstrong,son of the late Apollo 11 Commander Neil Armstrong.*
Looking ahead:
1.Since being shipped in its bare bones pressure vessel form from the NASA Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans,the capsule has been integrated with thousands of parts and undergone rigorous testing of its flight systems.The European Service Module for Artemis 1 has also been completed.It will provide power,propulsion,water and oxygen for the Artemis Moon missions.The ESM is a product of Airbus Space and Defence in Bremen,Germany.Engineers have begun the process of joining the crew module to the service module,with teams connecting power and fluid lines to complete hardware attachment.
2.Next,the conjoined modules will be shipped via the cavernous Guppy aircraft to NASA Plum Brook Station in Sandusky,Ohio for testing to verify that the partial stack can survive the challenging conditions of deep spaceflight.
3.Pending successful completeion of the Plum Brook tests,the partial stack will be returned to KSC for final processing and inspection.Then it will be fueled and transported to the monumental Vehicle Assembly Building for integration with the new Space Launch System rocket.Finally,the complete stack will be rolled out on the crawler transporter to Launch Complex 39B to await launch.*
Engineers at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville,Alabama are more than 50% through their evaluation of the SLS for deep space missions.*
The crewed Artemis 2 Mission is scheduled for 2022 and is to set the distance record for crewed spaceflight,reaching a high lunar orbit 40,000 miles from the Moon.*
Lockheed Martin (LMT)

Orion/Artemis Programs Update:Major Test Mission Upcoming,Mobile Launch Platform rolls

A major milestone for the Orion Program is slated for 2 July 2019 with the launch of the Ascent Abort-2 flight test.The test will be launched from Space Launch Complex 46 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station,Florida.*
AA-2 will verify that the Orion spacecraft abort system can pull the crew module away from an emergency during its ascent to space,NASA said.The flight will last about three minutes,with a small booster rocket sending Orion around six miles into the atmosphere.During AA-2,the spacecraft will experience high-stress aerodynamic conditions,and at that point the abort sequence will be triggered to spirit the crew module to safety.*
The Orion Program provides the crew module,European Service Module and Space Launch System rocket for the Artemis lunar exploration missions and missions to other deep space destinations.The first lunar landing mission of the Artemis Program has a preferred launch date of 2024,as stipulated by President Donald Trump.It must be noted,however,that this depends upon the US Congress providing extra funding to NASA to expedite the lunar mission,which will otherwise be put off till 2028.NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said he is confident NASA can get the extra money,but others outside the agency are not so sure.*
Artemis is the ancient Greek goddess of the Moon,so her name was selected for the lunar missions to mirror the Apollo name of the first set of lunar missions.NASA plans for a female astronaut to be the first woman to set foot on the moon on the initial Artemis lunar landing mission.*
A number of companies are developing lunar lander concepts for NASA's consideration for the initial landing mission,including Lockheed Martin and the privately held Blue Origin LLC.*
On 27 June 2019,the Mobile Launch Platform rolled out of the massive Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center and slowly progressed to Launch Complex 39B,where it will undergo three months of testing for the Artemis 1 mission scheduled for June 2020.Artemis 1 was formerly called Exploration Mission 1;but its purpose remains to conduct an uncrewed test of the integrated Orion system,including the new Space Launch System rocket,in cislunar space.
Lockheed Martin (LMT)

