Antares (Taurus II)

[Технократ]

Вот здесь Вы правы, Дмитрий - конечно оптимизируются.
Но по каким параметрам?

Я считаю - что главным параметром должен быть комплексная финансовая экономичность.
То есть итоговая минимальная стоимость РН и ПН, приведенная к выполнению итоговой научной и технической цели.

Не МЮ, не максимальный импулс двигателей ( что обычно многими и принимается за "эффективность"), не уровень откатов и распилов, не степень загруженности НИИ организаций а именно комплексная удельная стоимость, итоговая по стоимости вывода, и стоимости производства ПН.

Хотя я понимаю что выгляжу идиотом, мудаком и идеалистом в настоящее время, когда откат, попил, и умение управляться с финансовыми потоками ставиться выше всего.
И это главная трагедия российской космонавтики - потухает огонь в сердцах людей и заменяется алчным огнем в глазах.
Созидательное пламя заменяется пламенем пожирающим, пожирающим изнутри людей, организации всю систему, и искажающей систему ценностей.

Очень жаль.
Ведь пожар внутри дома потужает, пожрав ве съедобное, и остается пепелище, на котором долго, очень долго ничего не плодоносит.

Так наши ракеты дешевле американских! Не рыдайте, все ОК!

А я плачу, рыдаю, стенаю, заламываю руки в отчаянии, и придаюсь ипохондрии :cry:  :cry:  :cry:

Зима, зимний депресняк...    :cry:  :evil:  :cry:  :?

И хочется, очень хочется сесть на бочку с ракетным топливом и двигуном и взвиться в голубое высокое Небо, и раствориться в нем, летать, летать, летать.
О Боги, ракету мне, ракету. :wink:

[SpaceR]

Оптимизация Зенита и проходила, по-крупному оценивая, в рамках вышеприведенных параметров.
В числе которых, кстати, не учтены ни ж.д. ограничения (ощутимо влияющие на общую стоимость создания в случае отказа от них), ни участие Зенита в общей комплексной программе разработки СВ, где головная роль была всё же за Энергией (почему и движки оказались мощнее, чем фактически нужно), ни требования военных как основных заказчиков, ни имевшие место в то время реалии в экономике и т.п.
Что было - то было. Сейчас такого уже нет и не повторится.

А что две ступени, а не три - так это категорически правильно!

[Технократ]

На кой жрен дешевые ракеты если они возят американцев и их спутники.
А Глонасы - топят.... :twisted:

Блин плюнуть на все и к МАРСУ В ОДИН КОНЕЦ...

Это лучше чем от водки(наркоты) и от простуд(свинного грипа)

Ракет и денег в роскосмосе хватит для штурма Марса, и добровольцев наберется человек сто а то и более.
И к черту САС.
Союз может доставить на орбиту без САС и Спускаемого аппарата 20 человек за раз.
а блок Д разгонит 4 человек в надувной капсуле с запасом ресурсов на полет к Марсу и посадку.

Вперед На МАРС!
Вот это - ЗАДАЧА - Захватить и освоить! :lol:

[SpaceR]

Вместо керосинки ставить две вонючки они легче и повторно запускаются. недостаток импульса компенсируется меньшей массой крнструкции. возможно переделать вторую ступень циклона, укоротить и пришпандорить два двигуна.

А вонючка Штатам нужна? :wink:

Не нужна.
По крайней мере, Орбиталу на второй ступени.

[Дмитрий В.]

А вонючка Штатам нужна? :wink:

Не нужна.
По крайней мере, Орбиталу на второй ступени.

Ну, значит, "керосинщикам" и карты в руки!

[Salo]

http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2011/feb/HQ_M11-024_AJ26_Test.html

Feb. 04, 2011
MEDIA ADVISORY : M11-024
 
Media Invited To Engine Test And Meeting With Nasa Administrator[/size]
 
BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. -- Members of the news media are invited to visit NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center on Monday, Feb. 7, to view a flight acceptance test of Aerojet's AJ26 rocket engine for the Orbital Sciences Corp.'s Taurus II space launch vehicle.

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden and executives from Orbital and Aerojet will be at Stennis to witness the test, which is targeted for 4 p.m. CST. Following the test, reporters will have an opportunity to ask questions of Bolden and the Orbital and Aerojet executives.

When flight acceptance testing on the AJ26 engine is complete, it will be delivered to Orbital at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility launch site in Virginia for integration with the rocket's first stage. NASA has contracted with Orbital to provide eight cargo missions to the International Space Station. The first is scheduled for early 2012. NASA is investing with private industry to develop safe, reliable, cost-effective space transportation capabilities that will spur the development of new spacecraft and launch vehicles that will stimulate the commercial sector and reduce dependence on foreign providers.

[Salo]

http://www.wdsu.com/r/26781326/detail.html

New Rocket Engine Tested At Stennis[/size]

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. -- NASA put a new rocket engine to the test Monday at the John C. Stennis Space Center in south Mississippi.

After a short delay, the rocket engine test was 53 seconds of raw power.

It was very loud and powerful, generating huge plumes of flames and smoke. NASA said the testing of the Aerojet AJ26 engine went off without a hitch.

The AJ26 will power the Orbital Sciences Corporation's Taurus II rocket. The Taurus II, under construction right now in Virginia, will be used to provide cargo and essentials to astronauts aboard the International Space Station.

NASA administrator Charles Bolden said by having commercial companies supply the space station, NASA can focus on going deeper into space.

The International Space Station is 250 miles above the Earth, which is a low Earth orbit. That's as far as the space shuttle was designed to go, and now that the shuttle program is retiring, NASA hopes to eventually send humans to Mars.

Там же и видео испытаний.

[Salo]

http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_1859.html

Test Firing the First Aerojet AJ26 Engine

NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden (left) and Stennis Space Center Director Patrick Scheuermann view a test firing of the first Aerojet AJ26 flight engine. Once flight acceptance is achieved, the engine will power the first stage of Orbital's Taurus II space launch vehicle on commercial cargo missions to the International Space Station. NASA has partnered with Orbital to provide eight cargo missions to the space station, with the first scheduled for early 2012.

Image Credit: NASA/Danny Nowlin

[Сторонний]

 "Смотри! Идёт Великий Мганга!"

[Salo]

Ещё видео: http://www.wlox.com/global/category.asp?c=194069&autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=5544502

[Lanista]

Ещё видео: http://www.wlox.com/global/category.asp?c=194069&autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=5544502

мдаааа, репортаж американ классИк
блаблабла прорыв экономическй прорыв, аэроджет крутые блаблабла
наса-молодец
и ни слова что движок русский, 1я ступень украинская, зачем налогоплательщиков беспокоить...

[Денис Лобко]

Вот в этом и суть американского частного космоса :-) Ракета на бюджетные деньги, разработчики, считай, советские (Южмаш и Кузнецовцы). Но величайший прорыв американского частного сектора.

[pragmatik]

Вот в этом и суть американского частного космоса :-) Ракета на бюджетные деньги, разработчики, считай, советские (Южмаш и Кузнецовцы). Но величайший прорыв американского частного сектора.

А я думаю нам тут всем по фигу,.... что они там своим налогоплательщикам рапортуют, лишь бы нам деньги за 1ступень и двигатели(хотя за них вроде уже заплачено) аккуратно платили...

[Salo]

http://www.spaceflightnow.com/news/n1102/11taurus2/

NASA hopes to find money for Taurus 2 test flight[/size]
BY STEPHEN CLARK
SPACEFLIGHT NOW
Posted: February 11, 2011

WASHINGTON -- Bound by restrictions set in a temporary budget resolution, NASA has not yet committed full funding of a risk reduction test flight of the Taurus 2 rocket, one of the launch vehicles the agency hopes will be ready to resupply the International Space Station by the end of this year.
 
NASA and industry officials said Thursday the demonstration launch is a top priority, but the space agency is struggling to find money to pay for the flight.

The Orbital Sciences Corp. Taurus 2 rocket is being developed along with the Cygnus cargo freighter to deliver supplies to the space station. The company has a $1.9 billion contract for resupply services with NASA.

NASA is also subsidizing the design and development of the Taurus 2 and the Cygnus vehicles, along with a separate SpaceX resupply system that features the Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft. The agreement is part of the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services program.

The space agency supplied $20 million to Orbital in December as a down payment on the test flight, which will inform engineers on the Taurus 2 rocket's exact performance, according to Frank Culbertson, Orbital's senior vice president of advanced programs.

"We were just able to get them started," said Alan Lindenmoyer, manager of NASA's commercial crew and cargo program at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. "We haven't been able to completely commit to that yet. We're waiting for more decisions on the budget authority."

Officials previously said the Taurus 2 test launch will cost NASA between $100 million and $200 million.

The first Taurus 2 flight was scheduled to launch a Cygnus demonstration mission going to the space station. That flight was slated to haul extra propellant for in-orbit demos and limited logistics, but data from an earlier Taurus 2 test launch would help engineers optimize the Cygnus craft's mass, perhaps permitting the addition of more cargo, Culbertson said.

