DocM Posted April 12, 2011 Share Posted April 12, 2011 Here we go - looks like a teaming of Virgin Galactic, Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser (both of which bring in Northrop Grumman & Scaled Composites) and Bigelow Aerospace - builder of modular commercial space stations. Notable is the absense of Lockheed Martin or ULA, whose Atlas V was originally to be the launcher for both Dream Chaser and Bigelow. The recent announcement of SpaceX's Falcon Heavy and its $1,000/lb price point (and the possible up-rating of F9 to 16 mT) might have a bit to do with that - option exploring & all that. Commercial Spaceflight Federation to Make Major Announcement on Wednesday, April 13The Commercial Spaceflight Federation, the industry association of leading businesses and organizations working to make commercial human spaceflight a reality, will be making a major announcement on Wednesday, April 13, 2011, the day after the 50th anniversary celebration of the world?s first human spaceflight in 1961. Following the announcement, a press availability will be held at 1:30 pm Mountain Time at the National Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Representatives of the media onsite in Colorado Springs are invited join us at Symposium Media Center Press Room #1, on the 2nd floor of the Exhibit Center. Participants in the press availability will include: - Mark Sirangelo, Chairman of Sierra Nevada Corporation Space Systems and Chairman Emeritus of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation - George Whitesides, President and CEO, Virgin Galactic - Robert Bigelow, Founder and President, Bigelow Aerospace - Bretton Alexander, President, Commercial Spaceflight Federation Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neoadorable Posted April 12, 2011 Share Posted April 12, 2011 where's Space X and NASA? and what will this be about? hope we get some good news! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted April 12, 2011 Author Share Posted April 12, 2011 Sounds like Bigelow stations could be using Dream Chaser spaceplanes for at least part of their passenger flights. CST-100 was supposedly agiven because of their teaming for CCDev. We'll know more tomorrow. Something thing we can take right away is that NASA isn't the only customer in town, and liklely not even the biggest one. NewSpace may be getting near the point where it's self-sustaining. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted April 13, 2011 Author Share Posted April 13, 2011 UPdated list of participants makes this more of a commercial-wide announcement. Hmmmm.... >Participants in the press availability will include: - Mark Sirangelo, Chairman of Sierra Nevada Corporation Space Systems and Chairman Emeritus of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation - George Whitesides, President and CEO, Virgin Galactic - Robert Bigelow, Founder and President, Bigelow Aerospace - Bretton Alexander, President, Commercial Spaceflight Federation - Gwynne Shotwell, President of SpaceX - A TBD senior executive of the United Launch Alliance - Patti Grace Smith, former Associate Administrator of FAA/AST The announcement is one of importance to the space industry as a whole, not just to one particular company or combination of companies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neoadorable Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 good to see Space X there, but where's NASA? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted April 13, 2011 Author Share Posted April 13, 2011 At home, washing its tights :p NASA may be providing a few cargo & eventually crew flight opportunities, but increasingly commercial destinations like Bigelow's Space Complex stations will acciunt for the vast majority of flights. NASA's own mis-managemebt & Congress are responsible for its increasing irrelevance. Just this week they stated that their fla gship James Webb Space Telescope is another 4 years late (NET 2018 now) and another $1.5 billiion over-budget, and counting. After saying in 2007 that all its systems had been tested one wonders what the hell's going on? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spenser.d Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 good to see Space X there, but where's NASA? NASA doesn't deal in commercial space flight, why would they be there? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted April 13, 2011 Author Share Posted April 13, 2011 But they are involved in commercial - that's what COTS 1, COTS 2, CCDev 1, CCDev 2 and dozens of Space Act contracts (VASIMR, Bigelow, Virgin Galactic, XCOR etc) are all about. Director Congress, Bolton & Obama are betting NASA's future on commercial space providing numerous services & developments at prices NASA can afford. The old paradigm sure didn't work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToneKnee Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 So what time is this news then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted April 13, 2011 Author Share Posted April 13, 2011 Later today. Already it's been announced that Rear Admiral Craig E. Steidle (U.S. Navy, Ret.) has been named head of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation. His previous job: head of NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate, which covers all aspects of manned spaceflight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted April 13, 2011 Author Share Posted April 13, 2011 "Emerging Markets and Applications" Virgin Galactic: cashmpositive first year, will have 5 ships to start @ 5-10 flights/week from SpacePort America. 