DOCSLIB.ORG

Houston Section July/August 2005

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Houston Section July/August 2005 Volume 30, Number 6 AIAA Houston Section www.aiaa-houston.org July/August 2005 Accelerating the Crew Exploration Vehicle STEVE KING, AIAA HOUSTON CHAIR Almost everyone is in agree- the first spacecraft of its weeks later which included as ment that the United States kind since the Apollo Com- part of its charter these words: needs a new means to safely mand Module." and effectively put humans into Assessing the top-level CEV low-Earth orbit (LEO) and the Initial NASA plans called for the requirements and plans to space beyond – this being re- first, "boilerplate" flight tests of enable CEV to provide crew cently reinforced by the suspen- the CEV to occur in 2008. They transport to ISS, and acceler- sion of Shuttle flights as a re- were to be followed by ate the development of the sult of debris shedding on STS- more capable, un- CEV and crew-launch system HOUSTON 114. The development of the crewed flight tests in to reduce the gap between Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) 2011 which would Shuttle orbiter retirement is envisioned as our follow-on lead to an opera- and CEV initial operational vehicle for human space trans- tional, crewed capability (IOC). portation. The question now is: capability in Image at right: Initial Crew Explora- when can we realistically expect 2014. This As of this writing the official tion Vehicle concept from Lockheed to see the first crewed flight of plan un- results of this team study will Martin - Crew Vehicle (top) with the the CEV? From approval to pro- nerved not be released until August mission module (center) and the ceed (ATP) to Gemini’s first many or September 2005. It is Trans-Earth Injection Module crewed flight, Gemini 3, was 40 law- generally believed that their (bottom). The Trans-Earth Injection Module would be used to return the months. Apollo 7, the first assessment will call for an CEV from lunar missions back to crewed flight of Apollo, flew 84 IOC to transport crews to ISS Earth. [Northrop/Boeing has not re- months after ATP and includes and back again to be avail- leased any concept art at this time.] the setback of Apollo 1. If the able by no later than mid Image courtesy of Lockheed Martin. Apollo 1 fire had not occurred 2011. This is roughly 89 and the mission launched as months from the President’s planned, the duration would CEV announcement. Later have been 64 months. Many versions of the CEV will still Contents challenges must be addressed need to operate for extended before this new spacecraft duration in close proximity to Accelerating the Crew Exploration 1 takes flight. or on the surface of the Vehicle Moon and Mars. Chair’s Corner 2 On January 14, 2004 the offi- makers cial clock on CEV started when who do not While accelerating CEV to From the Editor 2 President George W. Bush an- want the minimize the gap be- Letters to the Editor 6 nounced the CEV as part of the United States tween Shuttle retire- NASA Space Act 8 Vision for Space Exploration to have to rely ment and CEV IOC Staying Informed 8 (VSE): on other coun- is a great idea, Membership Page 9 tries to catch a many program- "Our second goal is to de- ride to the In- matic - not nec- Books: Risk and Exploration 10 velop and test a new space- ternational essarily techni- Annual Technical Symposium Report 12 craft, the Crew Exploration Space Station cal challenges - Advent Launch Services Seeks Help 13 Vehicle, by 2008, and to (ISS) after Shut- must be dealt conduct the first manned tle retirement in with. These in- LnL Summary: ISS Phantom Torque 14 mission no later than 2014. 2010. In April clude: Outreach and Education 15 The Crew Exploration Vehi- 2005 during his Section Announcements 15 cle will be capable of ferry- Senate confirmation Budget: CEV Calendar 16 ing astronauts and scien- hearing, new NASA Ad- must be ade- tists to the Space Station ministrator Dr. Mike Griffin quately funded Cranium Cruncher 17 after the shuttle is retired. called for accelerating the CEV to have any Odds and Ends 18 But the main purpose of this program to bring it into service likelihood of Upcoming Conference Presentations 21 spacecraft will be to carry as soon as possible. He estab- meeting a shortened astronauts beyond our orbit lished an Exploration Systems schedule. This may result in AAS Conference 22 to other worlds. This will be Architecture Study team two- (Continued on page 4) Mission Statement / Membership 24 Page 2 Chair’s Corner STEVE KING, AIAA HOUSTON CHAIR Happy New Year! No, you have- Making all this possible comes up a whole new world of interac- n’t picked up an old issue of the from the teamwork and volun- tion with others regardless if newsletter. Each July the Hous- teer time of members serving they are competitors, execu- ton Section kicks off a new ad- on the Section’s Executive tives, elected officials, educa- ministrative year, and this one Council and its committees. tors or students. In addition, promises to offer a lot of con- Lance Armstrong could not have you might not be aware