Orbital и Virgin Galactic объединяют усилия в рамках CCDev 2

[Космос-3794]

Orbital Sciences Corp совместно с Virgin Galactic предложили проект четырехместного космического корабля схемы несущий корпус в рамках второго раунда программы разработки коммерческого пилотируемого транспорта  (CCDev 2). Запуски планируется осуществлять с помощью  носителя Atlas 5, бросковые испытания и транспортные операции  с помощью  самолета WhiteKnightTwo. Начало полетов в 2015.

http://www.spacenews.com/civil/101213-orbital-virgin-ccdev2-bid.html

[Димитър]

Ура! Американский Клипер.  

[Петр Зайцев]

http://www.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=11406
 см. тему :-)

[Salo]

Ох не зря они X-34 из музея забрали:
http://www.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=11361&highlight=x34

[Salo]

Тут не понятна роль Dream Chaser и Sierra Nevada corp.
Они конкуренты?

[Петр Зайцев]

Я так понял, VG сказали, что им тоже можно использовать WK2 точно так же как Орбиталу. Получается, что Брансону все равно, кто это будет, лишь бы сделали реальный корабль, чтобы VG мог получать комиссионные с продажи билетов. А Орбитал и Съерра-Невада конкуренты друг другу.

Кстати, заметим, что у Брансона четко разграничено кто делает корабли, а кто их эксплуатирует. VG - это как Аерофлот, а SpaceShip Company делает корабли на которых VG планирует летать (и он владеет обоими фирмами). Может быть и здесь так же.

А вообще-то сообщения какие-то мутные. Надо подождать до марта.

[Снусмумрик]

[Salo]

http://www.spacenews.com/civil/101214-orbital-unveils-supplier-ccdev2.html

Tue, 14 December, 2010
Orbital Unveils Supplier Team for CCDev 2 Bid[/size]
By Brian Berger and Amy Svitak

      WASHINGTON — Orbital Sciences Corp. said Dec. 14 that it is seeking NASA funding for a "blended lifting body" vehicle that would launch atop an Atlas 5 rocket to deliver four astronauts to the international space station.

    The Dulles, Va.-based spacecraft builder disclosed the top-level details of its crew transportation concept in a press release announcing it had submitted a proposal in response to NASA's Commercial Crew Development 2 (CCDev 2) solicitation. Proposals were due Dec. 13.

    According to industry sources, Orbital Sciences plans to team with Virgin Galactic of New Mexico to market commercial rides on the planned spacecraft and conduct drop tests of the orbital space vehicle using Virgin's WhiteKnightTwo carrier aircraft.

    Virgin Galactic, however, is not mentioned in Orbital's Dec. 14 press release, which lists only the "major suppliers" that will "contribute major elements of the system."

    Among the major suppliers is Los Angeles-based Northrop Grumman, which is identified in the press release as "the lead airframe structures designer."

Northrop Grumman owns Mojave, Calif.-based Scaled Composites, which is building WhiteKnightTwo and SpaceShipTwo for Virgin to operate.

Orbital's other CCDev 2 suppliers include:

    * Thales Alenia Space, which would be responsible for the vehicle's pressurized crew compartment.
    * Honeywell and Draper Laboratory, which together would be responsible for human-rated avionics.
    * United Launch Alliance, which builds and operates the Atlas 5 rocket designated as the baseline launcher for the Orbital crew vehicle.

"We have submitted to NASA a well-considered commercial solution for astronaut transportation to and from the [international space station] that is safe, affordable and timely," Frank Culbertson, Orbital's senior vice president for human spaceflight systems, said in the press release. "Our team is looking forward to sharing our ideas with NASA in greater detail and discussing how they can best be applied to helping the United States continue to access the [international space station] in the safest and most cost-effective manner possible, as well as supporting commercial ventures that are seeking access to space."

Virgin, meanwhile, also is expected to announce this week a separate CCDev 2 bid led by Sierra Nevada Corp., the big winner in NASA's first round of Commercial Crew Development awards earlier this year. The Sparks, Nev.-based firm garnered $20 million in CCDev 1 funds to mature its Dream Chaser orbital spacecraft, a six-passenger lifting-body vehicle based on NASA's HL-20 concept from the early 1990s that the company has been working on for several years.

NASA started the CCDev program in 2009 with $50 million in economic recovery funds. The agency awarded the first round of contracts in February to a mix of five new and established aerospace firms that are using the money to work on technology supportive of U.S. President Barack Obama's commercial space transportation vision.

In October, NASA announced it expects to award roughly $200 million next year under CCDev 2 to multiple contractors seeking to refine designs for launchers and spacecraft that would transport astronauts to and from low Earth orbit on a commercial basis.

[Salo]

http://space.flatoday.net/2010/12/orbital-releases-space-plane-concept-to.html#links

Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Orbital releases space plane concept to fly astronauts[/size]

Orbital Sciences Corp. today confirmed it is proposing to build a space plane resembling a mini-shuttle that could fly four astronauts to the International Space Station or other destinations.

