By the time space shuttle Discovery completes its final mission, it will have flown farther and higher than any other ship in the fleet. Image: CC Nasa Images

The space shuttle Discovery launch on Feb. 24 is the third-to-last flight in the 30-year space shuttle program. On board Discovery for its 39th and final mission is a robot known as R2, or Robonaut 2. Discovery is the oldest space shuttle and at the end of this mission will have flown more than 143 million miles, more than any other shuttle in the fleet.

Discovery’s final mission

The space shuttle Discovery launch sends it on an 11-day mission to the International Space Station. Discovery’s final mission was originally scheduled for Nov. 1, 2010, but it was delayed repeatedly by cracks in the structural frame of the shuttle’s external tank. Once Discovery is finally in orbit, it will install a compartment for experiments and storage on the International Space Station. The star of the mission will be R2, a $2 million humanoid “robonaut” that human astronauts have brought along to demonstrate how useful robots can be in space.

Discovery’s storied career

The first space shuttle Discovery launch took place on Aug. 30, 1984. After the Challenger disaster in 1988 and the Columbia disaster in 2003 sidetracked NASA’s space shuttle program, Discovery was the first ship to return to space. In 38 flights, NASA engineers said Discovery had fewer in-flight problems than any other ship in the history of the program. By the time Discovery ends its final mission it will have made 5,628 Earth orbits, spent 363 days in space and carried 246 astronauts, more than any other shuttle.

The space shuttle’s swan song

NASA space shuttles were certified to fly 100 missions. Every shuttle in the fleet will have flown considerably fewer missions than certified when the program reaches its end. The final mission of Discovery will be followed by Endeavour’s swan song in April and, if all goes according to plan, Atlantis will officially end the space shuttle program in June. After Atlantis lifts off, the U.S. will have no government-owned spacecraft prepared to launch for the first time in 60 years. Discovery and its sister ships are destined to go on display in museums.

Sources

Space.com

Chicago Tribune

ABC News

Fox News

The second test flight of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket proceeded without a glitch and brought routine commercial spaceflight a step closer to reality. Image: CC Wikimedia Commons

SpaceX launched the second test flight of its Falcon 9 rocket Wednesday. Objectives of the Falcon 9 test flight included another successful launch and separation and re-entry into the atmosphere of the Dragon spacecraft. The outcome of the Falcon 9 test flight will determine how soon SpaceX can begin commercial spaceflight missions to the International space Station.

SpaceX Falcon 9 hits another bullseye

After lifting off from Cape Canaveral, Fla., the SpaceX Falcon 9 achieved orbit without a glitch and released the Dragon space capsule. About 90 minutes later, the Dragon splashed down as planned in the Pacific Ocean. Wednesday’s test flight was the second of three Falcon 9 tests required by NASA before SpaceX begins cargo deliveries to the International Space Station. SpaceX has a $1.9 billion contract with NASA for 12 missions after the space shuttle fleet is taken out of service. The space shuttle Discovery will embark on the final mission of the program in February.

Falcon 9 continues to beat the odds

The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is a two-stage, 180-foot-long orbital vehicle designed to be more reliable and significantly more cost effective than the space shuttle. In June SpaceX conducted a flawless initial test flight of the Falcon 9, an unprecedented achievement in the complex, risky business of space travel. SpaceX engineers gave the second test flight a 70 percent chance of success. Wednesday’s launch was delayed after small cracks were detected in a second stage engine nozzle, but the problem wasn’t enough to abort the test flight.

The future of commercial spaceflight

After the space shuttle is retired, the U.S. will rent space aboard Russian Soyuz rockets until SpaceX and Orbital Sciences, another company NASA picked as a commercial spaceflight contractor, begin regular operations. SpaceX won the race to the launchpad in June after spending eight years and $400 million to design and build the Falcon 9. SpaceX has priced its cargo missions to the space station from $50 million to $56 million per round trip. Each shuttle flight costs NASA about $1 billion. If a third test flight is successful, SpaceX could begin flying cargo to the space station next year. The company said it will be ready to ferry astronauts to the space station in about three years.