Without the test flight, engineers aren't sure of the rocket's actual lift capability and must conservatively plan extra margins in case of an under-performance.

Culbertson said the Taurus 2 is on track for a first launch in late August or September from a new pad at Wallops Island, Va.

The agency's original agreement with Orbital called for $178 million in federal funding for Taurus 2 and Cygnus development. The NASA Authorization Act signed into law last year called for $300 million in augmentation funds to introduce more test milestones to reduce risk before the commercial vehicles fly to the space station.

Orbital's share of the extra money was supposed to go toward the Taurus 2 test launch, which wasn't part of the original agreement with NASA.

But Congress never passed an appropriations bill last year, instead approving a continuing resolution, a temporary budget measure that funds the federal government near 2010 levels.

The stopgap budget resolution went into effect at the start of fiscal year 2011 in October. The continuing resolution was extended in December to continue paying for government operations through March 4.

Congress will have to either extend the continuing resolution again or pass full appropriations legislation to avoid a government shutdown.

Phil McAlister, NASA's acting director of commercial spaceflight development, said he expects more clarity on the outlook for the Taurus 2 test flight when the current budget expires in March.

Even if NASA is still restricted by a continuing resolution beyond March, the agency could have some authority to shuffle its internal budget to pay for the launch. That's how the agency came up with $40 million for both Orbital and SpaceX in December.

"I believe this is a high priority for NASA and there's a good chance we'll see additional money for the augmentation effort," Lindenmoyer said.

McAlister agreed it was a priority, noting Orbital will have to put forward its own financial investment in the extra Taurus 2 launch.

"We think we can find a way, but it depends on some negotiations," McAlister said. "It's not always cut and dry."

[Петр Зайцев]

Вот в этом и суть американского частного космоса :-) Ракета на бюджетные деньги, разработчики, считай, советские (Южмаш и Кузнецовцы). Но величайший прорыв американского частного сектора.

Откуда информация про бюджетные деньги? Бюджетных денег в обоих разработках меньше половины. Некоторые наоборот ругают NASA за требование чатных денег, говорят что может быть Rocketplane-Kistler не загнулся бы. Им ведь перекрыли финансирование потому, что они не внесли достаточно частных денег. А Орбитал и СпейсИкс - внесли. Я уж не говорю про то, что всякая собака знает откуда взялись AJ26. И потом давайте сравним как NASA потратило в 20..30 раз больше и смогло запустить только недоделок с 4-май сегментами и макетом 2-й ступени, а тут в 20..30 раз меньше и уже 2 пуска, да еще КК. Любому идиоту видно, что величайший прорыв частного сектора налицо.

[Salo]

http://www.orbital.com/TaurusII/

AJ26 Engine Acceptance Test Successful[/size]

February 2011
On February 7, 2011 personnel from Orbital, Aerojet and the NASA Stennis Space Center successfully conducted an acceptance hot fire test of engine #2 (or E2) AJ26 flight engine that will power the first stage of the Taurus II launch vehicle.
                             
The 54-second test gauged the engine’s performance to ensure its readiness to support continued testing and operations, up to and including launch.  The engine firing included Pitch and Yaw excursions to 4 degrees amplitude using the hydraulic Thrust Vector Control (TVC) system.  A preliminary analysis of the engine and TVC data shows that all test objectives were met.  In late December, engine #1 successfully completed acceptance testing.  Engines #1 and #2 will now ship to the Wallops Island Flight Facility where they will be integrated with a Taurus II 1st stage booster, which is already at Wallops. The fully integrated booster will then be readied for an on-pad hot-fire static test which is currently scheduled for Summer 2011.

Orbital plans to perform an acceptance test firing at Stennis of each AJ26 engine prior to use on the Taurus II Launch Vehicle.


Close up of the AJ26 engine hot fire


A view of the Stennis E-1 stand during the test


End of test

[Ярослав]

End of test

это его так прожарило до красна ?

[Брабонт]

Это его так осветило снаружи.

[Salo]

http://www.spacenews.com/launch/110217-nasa-funds-taurus2-track.html

Thu, 17 February, 2011
NASA Funds Keep August Debut of Orbital's Taurus 2 on Track[/size]
By Peter B. de Selding

    PARIS — Satellite and rocket manufacturer Orbital Sciences on Feb. 17 said it has begun receiving cash from NASA to prepare for an inaugural flight of the Taurus 2 rocket, now set for August, to prove the vehicle's operational status in advance of a flight carrying the company's Cygnus cargo capsule.