that tent and variety as a service to won his 7th consecutive Tour de some employers will cover all or our membership and commu- France without the help of his part of your AIAA membership nity. Our technical committees teammates and other riders in based on your level of involve- will be hosting a diverse selec- the peloton. The Houston Sec- ment. Another benefit to con- tion of lunch n’ learns and we tion is fortunate to have team- sider. are working to secure dinner mates that give of their time meeting speakers to discuss and can be counted upon in These are exciting and dynamic topics ranging from non- turning our plans into reality. times for all of us in the busi- traditional space to the restora- We are always looking to add to ness of human spaceflight with tion of JSC’s Saturn V. Plus our team and get more mem- many new begins – Shuttle Re- throw in a “space trivia” night to bers involved. Whether your turn to Flight, the start of Crew determine who has local brag- interest is in technical ex- Exploration Vehicle Phase 1, ging rights. All of this will be change, professional develop- new NASA top leadership, com- complemented by outings, so- ment, community outreach, mercial bidding for Space Sta- cials, tours, a kid’s balsa glider public policy or networking, tion cargo services, the X-PRIZE workshop, a Student Paper Con- there is a place for you. Ever Cup, etc. May your association ference, our Annual Technical wonder what’s happening out- with AIAA serve you well as we Symposium, and much more. side of your local work organiza- seek to explore. Let’s continue Stay tuned in for details. tion? Getting involved can open the journey… -SK From the Editor JON S. BERNDT, EDITOR, “HORIZONS” We’ve finally seen the return to shuttle program is at its lowest target, some was misleading, flight of the space shuttle, and a point in the past 20 years. some was sensationalized, and successful landing. Some have These figures beg the answer to some was incorrect. For in- referred to this mission as a the question: what information stance, of the solid rocket very successful test flight (it do American citizens draw from boosters, he wrote: “Solid rock- was an acknowledged test to form their opinions? From ets can fail in two ways. They flight) – even among the more respected space industry publi- can explode; enough said. Or successful missions of the shut- cations? From network news they can shut down spontane- tle program. Yet, we also wit- coverage? From publications ously. If a booster shuts down, nessed a couple of unexpected that write of space events only there will be 2.5 million pounds events. The press seized on the when there is a sensational of thrust on one side battling loss of some foam on the ET – a event that can be spun to sell zero pounds on the other.” Solid significant event, to be sure. In as many issues as possible? rockets in general can (and the media frenzy that followed, have) exploded, but according The New York Times labeled the Words matter. People can be to ATK Thiokol, the STS SRB shuttle as an old jalopy. Some misled. Bad information sticks propellant cannot detonate. And are asking if it's ready for retire- around for a long time. Here’s a I’m not aware of any solid ment (if not for ISS and our in- specific example: In 1980, rocket booster that has sponta- ternational obligations, the deci- sometimes-sports-writer and neously shut down. Neither of sion on whether to retire the avowed shuttle critic Gregg Mr. Easterbrook’s “two ways” shuttle program before 2010 Easterbrook wrote what could was the way that Challenger’s would of course be a lot more be viewed as the journalistic SRB failed. In addition, he clear-cut). Some opinion writers equivalent of shooting fish in a stated in no uncertain terms, have even called the return to barrel. In “Beam Me Out Of This “You've probably heard, for in- flight a failure, viewing the en- Death Trap, Scotty”, Mr. Easter- stance, that the space shuttle tire flight in narrower terms. brook wrote of the engineering will retrieve damaged satellites hurdles the shuttle program and return them to earth for According to a recent CBS poll was overcoming at the time.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Toward a History of the Space Shuttle an Annotated Bibliography
    Toward a History of the Space Shuttle An Annotated Bibliography Part 2, 1992–2011 Monographs in Aerospace History, Number 49 TOWARD A HISTORY OF THE SPACE SHUTTLE AN ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY, PART 2 (1992–2011) Compiled by Malinda K. Goodrich Alice R. Buchalter Patrick M. Miller of the Federal Research Division, Library of Congress NASA History Program Office Office of Communications NASA Headquarters Washington, DC Monographs in Aerospace History Number 49 August 2012 NASA SP-2012-4549 Library of Congress – Federal Research Division Space Shuttle Annotated Bibliography PREFACE This annotated bibliography is a continuation of Toward a History of the Space Shuttle: An Annotated Bibliography, compiled by Roger D. Launius and Aaron K. Gillette, and published by NASA as Monographs in Aerospace History, Number 1 in December 1992 (available online at http://history.nasa.gov/Shuttlebib/contents.html). The Launius/Gillette volume contains those works published between the early days of the United States’ manned spaceflight program in the 1970s through 1991. The articles included in the first volume were judged to be most essential for researchers writing on the Space Shuttle’s history. The current (second) volume is intended as a follow-on to the first volume. It includes key articles, books, hearings, and U.S. government publications published on the Shuttle between 1992 and the end of the Shuttle program in 2011. The material is arranged according to theme, including: general works, precursors to the Shuttle, the decision to build the Space Shuttle, its design and development, operations, and management of the Space Shuttle program. Other topics covered include: the Challenger and Columbia accidents, as well as the use of the Space Shuttle in building and servicing the Hubble Space Telescope and the International Space Station; science on the Space Shuttle; commercial and military uses of the Space Shuttle; and the Space Shuttle’s role in international relations, including its use in connection with the Soviet Mir space station.
    [Show full text]
  • Reflections on the Space Age ~
    PART III. REFLECTIONS ON THE SPACE AGE ~ CHAPTER 18 AM ELANCHOLIC SPACE AGE ANNIVERSARY Walter A. McDougall y sincere thanks to Steven Dick, Roger Launius, and the entire space Mhistory and space policy communities for inviting an old dilettante like myself to this event. Some of you good people I’ve not seen since we commemorated the 40th anniversary of Sputnik, and some of you doubtless I shall not have occasion to meet again. That alone makes this a somewhat melancholy affair for me. But I also have a sense that the 50th anniversary of the birth of the Space Age is draped with a certain melancholy. Do you sense a mood of disappointment, frustration, impatience over the failure of the human race to achieve much more than the minimum extrapolations made back in the 1950s, and considerably less than the buoyant expectations expressed as late as the 1970s? After all, one modest prediction went like this: “There are few today who do not look forward with feelings of confidence that spaceflight will some day be accomplished. All that we require is to make rocket motors somewhat larger than those already in existence . the pooling of skills already available, and a good deal of money . We may reasonably suppose that a satellite vehicle is entirely practicable now and that travel to the moon is attainable in the next fifty years.”1 That was Dr. Hugh Dryden in 1953, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Wright brothers’ flight. (Indeed, if all of us interviewed by the media this month have accomplished anything I think we have at last disabused journalists of the notion that the Eisenhower administration was “surprised” by the first satellite launch.) But what that means is that all the satellites, space probes, and human missions launched over 50 years amount pretty much to what Dryden took for granted would happen.
    [Show full text]
  • NASA Administrator's Symposium
    NASA ADMINISTRATOR’S SYMPOSIUM Risk and Exploration EARTH, SEA AND THE STARS National Aeronautics and STEVEN J. DICK AND KEITH L. COWING, EDITORS Space Administration Office of External Relations NASA History Division NASA Headquarters Washington, DC 20546 NASA SP-2005-4701 NASA SP-2005-4701 Risk and Exploration EARTH, SEA AND THE STARS Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Risk and exploration: Earth, sea and the stars, NASA administrator’s symposium, September 26-29, 2004, Naval Postgraduate School Monterey, California / Steven J. Dick and Keith L. Cowing, editors. p. cm. 1. Scientific expeditions—Congresses. 2. Underwater exploration—Congresses. 3. Outer space—Exploration—Congresses. 4. Technology—Risk assessment—Congresses. 5. Science—Moral and ethical aspects—Congresses. I. Dick, Steven J. II. Cowing, Keith L. Q115.R57 2005 910’.9--dc22 2005004470 Risk and Exploration EARTH, SEA AND THE STARS NASA Administrator’s Symposium September 26–29, 2004 Naval Postgraduate School Monterey, California STEVEN J. DICK AND KEITH L. COWING, EDITORS National Aeronautics and Space Administration Office of External Relations NASA History Division Washington, DC NASA SP-2005-4701 TWENTY YEARS FROM NOW YOU WILL BE MORE DISAPPOINTED BY THE THINGS YOU DIDN’T DO THAN BY THE ONES THAT YOU DID DO. SO THROW OFF THE BOWLINES. SAIL AWAY FROM THE SAFE HARBOR. CATCH THE TRADE WINDS IN YOUR SAILS. EXPLORE. DREAM. DISCOVER. Attributed to Mark Twain Contents Acknowledgments STEVEN J. DICK vii KEITH L. COWING Invitation Letter SEAN O’KEEFE ix Introduction SCOTT HUBBARD 1 The Vision for Exploration SEAN O’KEEFE 3 Race to the Moon JAMES LOVELL 11 Bold Endeavors: Lessons from JACK STUSTER 21 Polar and Space Exploration Discussion 35 SESSION ONE—EARTH Hunting Microbial Communities in DALE ANDERSEN 43 Dry Antarctic Valley Lakes High-Altitude Mountaineering ED VIESTURS 49 Exploring the Deep Underground PENELOPE J.
    [Show full text]
  • Michael Griffin and NASA’S Return to the Moon
    Launching a New Mission: Michael Griffin and NASA’s Return to the Moon W. Henry Lambright Professor of Public Administration and Political Science The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs Syracuse University Organizational Transformation Series Transformation Organizational 2009 ORGANIZATIONAL TRANSFORMATION SERIES Launching a New Mission: Michael Griffin and NASA’s Return to the Moon W. Henry Lambright Professor of Public Administration and Political Science The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs Syracuse University TABLE OF CONTENTS Foreword ..............................................................................................5 Executive Summary ..............................................................................6 Introduction .........................................................................................7 Griffin’s Background and Style .......................................................8 Year One (2005): Fast Start, Troubled End ........................................10 Appointment................................................................................10 Getting Underway .......................................................................11 Completing the Leadership Team .................................................12 A Shuttle Setback .........................................................................13 Deciding How to Go to the Moon...............................................14 Revisiting the Moon-Mars Decision .............................................15
    [Show full text]
  • Executive Response to Changing Fortune: Sean O'keefe As NASA
    O ctobe R 2 0 0 5 Executive Response to Changing Fortune: Sean O’Keefe as NASA Administrator NASA/KSC W. Henry Lambright Professor of Public Administration and Political Science, and Director, Science and Technology Policy Program The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs Syracuse University Transformation of Organizations Series Space Shuttle Discovery takeoff, July 26, 2005 TRansFORMATIon OF ORGanIZATIons SERIES Executive Response to Changing Fortune: Sean O’Keefe as NASA Administrator W. Henry Lambright Professor of Public Administration and Political Science, and Director, Science and Technology Policy Program The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs Syracuse University October 2005 T ABL E O F C O N TE N T S Foreword ..............................................................................................5 Executive Summary ..............................................................................6 The Executive Challenge: Responding to Changing Fortune .................9 The Executive as Consolidator and Incremental Innovator: O’Keefe in 2002 .................................................................................13 Introduction .................................................................................13 O’Keefe: Background ...................................................................13 The International Space Station (ISS) ............................................14 Appointment to NASA .................................................................15 A Year of Quiet Change
    [Show full text]
  • Next Generation Exploration Conference-2
    NASA/CP–2008-214583 July 2008 Proceedings of the Next Generation Exploration Conference-2 Entrepreneurial Opportunities in Lunar Development A gathering of emerging global space leaders to design the future of space exploration Proceedings of a conference sponsored by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration held at NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, California February 12 - 15, 2008 NASA STI Program...in profile Since its founding, NASA has been dedicated to • CONFERENCE PUBLICATION. Collected the advancement of aeronautics and space sci- papers from scientific and technical conferences, ence. The NASA scientific and technical infor- symposia, seminars, or other meetings sponsored mation (STI) program plays a key part in helping or co-sponsored by NASA. NASA maintain this important role. • SPECIAL PUBLICATIONS. Scientific, tech- The NASA STI program operates under the aus- nical, or historical information from NASA pro- pices of the Agency Chief Information Officer. grams, projects, and missions, often concerned It collects, organizes, provides for archiving, with subjects having substantial public interest. and disseminates NASA’s STI. The NASA STI program provides access to the NASA Aeronau- • TECHNICAL TRANSLATION. English- tics and Space Database and its public interface, language translations of foreign scientific and the NASA Technical Report Server, thus provid- technical material pertinent to NASA’s mission. ing one of the largest collections of aeronautical and space science STI in the world. Results are Specialized services also include creating custom published in both non-NASA channels and by thesauri, building customized databases, and NASA in the NASA STI Report Series, which organizing and publishing reserach results. includes the following report types: For more information about NASA STI program, • TECHNICAL PUBLICATIONS.