Orion Program Update:2018,a year of urgent tasks

The year 2018 will see a great amount of activity at NASA and contractor centres to prepare for the launch of the first integrated test of the Orion system,Exploration Mission-1,an uncrewed mission targeted for 2019.NASA aims to have all major hardware completed by the end of 2018.At the same time,construction for the first crewed mission of Orion,EM-2,planned for the early 2020s,has already begun and will continue apace thoughout 2018.*
In early 2018,NASA says the heat shield will be bolted to the EM-1 crew module.When
the ESA Orion Service Module,or powerhouse,arrives from Europe,it will be mated with and stacked beneath the crew module.In January,the US Navy and NASA personnel will again be refining capsule recovery procedures off the California coast.*
Over the course of 2018,the core stage of the new Space Launch System,the world's most powerful rocket,will be completed and its four RS-25 main engines,evolved from the Space Shuttle main engines and built by Aerojet Rocketdyne,will then be attached to it.*
In spring 2018,the mobile launcher will be rolled out to Launch Pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center for testing of the fit between launcher and pad systems,then be trucked to the huge Vehicle Assembly Building for testing of mount mechanisms;ignition overpressure and sound suppression water pipes;nitrogen and helium supply lines;and access platforms.Then it's back to the pad once more for several months of full system testing.*
In summer 2018,critical software updates for command and control in support of EM-1 will be wrapped up.In 2019,the complete Orion system will be stacked,integrated,tested and rolled out to the pad to await launch.The ultimate goal of the program is to produce a flexible,reuseable and sustainable infrastructure that will support deep space missions of graduated complexity for decades to come.*
EM-1,besides testing the integrated Orion system,will also be carrying a payload of 13 small satellites for a broad spectrum of research projects.*
At the 68th International Astronautical Congress in Adelaide,Australia on 27 September 2017,NASA and the Russian Space Agency,Roscosmos,signed a joint statement on a common vision for human exploration.Indeed,the entire ISS partnership of NASA,Roscosmos,Canada,ESA and Japan are intent on ensuring that full advantage be taken of ISS technological development and demonstration,as well as of lessons learned from its assembly and operations for this future exploration.
For its part,industry is currently devising a series of study and risk reduction concepts for NASA's Deep Space Gateway,which is to be a small space station in lunar orbit for support of Orion missions,and for the transport needed for Mars exploration.Those awarded contracts for the effort include Bigelow Aerospace;Boeing;Lockheed Martin;Orbital ATK;Sierra Nevada Corporation;and Nanoracks.Five of the six companies have been chosen to develop full-sized ground-based engineering prototypes of habitation systems to be completed in 2018.NASA has also solicited industry for proposals for studies on concept development of a power and propulsion element,which will be the first pieces of Deep Space Gateway architecture to be placed in lunar orbit.*
NASA and The National Space Council,chaired by Vice President Mike Pence,is committed to carrying on in the spirit of international and industry cooperation that has characterised the ISS.*
Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings Inc,NYSE:AJRD

Orion Program Update-what are they working on and when will it launch?

As far as NASA and partner ESA are concerned,it's full speed ahead for the Orion Program-not just for test flight Exploration Mission-1,but even for EM-2,the first crewed mission of Orion.The Orion Crew Module is currently being processed for EM-1,the first integrated mission of Orion and the new Space Launch System rocket,the most powerful rocket ever built.The capsule has been in the clean room of the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at Kennedy Space Center,Florida,where critical systems such as propellant lines,Environmental Control and life support systems are being installed.In the building's high bay,a number of test stands,processing bays and other hardware have been laid out.Several Orion components such as Thermal Protection Panels are in various stages of processing there,NASA said.
The Orion Crew Module will be launched from Pad 39B in 2019 on EM-1.A three-week flight will take it some 40,000 miles beyond the Moon into cislunar space,the farthest a human-rated spacecraft has ever flown.After a fiery re-entry,it will splash down in the Pacific.*
Meanwhile,in Europe the European Space Agency Orion Service Module is being processed for EM-1 and will be shipped to KSC in 2018.Additionally,the second ESA OSM,for EM-2,is being constructed by ESA contractor Thales Alenia in Turin,Italy.The ESA OSMs provide power,propulsion,cooling,water and oxygen to the Crew Module.*
The purpose of the Exploration Missions is to build and test the systems needed for the challenging deep space missions to the Mars system and beyond in the 2030s,in concert with NASA's domestic and international partners.The vision taking shape involves constructing the Deep Space Gateway,a small space station that will facilitate further crewed and robotic cislunar missions on the way to Mars.There may be about five crewed lunar landing missions in the 2020s as well as robotic counterparts,evaluating commercial prospects on the Moon as well as increasing the scientific knowledge base about our only natural satellite,while preparing for longer duration space flight more independent of Earth.*
The other major component of Orion,the Space Launch System,has been making similar progress.According to John Honeycutt,SLS Program Manager at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville,Alabama:
This year,the SLS team has constructed major parts of the rocket,such as the in-space stage,which is already at NASA's KSC in Florida;the four RS-25 engines;core stage structures;and solid rocket booster segments.The rocket is happening now.The SLS has made great progress and has an exciting year ahead as NASA conducts critical structure tests at Marshall,assembles the core stage and the RS-25 engines at the NASA Michoud Assembly Facility,New Orleans,and delivers more hardware to the launch pad at Kennedy.