    Dulles, Va.-based Orbital said NASA has committed about $40 million of a planned $120 million needed for the no-payload Taurus 2 launch, being funded in part by NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program.

    While doubts remain about how much NASA can spend in 2011 while it awaits final budget approval, the U.S. agency has found the initial funds needed to permit Orbital to work on the Taurus 2 risk-reduction flight at least through early April, Orbital Chief Executive David W. Thompson said in a conference call with investors.

    If NASA's budget authority is confirmed by then, he said, the remaining $80 million should be forthcoming.

    Assuming the Taurus 2 risk-reduction flight occurs without major problems in August, the vehicle could launch again in November or December, this time with the Cygnus capsule. Cygnus is intended to deliver supplies to the international space station.

    "Schedules remain tight and cost pressures continue" as Orbital prepares the new Wallops Island, Va., spaceport and the rocket and Cygnus hardware, J.R. Thompson, the company's chief operating officer, said during the conference call. Current plans, he said, call for the vehicle's transporter/erector system to arrive in March, with a 20-second test firing of the Taurus 2 first stage scheduled to occur on the launch pad in July.

    Orbital is under contract to launch eight Taurus 2 vehicles with pressurized Cygnus capsules to the international space station between 2012 and 2015 as part of NASA's Commercial Resupply Service (CRS) program. David Thompson said the company booked $275 million in COTS and CRS revenue in 2010, and that this work should generate between $315 million and $325 million in revenue in 2011.

    Much of the CRS funding is released piecemeal, with a portion of the payments following each successful mission. As of Dec. 31, Orbital had $350 million in CRS funding listed as firm backlog.

    Orbital's Gilbert, Ariz.-based satellite manufacturing facility, purchased from General Dynamics for $55 million in mid-2010, generated $70 million in revenue for the year and is on track to climb to an annual revenue figure of about $100 million. For the three months ending Dec. 31, the facility reported $22 million in revenue.

    Orbital, which in January won a contract to assemble and test 81 Iridium Next mobile communications satellites, has agreed to pay McLean, Va.-based Iridium Communications a nonrefundable $10 million deposit to reserve up to 20 percent of the capacity being made available on those satellites for payloads owned by government agencies or other institutions.

    Iridium has set aside space measuring no more than 30 by 40 by 70 centimeters on each satellite for hosted payloads requiring no more than 50 watts of power on average, with peak demand of 200 watts. Iridium is reserving a data downlink capability of 100 kilobits per second, on average, for each satellite's hosted payload.

    Iridium has said that if Orbital exercises its option, it will pay up to $100 million over 15 years for the hosted-payload service. David Thompson said Orbital, which he said has been involved with hosted payloads on five or six of its satellites in the past, views the Iridium opportunity as "the most exciting hosted payload opportunity that we have ever seen. But it's a perishable opportunity that comes along once every decade-and-a-half."

    Because of Iridium's intersatellite communications links that can deliver data to a given ground reception point, hosted payload customers need not worry about developing their own ground infrastructure. "It comes pretty much for free," David Thompson said, adding that potential hosted payloads include sensors for science, meteorology, air-traffic control, missile warning and space situational awareness. He said Orbital has an option of increasing its allocation of Iridium's hosted payload space beyond 20 percent "depending on market demand."

    Meanwhile, Orbital booked two orders for its Star 2 commercial telecommunications satellite platform in 2010, one less than the company had expected. For 2011, David Thompson said he expects global orders for geostationary-orbiting commercial telecommunications satellites to drop to 18-20 from 22 in 2010, with between four and six of these to be in Orbital's weight class. Of these, he said, Orbital hopes for three contracts.

    On the strength of an exceptionally strong year-end performance, Orbital reported $1.29 billion in revenue for 2010, up 15 percent over 2009. Operating income, at $73 million, was up by 39.6 percent, for a 5.6 percent operating margin. Orbital Chief Financial Officer Garrett E. Pierce said Orbital forecasts revenue in 2011 to grow to between $1.3 billion and $1.35 billion.

[Salo]

http://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=15457.msg693791#msg693791

Orbital Sciences announced today in its 2010 4th quarter earnings webcast that a 20-sec test firing will take place at the MARS 0-A launch pad in July 2011.

NASA approved the risk reduction COTS flight at a contract value of $120 million with the flight anticipated to occur in August 2011.

The second COTS flight is anticipated for mid-November 2011.

Currently there are 5 Taurus II rockets in production.