    [Show full text]
  • Archaeology, Anthropology, and Interstellar Communication / Edited by Douglas A
    Edited by Douglas A. Vakoch National Aeronautics and Space Administration Office of Communications Public Outreach Division History Program Office Washington, DC 2014 The NASA History Series NASA SP-2013-4413 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Archaeology, anthropology, and interstellar communication / edited by Douglas A. Vakoch. p. cm. -- (The NASA history series) “SP-2013-4413.” 1. Life on other planets. 2. Extraterrestrial anthropology. 3. Interstellar communication. 4. Exobiology. 5. Archaeoastronomy. I. Vakoch, Douglas A. QB54.A74 2012 999--dc23 2011053528 s k o w o w /eb w.nasa.gov This publication is available as a free download at http://www.nasa.gov/ebooks. ISBN 978-1-62683-013-4 90000 9 781626 830134 To Chris Neller, for her ongoing support of the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgments ix List of Figures xi I. Introduction Reconstructing Distant Civilizations and Encountering Alien Cultures Douglas A. Vakoch xiii II. Historical Perspectives on SETI Chapter 1: SETI: The NASA Years John Billingham 1 Chapter 2: A Political History of NASA’s SETI Program Stephen J. Garber 23 Chapter 3: The Role of Anthropology in SETI A Historical View Steven J. Dick 49 III. Archaeological Analogues Chapter 4: A Tale of Two Analogues Learning at a Distance from the Ancient Greeks and Maya and the Problem of Deciphering Extraterrestrial Radio Transmissions Ben Finney and Jerry Bentley 65 Chapter 5: Beyond Linear B The Metasemiotic Challenge of Communication with Extraterrestrial Intelligence Richard Saint-Gelais 79 Chapter 6: Learning To Read Interstellar Message Decipherment from Archaeological and Anthropological Perspectives Kathryn E. Denning 95 v Archaeology, Anthropology, and Interstellar Communication Chapter 7: Inferring Intelligence Prehistoric and Extraterrestrial Paul K.
    [Show full text]
  • Exploration, Discovery, and Culture NASA’S Role in History
    Chapter 23 Exploration, Discovery, and Culture NASA’s Role in History Steven J. Dick Introduction: Space Exploration in Context Like the facets of a jewel, the overall importance of NASA and the Space Age over the last 50 years may be considered from many viewpoints, ranging from the geopolitical and technological to the educational and scientific. But no facet is more central than exploration, a concept that encompasses most of the other possibilities and arguably constitutes one of the main engines of human culture, spanning millennia. In its simplest and purest form, the Space Age may be seen as the latest episode in a long tradition of human exploration. Surveying the vast panoply of history, historians have often found “symmetry in the narrative arc of the Great Ages of Discovery” or traced that tradition back even to the Paleolithic Era in an attempt to find a “global historical context” for the Space Age.1 1. Stephen J. Pyne, “The Third Great Age of Discovery,” in Space: Discovery and Exploration, ed. Martin Collins and Sylvia Fries (New York, NY: Beaux Arts Editions, 1993); Stephen J. Pyne, “Seeking Newer Worlds: An Historical Context for Space Exploration,” in Critical Issues in the History of Spaceflight, ed. Steven J. Dick and Roger Launius (Washington, DC: NASA SP-2006-4702, 2006), pp. 7–35, available at http://history.nasa.gov/SP-2006-4702/frontmatter.pdf; J. R. McNeill, “Gigantic Follies? Human Exploration and the Space Age in Long-term Historical Perspective,” in Remembering the Space Age, ed. Steven J. Dick (Washington, DC: NASA SP-2008-4703, 2008), pp.
    [Show full text]