Sources

Universe Today

CNN

Washington Post

The Shuttle Launch has been delayed again, until at least Nov. 30. Image from Wikimedia Commons.

The space shuttle launch originally scheduled for Wednesday, Nov. 3, has been delayed until the end of November. The shuttle Discovery launch was delayed initially for a leak of hydrogen, but further examination has revealed more problems. The mission is tentatively rescheduled for Nov. 30. There have been similar problems before. The launch of the shuttle Discovery will be the last flight for the craft.

Shuttle launch delayed by gas leak

The shuttle Discovery was slated to launch on Wednesday, Nov. 3 and dock with the International Space Station, but was delayed when NASA engineers discovered a leak of hydrogen gas from the fuel tank, according to Fox News. This came after a delay until Friday, Nov. 5, due to bad weather. Liquid hydrogen is a fuel for NASA rockets, but the fuel gives off gaseous hydrogen as it is difficult maintaining the temperature of liquid hydrogen, almost 450 degrees Fahrenheit below zero. The Discovery launch was initially delayed for several days, but NASA engineers and technicians believe the problem to be too deep seated for a quick fix. The leak was discovered during the “tanking” procedure, where the distinct orange fuel tank is filled with liquid hydrogen and oxygen.

Final flight of Discovery

The Shuttle launch schedule has two more entries to scratch off the list. Only two flights of the Space Shuttle will be made before the program is officially over. The Discovery launch will be the final flight of the Discovery orbiter, which is the longest serving shuttle in existence. The last flight of the space shuttle program will be a launch of the shuttle Endeavour. Both missions are to the International Space Station.

Launch delayed until after Thanksgiving

The proposed date of the next NASA launch is tentatively scheduled for Nov. 30. The reason why the leak occurred is still being determined, and NASA does not want to send a shuttle into space without knowing for sure. The shuttle program was scuttled by then president George W. Bush in the wake of the explosion of the shuttle Columbia.

Sources

Fox News

Space tourism became closer to reality with Virgin Galactic's latest successful test flight, and soon it will have competition. Image: CC IrishFireside/Flickr

Space tourism is months away from reality after a successful milestone test of Virgin Galactic’s suborbital spacecraft on Oct. 11. Virgin Galactic will have competition from Space Adventures, which is partnering with Boeing to offer a suborbital spaceflight experience. Technological advances and the prospect of competition in the marketplace are driving down space tourism prices even before the first flight has been launched.

Space virgins no more

Space tourism got a major shot in the arm when Virgin Galactic completed a flawless test flight of VSS Enterprise, the first manned commercial spacecraft. CNN reports that Virgin Galactic has a head start in becoming the world’s first commercial spaceflight line. The company has collected 370 customer deposits for the $200,000 flight totaling $50 million. Eventually Virgin will have competition from Space Adventures, which is advertising suborbital space tourism for about half that price: $102,000. Currently, a space tourism package aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft that includes a few days at the international space station is going for $40 million.

Space tourism competition heats up

The Boeing Company has been involved in spaceflight for several decades. As reported in the Seattle Post Intelligencer, the aerospace giant has entered into an agreement with Space Adventures to offer space tourism packages aboard its Boeing Crew Space Transportation-100 (CST-100). Boeing originally designed the CST-100 to ferry astronauts to the international space station. Space Adventures will broker seats in the capsule for private individuals. The CST-100 carries seven people and can be reused on multiple rockets. Boeing expects the spacecraft to be operational by 2015.

Eat all you want without gaining a pound

A Russian businessman plans to build the first space hotel by 2016. The Associated Press reports that Sergei Kostenko, CEO of Orbital Technologies, announced his intentions to build a private space hotel that will accommodate up to seven people. Orbital Technologies claims that the first hotel built in space will be “designed specifically for tourists.” It will be more comfortable than the international space station because crowding it with scientific equipment won’t be necessary. Celebrity chefs could be enlisted to create dishes on Earth prepared especially for a weightless fine dining experience in zero gravity.

