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.

[Donger]

[keg in kc]

I hope I'm still alive to see man go to Mars.

[Saulbadguy]

Looks like a Saturn V with SRB's.

[Huffmeister]

But I thought America didn't have a space program anymore... /average American

[Donger]

Originally Posted by Huffmeister

But I thought America didn't have a space program anymore... /average American

Manned space flight? No, we don't right now.

[vailpass]

Originally Posted by Huffmeister

But I thought America didn't have a space program anymore... /average American

But I thought I was clever/you

[Donger]

Originally Posted by Saulbadguy

Looks like a Saturn V with SRB's.

Yes, it does. The first stage appears to be powered by five of the engines used on the shuttle, with massive help from two shuttle SRBs. The second stage is apparently powered by a single J-2 engine, which powered the second and third stage on the Saturn V.

[Rooster]

I just thought of something. There is a lot of room on these crafts for advertising. That could help funding. Kinda like Nascar but not really.

[Radar Chief]

Next level of HAARP development, taking weather manipulating satellites to foreign planets? Must be Beta phase of testing, getting it out to selected customers to seeing what they think.

[Dave Lane]

Awesome

[Donger]

[Hydrae]

Am I reading that right, a $10B rocket? As in each rocket will cost that much?

I am a big supporter of space travel but that is crazy expensive. We really do need to get private industry more involved, they will do it for less money and only those interested can risk their money instead of doing it on a federal level.

[Donger]

Originally Posted by Hydrae

Am I reading that right, a $10B rocket? As in each rocket will cost that much?

No.

[Sofa King]