The so-called "blended lifting body" vehicle would build upon studies Orbital preformed under NASA's Orbital Space Plane program between 2000 and 2003.

The space plane is proposed to launch on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket, but Orbital says other vehicles could be used. It would land on a runway like the shuttle.

Orbital submitted the proposal under the second rouund of NASA's Commercial Crew Development program, or CCDev. The Boeing Co. said Monday that it has proposed continued development of an Apollo-like capsule that could carry seven people.

[Agent]

Among the major suppliers is Los Angeles-based Northrop Grumman, which is identified in the press release as "the lead airframe structures designer."

Ага.
Вместе они уже нечто похожее выдвигали в 2003м


Orbital Sciences Corporation and Northrop Grumman are teamed to address NASA needs for an Orbital Space Plane

[Петр Зайцев]

Вместе они уже нечто похожее выдвигали в 2003м.

Ой и правда. Я совсем забыл про это.

В обсчем крылья есть. Журналисты напутали.

P.S. Кстати, дурацкий вопрос от чайника. Я полагаю, что аппарат монтируется на адаптере под углом, чтобы не создавал подъемной силы. Но ведь поворачивать-то нужно, хотя бы после подъема со старта. Вдруг Атлас переломится как гнилая палка? Военные не рискнули, засунули X-37 под обтекатель, хоть у них крылышки куда меньше.

[ronatu]

Вместе они уже нечто похожее выдвигали в 2003м.

Ой и правда. Я совсем забыл про это.

В обсчем крылья есть. Журналисты напутали.

P.S. Кстати, дурацкий вопрос от чайника. Я полагаю, что аппарат монтируется на адаптере под углом, чтобы не создавал подъемной силы. Но ведь поворачивать-то нужно, хотя бы после подъема со старта. Вдруг Атлас переломится как гнилая палка? Военные не рискнули, засунули X-37 под обтекатель, хоть у них крылышки куда меньше.

Там обтекатель от глаз а не от воздуха... :wink:

[ronatu]

http://www.novosti-kosmonavtiki.ru/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=11406

[Salo]

P.S. Кстати, дурацкий вопрос от чайника. Я полагаю, что аппарат монтируется на адаптере под углом, чтобы не создавал подъемной силы. Но ведь поворачивать-то нужно, хотя бы после подъема со старта. Вдруг Атлас переломится как гнилая палка? Военные не рискнули, засунули X-37 под обтекатель, хоть у них крылышки куда меньше.

Вот потому и засунули, что крылышки маленькие. Этот не засунешь.

[Oleg]

Orbiter Delta Glider ?  

[Salo]

http://www.orbital.com/NewsInfo/release.asp?prid=756

Orbital Submits Proposal for NASA's Commercial Crew Development Program[/size]

-- Company Issues Top-Level Details of Its Concept to Transport Astronauts To and From the International Space Station --

(Dulles, VA 14 December 2010) -- Orbital Sciences Corporation (NYSE: ORB) today announced that it has submitted a proposal to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in response to the Commercial Crew Development-2 contract solicitation. The company also provided several top-level details of its proposal for providing safe and affordable transportation services to and from the International Space Station (ISS) and for commercial activities in Earth orbit. Orbital's concept includes the following details:

• A "blended lifting body" vehicle that will launch atop an expendable launch vehicle and return to Earth with a conventional runway landing. This design derives from studies performed by Orbital for NASA under the Orbital Space Plane program between 2000 and 2003.
• The vehicle would seat four astronauts, providing a cost-effective solution for NASA's astronaut transportation needs, as well as enabling future commercial applications.
• The proposal baselines using a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket, but is flexible enough to accommodate other launch vehicle options.

Click here to view Orbital's Proposed Commercial Crew Space Vehicle: http://www.orbital.com/NewsInfo/ImagesMultimedia/Images/ExplorationSystems/

Orbital also announced that it will lead a team of world-class suppliers that will contribute major elements of the system. Orbital's major suppliers include:

• Thales Alenia Space, which is responsible for the vehicle's pressurized crew compartment
• Northrop Grumman, which is the lead airframe structures designer
• Honeywell and Draper Laboratory, which together are responsible for the human-rated avionics
• United Launch Alliance, which is responsible for the vehicle's baseline launch vehicle

"We have submitted to NASA a well-considered commercial solution for astronaut transportation to and from the ISS that is safe, affordable and timely," said Mr. Frank Culbertson, a former NASA astronaut and Orbital's Senior Vice President for Human Spaceflight Systems. "Our team is looking forward to sharing our ideas with NASA in greater detail and discussing how they can best be applied to helping the United States continue to access the ISS in the safest and most cost-effective manner possible, as well as supporting commercial ventures that are seeking access to space."

Orbital is already under contract with NASA to provide unmanned cargo logistics services to the ISS under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) program using a commercial system consisting of the company's Taurus® II medium-class space launch vehicle, its Cygnus™ cargo logistics spacecraft and a ground-based command and control systems. Orbital is slated to carry out a demonstration flight of the combined system in 2011, followed by operational cargo delivery services beginning in early 2012.

[Salo]

http://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=23564.msg671743#msg671743

Very interesting. I wonder what kind of lifting body they are planning - and if it is based on any previous work. It is HL-20-ish, or like the LM lifting body CEV concept, or something more minimal like the Russian Kliper concept?

It will be interesting to see.  Recall that Orbital had a conceptual design for a lifting body craft back in the OSP days, though I don't know far along into the design process they were.

Very perceptive; the shape shown in our proposal is a "fifth-generation" one that started with X-34 (whose DNA, by the way, made it into X-37 by the way of Rockwell/Boeing who was our partner on "X-34A"), then proceeded to Kliper/HL-10/HL-20 derivatives, and culminated in the BLB shape shown in the above-mentioned OSP picture.

During the 1997-2003 time period we burned thousands of CFD hours and hundreds of physical wind tunnel hours developing a useable shape.  The main challenge was to acheive reasonable landing speeds (the topic warrants a discussion of its own) at sizes compatible with a 4 to 6 person crew (it is easier with smaller vehicles like X-37 because wing area scales as the square of size but weight more like the cube) AND with a reasonable internal fuselage volume.

Particularily troublesome was the increase in base drag if you wanted the cylindrical fuselage shape to extend all the way to the back for volume and hatch locationpurposes (the current design, like BLB, has two hatches for a number of reasons, including crew emergency egress.)

With large base drag you get a low approach and landing L/D which in turn has all sorts of nasty consequences.  The BLB/5th gen trick was to shape the trailing edge of the delta (not straight, like X-37) wing and the blending of the wing root with the body in order to create interference between the wing airflow and the body airflow at approach and landing conditions that DECRESED the base drag.  Not impossible, but very hard - we checked it in real wind tunnel testing.

Do you still see any use for the X-34 in whatever testing you may have planned and can you share any results that you may know about its "worthiness" after inspections?

The current interest in X-34 (including the "mysterious" move to Mojave) is all focused on reusable LV first stages; NASA Dryden wanted to know to what degree the two old airframes were still airworthy after all these years.  To answer the question we had to open some inspection panels.  There was no available hangar space at DFRC over the next few weeks. The guys at Mojave did.  Quick trip to KMHV for the inspection.  Results not in yet, may be "owned" by DFRC when they do.  That's all.

The X-34 "DNA trace" leading to BLB-2 (and X-37 on the other branch) has simply a hstorical value.  X-34 was not designed as an orbital reentry vehicle (but it had excellent landing characteristics!)

Can you explicitly say the five generations?

Hmm.. I'm not sure I could - I was being a bit poetic and counting on my fingers.  Let me try this stream of consciousness:

1) X-34 in 1997-1998 great landing characteristics but, as noted above, not really a reentry-from-orbit vehicle (LE radii too small)

2) Our first CRV shape, 1999 - runway landing, unlike JSC's X-38 concept, but crew rescue only - insufficient volume for a practical crew transport.  Reasonable landing characteristics, but nothing to write home about.  Very heavily influenced by HL-10/HL-20.

3) Our first (non-BLB) OSP, 1999-2000 (here's where we bumped against the landing speed problem) otherwise good volume, cross-range and rentry characteristics.

4) The first BLB, 2000-2003 (solved the landing speed problem via some sneaky aerodynamics)

5) The revised, vertical-tail-less BLB in 2009-2010.  Addressed some ISS docking interference issues (BTW: I'm surprised at the previous statements stating that there appeared to be said interference - I thought we had checked it rather thoroughly; our recent Cygnus work has given us A LOT of experience in that area, eveh though Cygnus berths, whereas our BLB concept docks using LIDS)

So does the current design have two hatches, a rear one for docking/berthing, and the top one is for crew ingress/egress - is that correct? (in that case the ISS approach/departure image shows an incorrect orientation of the craft)

According to Frank C. (I was with him on a phone press interview a few minutes ago) you could theoretically dock from both locations, although we currently have a single LIDS (on top, I believe).

BTW according to Frank (I've not followed this work too closely) the docking is autonomous with human monitoring.  Don't ask me for details on how it works 'cause I don't know.

[Павел73]

Третьим будет . Среди участников - Honeywell, Northrop Grumman... Похоже, не шутки.

[Петр Зайцев]

Третьим будет . Среди участников - Honeywell, Northrop Grumman... Похоже, не шутки.

Ну Нортроп-Грамман там потому, что у Орбитала нет мощностей для изготовления сего объекта, и вместо того, чтобы поднять производство как SpaceX сделал для капсул и ракет, они норовят попросить кого-нибудь у кого уже есть площади, оборудование, и кадры. От своего, конечно, не отказываются: если оно лезет в цех в Палмдейле, то будет там собираться, если слишком длинное, то в HIF его...

[Salo]

SFN: Virgin Galactic aims for orbit[/size]