CCtCap – Page 22 – Commercial Crew Program

NASA Orders SpaceX Crew Mission to International Space Station

2015-3366 NASA took a significant step Friday toward expanding research opportunities aboard the International Space Station with its first mission order from Hawthorne, California based-company SpaceX to launch astronauts from U.S. soil.

This is the second in a series of four guaranteed orders NASA will make under the Commercial Crew Transportation Capability contracts. The Boeing Company of Houston received its first crew mission order in May.

“It’s really exciting to see SpaceX and Boeing with hardware in flow for their first crew rotation missions,” said Kathy Lueders, manager of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. “It is important to have at least two healthy and robust capabilities from U.S. companies to deliver crew and critical scientific experiments from American soil to the space station throughout its lifespan.” Read details at http://go.nasa.gov/1N0L2TX

Next Generation Astronaut, Meet Next Generation Spacecraft

The next class of astronauts NASA hires may fly on any of four different U.S. vessels during their careers: the International Space Station, two commercial crew spacecraft currently in development – the Boeing CST-100 Starliner and the SpaceX Crew Dragon — and NASA’s Orion spacecraft that will launch aboard the Space Launch System with astronauts to conduct missions in deep space.

SpaceX designed its Crew Dragon to accommodate technological advances in numerous ways to perform the mission of taking astronauts safely to the International Space Station. The launch abort system is integrated into the sidewall of the Crew Dragon. It boasts eight hypergolic-powered engines designed to lift the spacecraft and astronauts inside to safety at any point during launch and ascent. Inside the Crew Dragon, touchscreens replace the myriad of dials and barber poles that defined earlier spacecraft instrument panels. The company developed its cargo-transport version of the Dragon with an eye on carrying crews into space. SpaceX has used its experiences to refine the crew version and provide essential opportunities to automatically perform critical functions, such as rendezvous with the space station and flying through the atmosphere safely to come back home.

If you think you have what it takes to fly this new generation of spacecraft, NASA will start taking applications Dec. 14 for its next astronaut class.

New Rides Worthy of the New Generation

The astronauts chosen for the next class of explorers will come in to the agency at a time when a new era of spacecraft crosses from design screens and test flights to operational missions. For the first time, there will be three spacecraft and rockets launching humans from Florida’s Space Coast: two commercial crew spacecraft currently in development by U.S. companies, and NASA’s Space Launch System rocket and Orion deep-space exploration vehicle.

Today, we feature Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner, which along with the SpaceX Crew Dragon, is one of the two spacecraft under development in partnerships with NASA’s Commercial Crew Program to take astronauts to the International Space Station. Although it has a familiar shape, the new spacecraft is more advanced from top to bottom than anything that has flown to date. From advanced avionics and a launch abort system to a spacious cabin and the ability to take both astronauts and cargo on the same vehicle, the Starliner is expected to provide a safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation from America to the space station.

If you think you have what it takes to fly this new generation of spacecraft, NASA will start taking applications Dec. 14 for its next astronaut class.

Happy Anniversary Apollo 4!

apollo_4_at_pad-full_0 The Apollo spacecraft launched on the first all-up test flight of the Saturn V 48 years ago today to confirm launch loads and dynamic characteristics of the systems that would carry astronauts to the surface of the moon. The flight proved aspects of the Apollo heat shield and re-entry operations.

Two years from now, at the 50th anniversary of that unpiloted Apollo 4 mission, as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner and the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft will have undergone unpiloted flight tests to confirm their designs.

Join Our Crew!

Want to be an astronaut? Now is a good time to get your resume together, sort out your references and decide whether you have the right stuff to join NASA’s elite corps of space travelers. For our part, we can offer the world out your window and a new generation of spacecraft and launch vehicles unlike any flying today.

With the International Space Station’s ability to host unique science experiments and journeys to deep space and Mars on the horizon, now is an exciting time to don the blue suit and think about what your voyage into space would accomplish for everyone on Earth! By the way, you don’t have to be a pilot or bring military experience.

Applications for our next astronaut class open on Dec. 14! Visit https://www.nasa.gov/astronauts/ for more information and the requirements.

Construction Tops Off Crew Access Tower at SLC-41

It took only 35 days to build the main column of a new fixture to the skyline along the Florida Space Coast. The 200-foot-tall Crew Access Tower at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida will meet the unique needs of astronauts and ground crews at Space Launch Complex 41, or SLC-41, where Boeing will launch its CST-100 Starliner spacecraft on Atlas V rockets operated by United Launch Alliance, also known as ULA. Read all the details here. Photos by NASA/Kim Shiflett (top) and Daniel Casper (right).

Spacewalkers Begin Prep Tasks on Station

Astronauts Scott Kelly and Kjell Lindgren wrapped up a number of tasks on the International Space Station during a 7-hour and 16-minute spacewalk. Each making the first spacewalks of their careers, Kelly and Lindgren climbed around the outside of the station as it orbited above Earth. They carried out several tasks including placing a thermal cover over the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer and lubricating the station’s robotic arm. They also began to rig power and data system cables for the future installation of a docking port to the station that will be used for the arrival of the Boeing CST-100 Starliner and SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft. Boeing and SpaceX are building a new generation of human-rated vehicles that can carry four astronauts at a time to the orbiting laboratory for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. They will dock at the station and remain in place during their missions before bringing their crews back to Earth.

Station Spacewalk Includes Preps for Commercial Crew Vehicles

International Space Station astronauts Scott Kelly and Kjell Lindgren will don spacesuits and traverse the outside of the orbiting laboratory’s structure on Wednesday during a spacewalk that will take six-and-a-half hours and cover a number of important tasks. The two, each making the first spacewalks of their careers, will connect power system cables on the station so spacecraft from NASA partners Boeing and SpaceX can dock with the station during flights for the Commercial Crew Program.

The future missions are slated to carry up to four new crew members to the station in the near future in order to allow more research to be performed in orbit and to return American launch capabilities for its astronauts. The spacewalk will begin at 8:10 a.m. EDT. You can watch it live on NASA TV and streaming on www.nasa.gov/ntv beginning at 6:45 a.m. The astronauts will return to the station’s interior at about 2:40 p.m.

Hoverboards and Video Chats: Commercial Crew Astronauts on Back to the Future

Astronauts Bob Behnken and Suni Williams aren’t Marty and Doc, but they have strong views on what we should have from Back to the Future by now and what worked out well after all. Happy Back to the Future Day!

Crew Access Tower Nears Completion

The last of seven tiers was recently added to a nearly 200-foot-tall steel structure that has changed the landscape along Florida’s Space Coast. The tower at Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida will provide commercial crew astronauts and ground support teams easy access to Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft stacked on top of a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket at the pad.

Boeing is one of two companies that will launch astronauts to the International Space Station from the United States in the next two years. These systems will carry four astronauts, increasing the station’s crew size to seven. The additional crew member will be able double to amount of time currently dedicated to scientific research.

Workers will begin outfitting the tower for launch, including installing the elevator, roof, white room, crew access arm and infrastructure lines in the coming weeks. SLC-41 remains an operational facility while the tower is built, so work on the tower is taking place between Atlas V launches of satellites and science payloads. For more photos, go to the Commercial Crew Program album on Flickr here. Photos by NASA/Jim Grossmann