425 passengers paid up so far. Flight prices will drop precipitously with use. Point to point suborbital transport later. Bigelow is talking about Lagrange point archetectures & fuel depots. Business model will bemlike commercial real estate - leasing space facilities. Two types of customers: soverign (govts) & commercial. Lunar Depot based on EELV capabilities (Atlas V, Delta IV, Falcon 9 block II and Falcon Heavy) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted April 13, 2011 Author Share Posted April 13, 2011 Bigelow Aerospace: first module up in 2015. Lunar orbital base (Hercules) outbound vehicle uses 11 Centaur upper stages to low lunar orbit. Looking at care and welfare of leases from habitats as revenue, more than $200M in investment so far. Virgin: valuation >$ 1 billion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted April 16, 2011 Author Share Posted April 16, 2011 In case the significance of Craig Steidle's appointment isn't apparent then here's a post by Jum Muncy @NASA Watch that sums up why this was a huge deal. Jim Muncy is a space policy consultant in DC - http://spaceref.net/mt-cp.cgi?__mode=view&blog_id=14&id=288 Folks,I realize that snarky comments are the usual fare around here, but people clearly don't understand why this is news. One, Craig Steidle's plan for aggressive human exploration of the solar system -- remember he was handpicked by O'Keefe during the lead up to President Bush's January 16, 2004 speech -- fully embraced commercial transport of astronauts to Low Earth Orbit, as called for by the Aldridge Commission. Two, that's why Steidle *started* what he called the "nontraditional crew" program at NASA in 2004-5 while he was AA for ESMD. It was this initiative that was later transformed into a "cargo to ISS" program called COTS. For Steidle to join CSF is a sign that he wants to help make his idea a reality today, in spite of the naysayers. Third, Craig Steidle is a proven aerospace program manager (F-18, JAST/JSF). He's the real deal. He's led the development of top-line fighter aircraft, not just produced paper studies. Nobody can say he doesn't know what can or can't be done by American industry, including big and small companies. (In other words, he's not an ideological hack like me!) Fourth, at NASA Steidle was committed to maximizing competition wherever possible. No sole source contracts to former/future employers on his watch! He wanted a CEV concept flyoff in 2008. Maybe it would have happened a year late, but wouldn't that have been more valuable than the Ares 1X "admiral's test"? Fifth, mock spirals all you want. So call 'em block development instead. The point is: you don't develop anything all at once. You develop and test, spit out a workable "generation" and then as new technology is PROVEN IN THE FLIGHT ENVIRONMENT, it can be infused in the next generation. Nothing is ever perfect or permanent, so the pressure to stick everything in the first generation goes away. Instead, after Steidle, we got the perfect Mars rocket... that we couldn't afford to develop OR operate, and didn't need for cis-lunar/NEO exploration. And it never got off the drawing board. Steidle's approach is more like technology in the real world, where continuous improvement keeps you competitive and, hopefully, profitable. Instead of flying 40-year-old space shuttles using decades-old parts USA has to scrounge on Ebay, which is where we've been in human spaceflight. Bottom line: Steidle managed brilliantly in both the Navy and NASA according to proven principles of rapid development, test, and streamlined, safe operation. Thousands of pilots' -- and and many more soldiers' and civilians' -- lives depended on the decisions he made. And now he's going to advocate full-time for those same principles which live on in teams from Mojave startups to the commercial crew projects inside Boeing and ULA as well as SpaceX and Sierra Nevada. He will be an amazingly credible and effective leader for CSF and the spaceflight industry as a whole. - Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neoadorable Posted April 28, 2011 Share Posted April 28, 2011 you had me at lunar outpost and lunar orbiting platform...i expect we will see these go up by the end of the decade? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocM Posted April 28, 2011 Author Share Posted April 28, 2011 The first Sundancer module and its Propulsion Bus/Docking Node are manifested for 2014. No word yet if they'll go up on separate Falcon 9's; on a Falcon 9 (Sundancer) and an Atlas V (Bus/Node); or if Bigelow will go for a two-fer and launch both together on the massive Falcon Heavy. I'm betting on the Falcon Heavy because it would be cheaper and faster. After that another Sundancer and a big BA-330 go up in 2015-2016 to complte Space Complex 1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neoadorable Posted May 1, 2011 Share Posted May 1, 2011 still time for that moon base this decade...i am really hoping it happens! thanks Doc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts