Dragon Crew v.2.0

[Salo]

https://twitter.com/jeff_foust/status/662320865606930432

Jeff Foust ‏@jeff_foust  
Reed: "Demo-1" (uncrewed) comm'l crew test mission on a "good path" for launch by end of 2016.

9:29 - 5 нояб. 2015 г.

[Salo]

https://twitter.com/jeff_foust/status/662321537391837184

Jeff Foust ‏@jeff_foust  
Reed: projected date for Demo-2, with a crew, is March 2017.

9:32 - 5 нояб. 2015 г.

[Salo]

Jeff Foust ‏@jeff_foust  3 ч.3 часа назад
Reed: finished CDR for crew dragon spacecraft last week; in final review at NASA now. Went "very well."

Jeff Foust ‏@jeff_foust  3 ч.3 часа назад  
Reed shows video of Crew Dragon interior. "We like to think of this as a modern, 21st century spacecraft."
 
  Jeff Foust ‏@jeff_foust  3 ч.3 часа назад  
Benjamin Reed, SpaceX comm'l crew program director: we have astronauts coming out every couple weeks for "office hours" to discuss issues.

[Salo]

[Salo]

https://blogs.nasa.gov/commercialcrew/2015/11/10/crew-dragon-propulsion-system-completes-development-testing/

Crew Dragon Propulsion System Completes Development Testing
Posted on November 10, 2015 at 1:42 pm by Steven Siceloff.            
                                       

http://blogs.nasa.gov/commercialcrew/wp-content/uploads/sites/230/2015/11/SuperDracoMontage3a.jpg
The propulsion system SpaceX would use to power its Crew Dragon out of danger has been test-fired 27 times as the company refines the design for the demands of operational missions carrying astronauts to the International Space Station for NASA's Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX evaluated the system utilizing various thrust cycles on a test stand at its McGregor, Texas, rocket development facility.
Named SuperDracos, the engines are arranged in four pairs – SpaceX calls them 'jetpacks' – integrated around the outside of the Crew Dragon spacecraft. Firing all at once, the eight engines produce 120,000 pounds of thrust – enough power to accelerate a Crew Dragon from zero to 100 mph in 1.2 seconds. In the unlikely event of an emergency, that power means the ability to lift the crew a safe distance off the launch pad or far away from a booster failing on the way to orbit. That capability was earlier this year in a pad abort test that confirmed the SuperDraco design in a flight-like condition.
A normal launch of the Crew Dragon atop a Falcon 9 rocket would not offer the SuperDracos anything to do during the mission since their only responsibility is to fire in an emergency to rescue the crew onboard. Eventually, SpaceX plans to use the SuperDracos in the place of a parachute during landing.
They use hypergolic propellants common in spacecraft thruster systems because the propellants ignite as soon as they contact each other. The engines are noteworthy for a number of reasons, including that they are built using 3-D printing methods instead of machining them from larger pieces.
After the development cycle, the propulsion system and SuperDracos will continue evaluations at the company's test stand to qualify them for use on operational missions.
SpaceX and Boeing are developing a new generation of American-made, human-rated transportation systems capable of taking astronauts to the space station in partnership with NASA. The Crew Dragon and Boeing's CST-100 Starliner will carry up to four NASA astronauts at a time, which ultimately adds another crew member to the space station and will allow twice as much time for astronauts to conduct research aboard the one-of-a-kind laboratory.

[Salo]

http://arstechnica.com/science/2015/11/quietly-the-new-space-race-between-spacex-and-boeing-burns-hot/

Quietly, the new space race between SpaceX and Boeing burns hot       Whichever company flies astronauts first in 2017 gains bragging rights.    
by Eric Berger - Nov 10, 2015 7:45pm EET
 
SpaceX's Crew Dragon Spacecraft completed its pad abort test in May.
SpaceX
 
It's been half a century since the United States finally dusted Russia in the space race, as NASA's Gemini program ticked off an unprecedented series of long-duration flights, spacewalks, and in-space rendezvous to put America firmly on course to the Moon.
Today, a new space race has begun. But this modern face-off has some key differences, not the least of which is that America's and Russia's space programs presently depend upon one another. Instead of Cold War-fueled international competition, the modern space race has an all-American flavor with an established company, Boeing, against an upstart, SpaceX. Both firms are developing spacecraft to fly NASA astronauts to the International Space Station, and they hope to do so before the end of 2017.
What once seemed a distant goal is now coming up fast, and it's not clear either company will be ready as their development processes remain largely obscured. Whereas the Cold War space race played out on an international stage with flashy launches that grabbed worldwide attention, the modern, capitalism-fueled version is playing out largely behind the scenes.
However, last week some clues emerged when both companies were called to appear before a subcommittee of NASA's Advisory Council, which possesses limited power but has access to information.
Benjamin Reed, who directs SpaceX's commercial crew program, offered the most concrete timeline of the two competitors. Reed said his company intends to launch a test flight of its Dragon spacecraft by the end of 2016 and is targeting March 2017 for the first crewed flight of the vehicle. Boeing Vice President John Mulholland said his company plans to conduct both its test flight and first crewed flight of the Starliner spacecraft in 2017. Previously, the company has said it would like to fly its first crewed flight by September 2017.

Enlarge / An artist's concept of Boeing's Starliner spacecraft.
Boeing
 
Advantage SpaceX, then? In reality, each company's dates are virtually meaningless. Both firms have their own challenges to work through before reaching their respective launch pads at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
SpaceX, while it has had some dazzling successes and has slashed launch costs, is notorious in the aerospace industry for over promising early launch dates. The company is also scrambling to recover a launch failure of its Falcon 9 rocket in June. That rocket carried a cargo variant of its Dragon spacecraft, and an upgraded Falcon 9 will also launch the crewed Dragon. To allay concerns about the Falcon 9's reliability, Reed said the Falcon 9 will fly "dozens" of times more before humans launch on it.
Boeing, meanwhile, must adjust to a new way of doing business as it develops the Starliner spacecraft. During its half century as one of NASA's main contractors, the company has worked on a cost-plus contracting basis, essentially meaning Boeing got paid for all of its costs related to work on a job, plus an additional payment. Such contracts do not place a premium on speed or efficiency.
However, NASA has since shifted to offering fixed-price contracts for its commercial crew program. In these arrangements, the payment is the same regardless of a company's time or expenses. According to Mulholland, the fixed-price environment has forced Boeing to "work with pace," and he added that it will be "incredibly challenging" to finish the Starliner spacecraft in two years.
The companies are now in the final phase of NASA's commercial crew program. In September 2014, Boeing won a $4.2 billion award to provide crewed launch services, and SpaceX won $2.6 billion. (SpaceX received less because it offered to provide lower-cost flights). Both firms are now in the process of completing more than a dozen "milestones," such as spacesuits and parachute qualification tests as well as the actual flight tests, before NASA certifies their vehicles as ready to fly.

Enlarge / Each company has a litany of milestones to complete before NASA certifies them to fly crew.
NASA Advisory Council
 
Publicly, neither company will acknowledge the space race. But make no mistake, both companies want to win, and badly. A few years ago, Boeing and other major aerospace companies viewed SpaceX as something of a joke. Then the company started flying and winning NASA contracts, and now SpaceX presents a major threat to the old-guard aerospace titans. Additionally, there is no small measure of resentment at the company's celebrity chief executive, Elon Musk.
Musk, of course, loves to make a splash. America for four years has relied on Russia to launch its astronauts into space. Last year Russia's chief space minister, Dmitry Rogozin, taunted NASA by saying it could use a trampoline to launch its astronauts into space if Washington DC didn't like what his country was doing in Ukraine. Now in less than two years, Musk has a chance to have his spacecraft, with the SpaceX logo right next to the American flag, reclaim America's spaceflight heritage.
The chance to rescue NASA from its Russian reliance offers a public relations prize beyond compare for an aerospace company. As such, the race is on.

[Salo]

http://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/files/7-SpaceX_Commercial_Crew.pdf

[Salo]

ISPCS 2015: Garrett Reisman Describes Progress on Commercial Crew Milestones

[Alex_II]

https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-orders-spacex-crew-mission-to-international-space-station

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 (CCtCap) contracts. The Boeing Company of Houston received its first crew mission order in May.

[Salo]

https://blogs.nasa.gov/commercialcrew/2016/01/21/spacex-tests-superdraco-descent-landing-capability/

SpaceX Tests SuperDraco Descent Landing Capability

Posted on January 21, 2016 at 5:12 pm by Stephanie Martin.
                                       

SpaceX recently tested its ability to fire engines that will be used to land a human-rated spacecraft safely on the ground with the accuracy of a helicopter at the company's test facility in McGregor, Texas. SpaceX envisions returning people to Earth from space on the power of thrust instead of beneath parachutes. Working with NASA's Commercial Crew Program, SpaceX is in the early phases of analysis. In November, the company conducted two tethered tests of a full-size Crew Dragon mock-up attached to a crane so engineers could refine the landing software and systems on the spacecraft. The Crew Dragon spacecraft will be equipped with eight SuperDraco thrusters that would be used to slow the vehicle's return to Earth through the atmosphere and ultimately set the spacecraft and its crew down gently.
Propulsive landing will not be used initially for missions with NASA astronauts to the International Space Station.The Crew Dragon will splash down safely in the ocean under parachutes as its passengers return from the space station.

[Salo]

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[Salo]

[triage]

 https://blogs.nasa.gov/commercialcrew/2016/01/21/spacex-tests-superdraco-descent-landing-capability/
SpaceX Tests SuperDraco Descent Landing Capability
Posted on January 21, 2016 at 5:12 pm by Stephanie Martin.
SpaceX recently tested its ability to fire engines that will be used to land a human-rated spacecraft safely on the ground with the accuracy of a helicopter at the company's test facility in McGregor, Texas. SpaceX envisions returning people to Earth from space on the power of thrust instead of beneath parachutes. Working with NASA's Commercial Crew Program, SpaceX is in the early phases of analysis. In November, the company conducted two tethered tests of a full-size Crew Dragon mock-up attached to a crane so engineers could refine the landing software and systems on the spacecraft. The Crew Dragon spacecraft will be equipped with eight SuperDraco thrusters that would be used to slow the vehicle's return to Earth through the atmosphere and ultimately set the spacecraft and its crew down gently.
Propulsive landing will not be used initially for missions with NASA astronauts to the International Space Station. The Crew Dragon will splash down safely in the ocean under parachutes as its passengers return from the space station.

 https://twitter.com/SpaceX/status/690292036776411136
Hover test of our Dragon 2 spacecraft that can carry cargo and crew

 
On November 24, SpaceX's Dragon 2, powered by eight SuperDraco engines, executed a picture-perfect propulsive hover test at the company's rocket development facility in McGregor, Texas.

Eight SuperDraco thrusters, positioned around the perimeter of the vehicle in pairs called "jet packs", fired up simultaneously to raise the Crew Dragon spacecraft for a five-second hover, generating approximately 33,000 lbs of thrust before returning the vehicle to its resting position. This test was the second of a two-part milestone under NASA's Commercial Crew Program. The first test—a short firing of the engines intended to verify a healthy propulsion system—was completed November 22, and the longer burn two-days later demonstrated vehicle control while hovering.

 https://www.nasa.gov/feature/eve-of-launch-2016-goals-vital-to-commercial-crew-success
Jan. 20, 2016
...
Here is a rundown of what the companies aim to accomplish this year:

CST-100
...
SpaceX Crew Dragon/ Falcon 9

Parachute Testing: Parachutes are vital for the safe return of our astronaut crews. This year, SpaceX will perform thorough testing of the chutes designed for Crew Dragons. Flown inside a transport aircraft, a Crew Dragon test article will be dropped thousands of feet to see how the four main parachutes deploy. Engineers will then review the data and components after landing to ensure that the systems work as expected.

Spacecraft Testing and Training Mock-Ups: An already-built prototype Crew Dragon is being used to assess astronaut entrance, exit and cabin layout. Two high fidelity mock-ups will be used to perform structural and environmental system tests, including evaluations with hatches open and in other configurations to confirm the design's strength.

Crew Dragon Assembly Underway: Three Crew Dragon spacecraft are in different stages of production at SpaceX's headquarters and factory in Hawthorne, California. Two will perform upcoming flight tests to the International Space Station, one without a crew and one with astronauts aboard. The first of these spacecraft will be refurbished after flight for an in-flight abort test that will be conducted from Florida's Space Coast, while the third will fly the operational crew mission to the station by SpaceX.

Falcon 9 Evaluations and Manufacturing: SpaceX will use upgraded Falcon 9 rockets to lift Crew Dragons into space. The upgraded Falcon 9 rocket had its first flight in December 2015, a successful mission that deployed 11 commercial satellites and landed the first-stage back on land. The Falcon 9 is a two-stage rocket that has launched numerous spacecraft into orbit, including cargo-laden Dragons that deliver supplies to the space station.

Launch Pad 39A Completion: SpaceX is on pace to finish extensive modifications of Launch Pad 39A at Kennedy so it can launch Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets this year. Built for the Apollo/Saturn V moon missions and rebuilt for space shuttle launches, the launch pad at has seen a 300-foot long processing hangar built at the base of the pad, the flame trench remodeled and rails added to move rockets into launch position. Workers will install a new crew access arm and white room so astronauts can board the spacecraft while it stands ready for launch atop a rocket.

Spacesuit Qualification: SpaceX will put its spacesuit through numerous tests and evaluations before it will be put on by astronauts headed into space. Even though astronauts will be inside the spacecraft for a mission, they will depend on the spacesuit to provide them with air and perform other functions.

Environmental Control and Life Support System: Testing is targeted for completion this year for the integrated system that provides crews with breathable, temperature-controlled air throughout their mission and keep all of the spacecraft's systems running smoothly.

Validation of Propulsive Module Land Landing: SpaceX began testing the Crew Dragon propulsive land landing system in McGregor, Texas, late last year. A high-fidelity propulsive module will be used to perform validation testing of the propulsion system in support of land landings. While the company will initially land the Crew Dragon in the water underneath parachutes, the plan is to receive certification of the system for landings on land.

Как было в 2014 год

 

[Paleopulo]

я и удивляюсь - нет в этом перечне первого полета Дрэгона. Значит уже уполз (в представлении НАСА) на 2017 год.

[Boris Mekler]

Зато есть открытым текстом вторичное использование Дракона, хоть и не в космос.

[Astro Cat]

Уж больно кратковременна работа двигателей. 6 секунд всего. Не успеют они погасить скорость падения. Либо успеют но перегрузка раздавит людей? Какая скорость падения будет без парашютов у такой капсулы?

[triage]

Astro Cat пишет:
Уж больно кратковременна работа двигателей. 6 секунд всего.

К сообщениям приложил видео 2014 года, по нему время работы больше.

[Sam Grey]

Astro Cat пишет:
Какая скорость падения будет без парашютов у такой капсулы?

У Аполло была 150 м/с в конце

[Sam Grey]

pnetmon пишет:

Astro Cat пишет:
Уж больно кратковременна работа двигателей. 6 секунд всего.

К сообщениям приложил видео 2014 года, по нему время работы больше.

на реддите уже посчитали, запас топлива в 1200 литров (400 gallons) и движки должны обеспечивать около 433м/с ХС.

[Astro Cat]

pnetmon пишет:
К сообщениям приложил видео 2014 года, по нему время работы больше.

По мультфильму 23 секунды. )

Sam Grey пишет:
на реддите уже посчитали, запас топлива в 1200 литров (400 gallons)

Хм. Влезет ли в V2 кубометр топлива?