NASA Unveils New Giant Rocket for Deep Space Missions

[Donger]

http://www.space.com/12941-nasa-unve...ch-system.html

NASA has finally revealed its design for the agency's next-generation heavy-lift rocket to carry astronauts on future deep space missions.

The agency announced today (Sept. 14) that the Space Launch System (SLS) will include hardware and technology that are legacies from the space shuttle and now-defunct Constellation programs. The $10 billion booster will use liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen fuel, and will have solid rocket boosters for initial tests flights, agency officials said.

NASA administrator and former space shuttle astronaut Charles Bolden unveiled the new design during a press conference at the Senate Dirksen Building in Washington. [Photos and Video of NASA's New Giant Rocket]

"This launch system will create good-paying American jobs, ensure continued U.S. leadership in space, and inspire millions around the world," Bolden said in a statement. "President Obama challenged us to be bold and dream big, and that's exactly what we are doing at NASA. While I was proud to fly on the space shuttle, kids today can now dream of one day walking on Mars."

The rocket's first test flight is targeted for the end of 2017, agency officials said in a statement.

Last year, Obama challenged NASA to send astronauts to an asteroid by 2025 and on to Mars by the mid-2030s, shaping the agency's deep space exploration plan following the retirement of the 30-year space shuttle program. [Gallery: NASA's SLS Rocket for Deep Space Flights]

The Space Launch System is a cornerstone of the plan to launch a crewed space capsule on deep space missions beyond low-Earth orbit. This capsule, called the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV), is based heavily on initial designs for NASA's Orion spacecraft in the moon-oriented Constellation program that was canceled last year.

"NASA has been making steady progress toward realizing the president's goal of deep space exploration, while doing so in a more affordable way," NASA deputy administrator Lori Garver said in a statement. "We have been driving down the costs on the Space Launch System and Orion contracts by adopting new ways of doing business and project hundreds of millions of dollars of savings each year."

Bolden was joined for the announcement today by U.S. Senators Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) and Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), who have both been steadfast SLS supporters.

The huge rocket has been embroiled in controversy, and lawmakers have accused the White House and NASA of stalling on fixing the rocket's design plans and inflating budget estimates for the new booster.

Last week, two U.S. senators accused the Obama administration of trying to sabotage the next-generation launch vehicle by "wildly" inflating the program's cost. The accusation came after internal NASA cost estimates totaling nearly $63 billion through 2025 were leaked in a report published in The Wall Street Journal.

[Skyy God]

Originally Posted by BWillie

Exactly. I dont care what happens to this earth, anyone or thing once i take my dirt nap. I never fault anyone for keeping their own interests at heart.

In all probability, any space exploration is a waste of money for any current generation.

You know who else feels they wasted money? The taxpayers than funded your education.

[mikey23545]

Originally Posted by BWillie

Exactly. I dont care what happens to this earth, anyone or thing once i take my dirt nap. I never fault anyone for keeping their own interests at heart.

In all probability, any space exploration is a waste of money for any current generation.

Originally Posted by Cave Johnson

You know who else feels they wasted money? The taxpayers than funded your education.

Originally Posted by mikey23545

"For more details of today’s test flight, read our detailed breakdown of the four-and-a-half-hour flight. Orion will orbit the Earth twice, before reentering the atmosphere at 20,000 mph — a high velocity that’s necessary for adequate testing of Orion’s heat shields. If everything goes to plan today, there’ll be another test flight in 2017 — powered by NASA’s new Space Launch System rocket."


Sweet Jeebus...Three years before the next TEST flight?!?!?!?

Wait a minute...if we can cop a refund on all the education costs of people in this country like BWillie, I bet we can move that next test flight up to next year!

[Easy 6]

Heres yet another reason not to buy into all of the handwringing about "oh no, NASA is being defunded left and right, we cant go to the ISS on our own anymore, America is losing the new space race edge!" talk.

Our space program is probably more robust than ever, its just that the funding and technology comes through a more circuitous route than it used to, its kept more tightly under wrap... the things we arent aware of would blow our collective minds in my strongly read opinion.

[Fish]

[Crying Ramtard]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWOzUzJd6wM

[Discuss Thrower]

Originally Posted by Easy 6

Heres yet another reason not to buy into all of the handwringing about "oh no, NASA is being defunded left and right, we cant go to the ISS on our own anymore, America is losing the new space race edge!" talk.

Our space program is probably more robust than ever, its just that the funding and technology comes through a more circuitous route than it used to, its kept more tightly under wrap... the things we arent aware of would blow our collective minds in my strongly read opinion.

America spends next to nothing on the space program.

[Easy 6]

Originally Posted by Discuss Thrower

America spends next to nothing on the space program.

Its called a Black Budget and in 2012 the number 52.8 billion, you dont think a whole lotta that money went into different space programs? Do you think America would willingly cede dominance of space?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_budget

[DaFace]

Originally Posted by Easy 6

Its called a Black Budget and in 2012 the number 52.8 billion, you dont think a whole lotta that money went into different space programs? Do you think America would willingly cede dominance of space?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_budget

That's much more about defense than it is about exploration. I seriously doubt any of that money went to trying to get to Mars.

[DaFace]

Originally Posted by Fish

Cool shot. I really need to get down to Florida one of these days to watch one of these things (or the Falcon Heavy) take off. It's gotta be intense.

[Discuss Thrower]

Originally Posted by Easy 6

Its called a Black Budget and in 2012 the number 52.8 billion, you dont think a whole lotta that money went into different space programs? Do you think America would willingly cede dominance of space?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_budget

What DaFace said, and consider that the US owns the planet's orbit for the moment which is all that matters.

That's all the military cares about until there is a strategic reason to do anything else. There's no reason in the Pentagon's eyes to do more than be able to shoot down opposing satellites because nobody else can get a strategic advantage beyond that at this time.

This will change if Helium3 becomes a critical fuel source in the near future, of course.

[mikey23545]

Originally Posted by DaFace

Cool shot. I really need to get down to Florida one of these days to watch one of these things (or the Falcon Heavy) take off. It's gotta be intense.

Hope you're not in a hurry for anything exciting...


"The MPCV's debut unmanned test flight, known as Exploration Flight Test 1 (EFT-1), was launched aboard a Delta IV Heavy rocket on December 5, 2014 on a flight lasting 4 hours and 24 minutes, landing at its target in the Pacific Ocean at 10:29 Central (delayed from the previous day due to technical problems). The first manned mission is not expected to take place until 2021 at the earliest."

[bevischief]

The US does not admit to anything till the replacement is on line. The Shuttle program paid the for the B1 Bomber.

[DaFace]

Originally Posted by mikey23545

Hope you're not in a hurry for anything exciting...


"The MPCV's debut unmanned test flight, known as Exploration Flight Test 1 (EFT-1), was launched aboard a Delta IV Heavy rocket on December 5, 2014 on a flight lasting 4 hours and 24 minutes, landing at its target in the Pacific Ocean at 10:29 Central[3][4][16][17] (delayed from the previous day due to technical problems[18]). The first manned mission is not expected to take place until 2021 at the earliest."

Eh, that would be awesome for sure, but I'm going for the power, not the history. Anything with three rockets would be plenty (and even just one for that matter).