Just 15.5 sec. after it was released from the Boeing B-52 mother ship over the Pacific, one of four control fins on the Boeing X-51A WaveRider hypersonic demonstrator unlocked. The unpowered fin swung fully trailing-edge down and stayed there as the booster accelerated the X-51A cruiser to its planned release at Mach 4.9.
Russian researchers, long in the forefront of plasma control experimentation, are combining forces with U.S. military and European industrial counterparts to further exploit plasma's potential effect in hypersonic flight. The concept involves generating plasma by using an electrical discharge to create a shape or force which can act as a virtual actuator, a flow modifier or as an aid to combustion.
The European Space Agency (ESA) will spend €588 million ($752 million) over the next two years to upgrade the Ariane 5 rocket, conduct detailed design studies of a successor and identify synergies between the two launch vehicles, including development of a common upper stage.
Hypersonic technology is extremely difficult to master and high-speed travel generally involves long distances. These simple, but axiomatic principles of hypersonic studies not only dictate key areas of research but also, increasingly, influences who teams with whom.
Naples, Italy – The European Space Agency (ESA) will spend €588 million ($752 million) over the next two years to continue work on an upgrade of the Ariane 5 rocket, conduct detailed design studies of a successor and identify as many synergies between the two launch vehicles as possible, including development of a common upper stage.
Houston – Researchers at Rice University have merged advances in nanotechnology and solar energy for the efficient generation of “solar steam,” a technology they suggest could find initial application in sanitation and water purification in developing countries.
Naples – The European Space Agency (ESA) and the Russian space agency Roscosmos approved a draft agreement on Nov. 19 to cooperate on the two-pronged ExoMars mission to the red planet and discussed the potential for joint cooperation on Jupiter exploration and lunar robotics.
Houston – U.S., Japanese and Russian astronauts dropped through a wintry overcast sky for a rare night Soyuz landing in northern Kazakhstan early Nov. 19, bringing their 127-day mission to the International Space Station to a successful conclusion.
There's good news and bad news for U.S. space exploration and exploitation, now that the election results are in. The good news is that the bipartisan space policy hammered out with a lot of angst over the past four years will not need to be reviewed while a new president gets his feet on the ground. For now, at least, President Barack Obama's space policy, as modified by members of both houses in Congress, will remain unchanged. Work can continue as planned, without delay.
Decisions that determine whether a program can be successful are often made before the contract is even won. But conceptual design is still more art than science, practiced by talented engineers without the sophisticated, integrated tools available for development and manufacturing.
Chris Kubasik's rise through the upper ranks of Lockheed Martin could not have been better scripted by the Chinese politburo. Since joining the U.S. defense giant in 1999, the onetime partner at accounting giant Ernst & Young was rotated through a succession of senior management positions, including chief financial officer and leader of the company's Electronic Systems business. Two years ago, Lockheed Martin telegraphed that Kubasik would be the successor to Chairman and CEO Robert Stevens by naming him president and chief operating officer.
HOUSTON — Ellen Ochoa, a former astronaut who has been deputy director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center since late 2007, will become director of the 14,100-person field center as of Jan. 1, the agency’s administrator, Charles Bolden, announced Nov. 16. She succeeds Mike Coats, 66, as the 51-year-old installation’s 11th director and the first Hispanic to serve in the post.
The House this week approved a bill to extend for two years an indemnification program allowing the government to share the cost with industry against injuries or property damage suffered by the public in a commercial space launch.