Using a large rocket to pierce the atmosphere, a small capsule could be delivered to a low orbiting space station resort. (Photo Credit: CC BY-SA/df_btyhoo/Flickr)

Boeing has announced that it is prepared to enter into the upcoming mega-business of space tourism, reports the Houston Chronicle. Despite recently receiving $20 billion in government subsidies for transatlantic aerospace travel endeavors – a move labeled a violation of international trade law by World Trade Organization judges – Boeing is now knocking on President Obama’s door again. Now, the company wants the administration to increase funding for commercial spaceflight.

By 2015, Boeing wants space tourism to be a reality

Boeing’s expectation is that by 2015, space tourism will be possible via a NASA contract that will enable the manufacturer to send astronauts to the International Space Station via a new type of space capsule, the CST-100. The capsule would have enough seats to admit space tourists along for the ride, writes the Chronicle. Brewster Shaw, vice president and general manager of Boeing’s Space Exploration division, has affirmed Boeing’s belief that the CST-100 will make human space commerce possible. Currently, Boeing is partnered with the company Space Adventures, which brokered private flights to the International Space Station aboard Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft.

Boeing has the horses, but it hasn’t won the race yet

Globally, Boeing is the largest aircraft manufacturer in terms of revenue, orders and products delivered, indicates the Chronicle. The company is also the International Space Station’s prime contractor. But a number of hurdles must be cleared before the company comes to dominate the exciting, yet speculative, field of space tourism. It required $18 million to begin development of rockets and capsules to carry NASA astronauts to low-Earth orbit after the space shuttle program retires in 2011. However, plans for space tourism are estimated to be significantly more expensive. Other companies are competing for the business as well, which should force Boeing to push hard.

Obama wants Congress to free up money for commercial spacecraft

The numbers are flying fast and furious when it comes to just how much money the U.S. government is willing to funnel into commercial space flight. President Obama is seeking $6 billion over five years from Congress. The Senate’s latest offer is $1.3 billion over three years, while the House penned a $150 million, three-year version. Clearly there’s a large financial disconnect at work, guided by differing priorities. Without at least the amount of money the president is calling for, Boeing expects progress toward space tourism to be slow at best. If it cost Cirque du Soleil founder Guy Laliberté $40 million last year to fly to and from the International Space Station via Soyuz, imagine what propping up and entire industry would cost.

Sources:

Houston Chronicle

Google Tech Talk on space tourism

If you are lucky enough to live in the path of the space shuttle landing, you could get quite the show. Image from Flickr.

NASA this morning announced that the space shuttle landing originally scheduled for this morning, April 19, was “scrubbed.” With two canceled landing attempts, the space shuttle landing will be attempted again tomorrow. The first attempt will be at 7:34 a.m. in Florida, and if needed the second attempt will aim for Edwards Air Force Base in California. Ideally, the space shuttle landing will be in Florida tomorrow morning, which will eliminate the necessity of low interest loans to pay for shuttling the space shuttle across the country.

Space shuttle landing show

This space shuttle landing will provide an airshow that is very rare. The path of the space shuttle landing will be visible from British Columbia, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and Florida. Anyone under the landing path should be able to see the streak of the landing space shuttle for up to a full three minutes. Take a break from your research into secured loans and go outside to take a look if you are in the path.

Space shuttle landing may be in California

The two scrubbed space shuttle landing attempts on Monday morning were canceled because of clouds over Florida. The low, thick clouds would have blocked visibility for the space shuttle landing. Because the space shuttle is basically a giant glider when coming in for a landing, it is very important that there is good visibility for the crew to be able to safely land the space shuttle.

Space shuttle landing leaves only three missions

Once this space shuttle landing of Discovery is completed, there will be only three space shuttle landings left. This mission, as well as the three planned missions after it, were focused on upgrading and re-supplying the International Space Station. After the Discovery space shuttle is retired, NASA will be moving into other areas, including developing a program and craft designed to land on Mars. The Russian space program will shoulder the burden of shuttling astronauts, cosmonauts, and supplies to the International Space Station until further plans are made.

Watch reports of the space shuttle landing

Sources:

Associated Press at http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g8gpZRl3t8mV2RxsVjIuPU75dJeAD9F676T80
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