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MAJOR space news.....

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  • MAJOR space news.....

    First Bigelow Aerospace launched its Genesis-I inflatable habitat testbed. This was done on a converted Russian ICBM, but Bigelows goal was using the SpaceX Falcon 9 for the much larger Nautilus (330 cu/meters) man rated habitats.

    This plan has been slowed by SpaceX's trouble in getting even Falcon 1 to fly.

    Later NASA awarded the CEV/Orion contract to Lockheed Martin, which promply releases lunar lander (LSAM) concepts that look very much like Space 199's Eagle transport. Most of these had inflatable airlocks.

    Now comes news that Bigelow is planning to fly human-rated Sundancer class 3 man inflatable habs by 2010 on human-rated Atlas V 401 boosters (smallest of the Atlas boosters), which happens to be built by......Lockheed Martin.

    A total of 3 Sundancers are planed to be launched by 2012.

    Sundancer would have a mass of 8,618.4 kilograms and be equipped with life support systems, attitude control, three windows, on-orbit maneuverability, reboost and de-orbit capability. This sounds like a command module and not a 'living space' hab like Nautilus. Add Bigelows 6-way hub and you have a full system.

    NASASpaceflight media use policy NASASpaceflight is dedicated to telling the story of space and sharing…


    If the planned Jan. 30 launch of Bigelow Aerospace's Genesis 2 space module on a Russian Dnepr rocket is successful, Las Vegas entrepreneur Robert Bigelow plans to send a human-rated habitat into orbit in either the second half of 2009 or the first half o


    This could cause a shakeup on several fronts. Firstly a human-rated Atlas 401 should make a human-rated Atlas V Heavy possible. BIG.

    It could also mean one of the private spaceships (Dragon, t/Space CXV, Dream Chaser spaceplane, Blue Origin etc.) could be brought into the mix to provide not only proven launchers but a Bigelow space station and capsules to get there and to the ISS.

    All of this before NASA can even get on its shorts with Orion, which isn't supposed to fly with a crew until at least 2014.
    Last edited by Dr Mordrid; 22 September 2006, 18:30.
    Dr. Mordrid
    ----------------------------
    An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

    I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps
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